Topic: Lion or Lion Server

[Callie Del Noire]

With the upcoming release of OS X-Lion I'm considering which version to buy. 29.99/39.99 for regular and server version, and 3 Macs in the house. (Laptop, Media Server/Project Mini, and Desktop).  I'm still pondering which to get.  Lion seems to be about what my laptop/Project machines will use but I'm waffling between server or vanilla lion for the MacPro

Any comments among the Mac aficionados?

[Vekseid]

What are you planning on using the server for?

My worry would be it might enable some service and leave you vulnerable to attack.

[Callie Del Noire]

Mostly to expand my knowledge base. I'm working on a network admin degree but most of the stuff I am using in class is windows based. (right now my class is centered on Windows Server Edition 2003)

I got multiple machines in my home network. Though the Mac mini is offline till I need to replace my TV (The last project was to use it as a media center using iTunes/Netflix/boxee/hulu)

[Spell]

*Plops in*

Lion Server and Lion itself don't have so much differences in them. Lion Servers offers an application called Server in which you can manage stuff like accounts, permissions, and push notification streaming from mac to iDevices. Also, because everything is managed through an app, you can disable the app as well.

In short: If you like to play around a bit and expand, get Lion server =)

[Vekseid]

Mostly to expand my knowledge base. I'm working on a network admin degree but most of the stuff I am using in class is windows based. (right now my class is centered on Windows Server Edition 2003)

I got multiple machines in my home network. Though the Mac mini is offline till I need to replace my TV (The last project was to use it as a media center using iTunes/Netflix/boxee/hulu)

There's nothing that the MacOS server package can do that you can't do normally through learning launchd and installing applications through MacPorts. The server package just holds your hand and doesn't e.g. let you swap out Apache for nginx.

If you really want experience, though, I would recommend setting up Linux or FreeBSD on a system to see how real operations work. OS X broke important high-load BSD functionality for no logical reason, like kqueue, and tends not to be taken seriously because of it.

Learning launchd is valuable, however, as it or something like it will probably eventually replace cron and init in Linux and FreeBSD in general. But you can do this without Lion Server.

[Callie Del Noire]

There's nothing that the MacOS server package can do that you can't do normally through learning launchd and installing applications through MacPorts. The server package just holds your hand and doesn't e.g. let you swap out Apache for nginx.

If you really want experience, though, I would recommend setting up Linux or FreeBSD on a system to see how real operations work. OS X broke important high-load BSD functionality for no logical reason, like kqueue, and tends not to be taken seriously because of it.

Learning launchd is valuable, however, as it or something like it will probably eventually replace cron and init in Linux and FreeBSD in general. But you can do this without Lion Server.

Heh.. just what I need.. to install MORE OSes on my desktop.

[Callie Del Noire]

Well OS X Lion just dropped and I got it downloaded on my Mac Pro, turns out that OS X Lion Server is a 'add on' from the app show side so I have to pony up another 49 dollars for it. (Not QUITE as good a deal but still, not bad)

Right now it's Indexing my desktop so that Spotlight will search better.

Of note so far.

-Mission Control and Launchpad. Meh.. Mission control is going to get used about as much as it's predecessor, though I suspect if the lads at Display pad get off their butts and come up with the finger/keyboard input stuff they promised or I will be finally be buying a touch pad for my pc. Launchpad looks to make it REALLY easer to access and find a LOT of the programs that you don't have on your doc.

-Scroll Reversed. WTH? They reversed the way my scrollwheel works. I thought it was a quirk, but apparently it's a DESIGN thing. I don't know if I like it yet.

[Oniya]

-Scroll Reversed. WTH? They reversed the way my scrollwheel works. I thought it was a quirk, but apparently it's a DESIGN thing. I don't know if I like it yet.

I can see the rationale for it.  If you have a piece of paper on your desk and you want to look at the bottom, you push it away from yourself.

It would mess with my head to do it with a scroll-wheel, though.

[Callie Del Noire]

I can see the rationale for it.  If you have a piece of paper on your desk and you want to look at the bottom, you push it away from yourself.

It would mess with my head to do it with a scroll-wheel, though.

What torques me.. is with my laptop touchpad..where it makes sense.. I can switch it off.. but my scroll wheel on my desktop I can't.

Lots of nice features though.