Thursday, February 10, 2005

When Steve Jobs, Apple's chief executive, introduced the $499 Mac Mini in January, he called it a "bring your own display, keyboard and mouse" machine. Implicit in that characterization is that the Mini is meant to appeal in part to PC owners who may want to give Apple a try, and who already have those peripherals connected to their Windows machines.

The trouble is, if you're going to move your keyboard, mouse and monitor to a Mac, you will no longer be able to use the PC. That may be just fine with Apple, but not for users who don't want to give up their PC. While they may be attracted to the Mac for its easy-to-use software like iPhoto and GarageBand, they may prefer their PC for games or work-related tasks, or they may have one or two PC-only programs that they can't live without.

There is a way to have your Mac and PC, too, without having to devote money or space to an extra keyboard, monitor or mouse. If you network the machines, it's also possible for them to share hard drives, printers and other peripherals.

What you need, besides the two machines, is a K.V.M. switch, a device that permits you to use a single keyboard, monitor and mouse with two or more machines. K.V.M. stands for "keyboard, video and mouse," but some K.V.M. switches also let you control your speakers and microphone. Using a switch not only saves money and desk space but adds to the capabilities of both machines by creating a system whereby the Mac and PC work together. At the risk of offending some Apple enthusiasts, Windows users could think of the Mini as a PC peripheral.