Macs in Libraries info?

Question

Hi, I'm a grad student, library & info science- I'm wondering if there are any Discussion users aware of public libraries that use or would consider (Apple) laptops, ideally for general use, or staff-only.
I'm in the last stage of putting together a mac-based "solution-in-a-box" for public libraries. An alternative, resource-minimal approach than that which libraries have relied on (a more-for-less answer to increasingly severe budget crunches).
There are libraries that have Mac workstations, limited to certain users, spaces, and applications (design/multimedia work certainly), but I'm aimed at more ambitious, flexible, holistic uses.
There are library-specific forums and listservs, but I thought I'd try posting here, too- tho not sure if it fits this forum. Any feedback for above, or suggestions on other sites, forums, etc. that might be useful for my research, I'd be immensely grateful.

Answer 1

I gotcha. I'm not approaching this as a mac-til-death deal, I'm entirely focused on whatever computing environment gives the best possible experience. That said, "best possible experience" is a relative thing.
I'd never (personally) consider touching Linux for the reason that A) I'm an idiot (sorry, but true), and B) in terms of a coherent and transparent environment that doesn't distract the user from their ultimate goal (not including programming), right now Apple seems to present the most cohesive user environment- although I support open source and I hope (in fact I'd even pray) it comes out on top, as far as I can tell it's not going to work for me -yet- until it speaks a language closer to my own. I exaggerate to illustrate, but I believe this approximates the hope of most users- like my parents, both smart, but "I don't want to learn it, I just need it to do what I need it to do." I can appreciate that- again, as an idiot, if nothing else.
By "goal" I'm referencing: a business plan, a videoconference, an audio recording, a presentation, a photo gallery, etc.- and by cohesive I mean a suite of applications designed specifically for the hardware that feature a common set of tools and commands. GarageBand, iChat, iMovie, iDVD, Pages, Numbers, Keynote- throw in Microsoft Office, and done. Set it to Parental, seal it up (no upgrades, etc., the software stays static) and you've got a system that can still output professional-quality work for the life of the machine (2-3 years). If the user goes beyond those capabilities, then they've graduated the system and shouldn't be expecting a library to provide more (i.e., get their own darn computer).
OSX could be better (ideally, I should just be able to tell it to do all my work and everything else) but I haven't been able to find anything better... yet. That includes the free, easy video tutorials and forums (like this one) where users (even idiots) can find help...
Ok, so, having come up with that, please tell me what's wrong with my statements here, because I know there must be some very strong, good counter-arguments...
Message was edited by: Jack Gregory