Speed is critical, especially for content creators. But is it everything ? The assumption is that performance is the biggest determining factor when purchasing a computer. But when deciding in which platform to invest are there other things to keep in mind?

The quick answer is yes, as I broached in my previous column about choosing platforms for content creation. When standing in your local computer store comparing models you'll often encounter the techno aficionados who know by heart all the figures from the spec sheets -- they're like the guys in "High Fidelity" who know everything about bands and their records. That approach might work for consumers or enterprise buyers, but the purchase decision is more complicated for creators of digital content.

To begin with, we need to evaluate if either platform holds significant technological advantages for content applications. Next, we should consider whether our choice of computing platform will affect our ability to collaborate effectively with other content creators or if it will serve the needs and preferences of our clients.

These ultimately may be the deciding factors.

(In the spirit of full disclosure -- once again -- I remind readers that I use both computing platforms and try to fairly recognize the strengths and weaknesses of each. I have worked for companies focused on the Mac as well as Windows. But my everyday computing is done on a Macintosh.)

Love Me Two Times
Computers are wonderful, multi-purpose devices but they are not created equal. Some computers are designed to be better and faster at performing certain tasks. Features are aimed at specific users or market segments, including sometimes, although infrequently, professional content creation.

Most content pros are familiar with Apple's proprietary technologies aimed at publishing: ColorSync for color management and the AppleScript scripting language. Both architectures have been extended deeply into Mac OS X.

On the other hand, it's difficult to find something in Microsoft Windows -- even the company's latest XP flavor -- that's tailored for the creative professional. Microsoft has focused Windows development on the needs of enterprise computing and the consumer market.

Color management in Windows is "bolted on to satisfy a small part of their user base," said color consultant and creativepro contributing editor Bruce Fraser. "Applications that use color management [under Windows] ignore the OS. They do it all themselves."

Mac programs and peripherals, even ones from different vendors, take advantage of ColorSync. This system-level architecture lets users pick and choose the software and features they want, while maintaining their color management. This degree of integration and selection is unavailable to Windows users.

"To Microsoft color is simply a consumer issue," said Karl Lang, a color scientist based in Madison, Wis., pointing to the sRGB color space standard developed by Microsoft and Hewlett Packard Co. Lang said that while basic factory calibration can be now found on many monitors, "it's not where pros need to be."

A similar conclusion is reached when comparing AppleScript with Microsoft Visual Basic. AppleScript is supported by a wide range of Mac tools and it has evolved primarily to extend creative workflows. A quick tour of the VB website shows its emphasis on enterprise computing, currently Microsoft's .NET client-server architecture.

In situations where color quality and management is important, the Mac holds fundamental advantages over Windows. For production pros who want the flexibility and timesaving automation of a scripted workflow, the Mac also comes out better.

But for many content creators that's not enough.

Tell All the People
Content creation is often a solitary affair. Yet, sooner or later, most images are passed on to someone else for use in a larger work, such as a page layout or Web page.

Can the choice of computer make a difference for this collaboration? Sure. Again, ColorSync comes into the picture.

System-level color management can improve the odds that the colors will be correct and that everyone working on a project is looking at the same colors. At last year's Seybold San Francisco, Apple CEO Steve Jobs demonstrated how Mac OS X lets any imaging program -- even a simple viewer or browser -- function as part of a soft-proofing workflow.

(A brief historical note: Before Jobs returned to Apple, the company planned to port ColorSync to Windows. Some genius decided that if licensing was good for QuickTime, then it must be equally good for ColorSync. As you can imagine, this was very welcome news to publishing hardware and software vendors, as well as to system manufacturers that offered special, souped up Windows boxes to the content creation market.

(After Jobs' regime came onboard things quickly changed. I remember the stunned faces and outrage expressed at a 1999 developer meeting as Apple managers nixed the cross-platform strategy and announced that ColorSync would remain an Apple-only technology.)

To this day Microsoft does not have anything to compare to ColorSync, allowing Apple keep its place in the professional content-creation market. If color quality and image evaluation is important to your content-creation workflow, then you should acknowledge the Mac's significant color management advantage.

People are Strange
Finally, content creators must remember their clients. These are very important people to your business and it's certainly good to keep them happy. Your choice of computer platform could affect your relationship with a client, even a longstanding one.

For example, some of your customers may use server-based tools to track jobs and communicate with remote workers. Odds are likely that these remote services rely on the close integration of a Microsoft server and its client-side Office suite running on a Windows machine. This combination is impressive and the effect can be seamless -- it's just like you're sitting in the office on the wired network, when you're at home playing with the cat.

Unfortunately, the same easy integration is unavailable when using a Mac instead of a PC. Some service or other usually has trouble. Information may be readable via a Mac browser, for example, but a critical interactive feature may break. And corporate IS types are reticent to provide support for a Mac inside the company, let alone for an outside contractor.

"You really need both [Macs and Windows machines] in this world," said Leith Speights, sales manager at ProMax Systems' new Hollywood store. "The enterprise databases and calendars are all done better with a PC."

Break on Through
The question that started this screed asked for the "pros and cons of Windows machines vs. Macs." The more difficult, unspoken question was perhaps: "What computer should I buy?"

The Talmud provides some wisdom on that front: "We cannot learn everything from general principles; there may be exceptions." Only after a close examination of your specific workflow and clients should you make the call. Then try to be pleased with your purchase.

Read more by David Morgenstern.