Apple’s New Zealand online store is up and running on a Microsoft IIS server rather than Apple’s own Mac OS X, according to Computerworld: “The new site, which launched on Monday, sells direct to the public and is similar in look and feel to the other Apple online stores around the world, however it is run by Renaissance, the local Apple distributor. Head of Renaissance’s Apple division Paul Johnston says he is aware of the incongruity… ‘It uses SQL Server in the back end and the pages are written in ASP. If we wanted to change that over at a later date to PHP, which Apple uses, there’s no problem with that whatsoever… To be perfectly honest the guys at Conduit didn’t have enough experience to develop the site entirely on an Apple. They are putting some of their people through extensive training so if I decide in the future to put the site over to Apple we can.'”
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Since Apple uses Mac OS X on much larger sites than Apple New Zealand, this is not an issue except to those who want to try to make something out of nothing. Still, Apple should work with Conduit to move to Mac OS X ASAP.
Oh this is just hilarious. Cue Paul Thurrott.
Apple, get these people an XServe now. Even if you have to give it to them.
shut them down NOW
WOT? this is a joke. IIS the “WWW” (the world worse webserver) used by Apple! This is an insult.
MDN: I think you are trying to hard to protect apple on this one. This tells me that an Apple IT person went out and purchased a PC with Windows Server instead of turning to his own company and using xserver. Thats a load of crap!
MDN, if a news blurb came across saying Microsoft was using an XServe to run a website, you’d be all over that like flies on s*#&!. Don’t sit there and say this is nothing. Stuff like this makes Apple look bad. If they’re not willing to eat their own chili, then they’ve got problems.
Every apple-sanctioned site all over the world should be on XServes running Web Objects.
This isn’t nearly as funny as Microslop running Linux on their own update site. But that’s probably long forgotten by now.
I agree. That’s just wrong and they should be ashamed and embarrassed. I imagine that guy will be looking for a new job once Steve finds out.
This is a major faux pas… and MicroSoft will make much of it. Macs vs Windoz is still very much a battle of ideas, perceptions and propaganda.
There should be an immediate decree from Steve Jobs that this must NEVER happen again.
And Steve…. why did it have to happen this time?
Atomic, you beat me to it. I remember that and the uproar it caused. I certainly laughed at Microsoft for running Linux instead of IIS and people will laugh at Apple for running IIS.
No matter how you look at it, Apple screwed up on this one and I’m sure they’ll switch it to OS X Server sometime soon.
MDN: I don’t think that people are trying to make it an issue. It’s the same thing when people tried to make MS running Linux an issue (I was happy they did make it an issue because it was a good slap in the face). Apple, in it’s infinite wisdom, made an OOPSY and they’ll fix it, I’m sure….
I agree this is a non-issue, but Thurrott and Enderle will jump all over this…they are desperate for any juice they can come up with. Send a free X-serve to New Zealand…the damage that can blossom is worth far more than the cost of one unit.
The truth is that a lot of IT people know Windows and little else. Many that have UNIX backgrounds have been out of the ‘nix world for quite a while. If Microsoft can run it’s site on LINUX, what’s the problem with Apple NZ on ‘doze until they can get set up on X?
http://news.netcraft.com/archives/2003/08/17/wwwmicrosoftcom_runs_linux_up_to_a_point_.html
Not a big deal really; Microsoft still runs a part of its Hotmail on BSD-based servers. Transitions usually take time and it’ll be switched in the future I suspect.
AND Apple does NOT use PHP for the Apple Store. It is built and deployed using Apple’s own WebObjects. Why this guy has never heard of WebObjects and that it would be a much better tool than ASP or PHP is COMPLETELY Apple’s fault. The lack of marketing and awareness efforts that Apple puts behind this wonderful tool (WebObjects) will one day be a perfect business and technology school case of another missed opportunity by Apple.
Apple New Zealand looks a lot more fresh and interesting than the other Apple sites. Not only that but its made with standard XHTML and CSS.
apple.com hasn’t changed in ages and nothing seems to have happened since they hired Zeldman.
Non issue. Like the guys said – their people werent trained for the Apple solution. So what, its a real world issue. Wake up MDN it is not the end of the world.
the http://macworld.co.uk site is also run on iis
This is not new. Some time ago when I was speaking with an Apple (USA) rep about Webojects for eCommerce. I asked her what Apple was using for the Apple Store she told me it was a Pentium server (this was before Apple had the xServe out) I assume running IIS with SQL. I had to ask her more than once if she was sure of that. She said she knows it (they dont now.) They (NZ) will eventually port over with time just like Apple USA.
http://microsoft.ca is running IIS on Linux.
http://www.amd.com is running Apache on Solaris.
What a load of crap. use mysql and stop paying the user fees for SQL. This is a ASP versus WebObject, jsp, php, cgi, ect.
This guy is a blow head. This is not a database issue. The contractor is a windows shop that did the website period. There is no excuse on this. There are plenty of WebObjects developers…..and dude, you need not know how to program to use WebObjects if you don’t want.
Someone needs to loose their job…..a manager type with Windows glasses. But heads they are
In other word’s it’s NOT Apple’s site, even if they permit the NZ distributor to have it.
It isn’t uncommon for Apple to get a strategic partner to do the website and/or stores in that country. Even though Apple is global, it isn’t in every country, just some of the biggest.
http://www.apple.com/euro/cemea/
Gotta love the international politics, huh?
IIS just plain sucks. I much prefer doing admin on OS X Server than IIS any day.
Your telling me they couldnt find anyone in NZ to build their site not on Windows? any flavor of *nix will do. This is just stupid. Non-Issue, but still stupid
Hmmm..
Did they just change it ? I looked up Netcraft and it shows store.apple.co.nz running on BSD.
http://uptime.netcraft.com/up/graph?site=store.apple.co.nz&probe=1
I don’t see at all how this is a big deal. But the people who think everything microsoft does is wrong and every product they produce sucks certainly think there is something wrong. Even though the people commenting have no idea how the products work. These of course are the same people who assume apple can do no wrong. Mac user myself – don’t get me wrong. But 50% of people who post here are just sheep following the herd. Get some independant thoughts please…