Newbie asks: Windows or MAC for development?

[Guest]

I have a MacBook Pro that I love to use. But before I download the Cold Fusion Developer Application for MAC, I see that SQL Express is Windows..

Now, If I were to do Parallels on my MAC (Dual Core) would this work? I have a Window XP desktop that I can use for this, but I really would like to stay with my MAC. But I don't know if the SQL database will be accessible across the dual core platform by Cold Fusion.

Should I just go Windows XP? Or can I go MacBook Pro...........

[ilssac]

If you can make a "Network" connection between the WinXP side and the Mac side if your system, you can do it just fine.

It would likely be more realistic in the seldom does the Database management system run on the same system as the application server except in the smallest of applications.

But you are also not limited to running ColdFusion on the Mac.  There should be nothing preventing you from installing the ColdFusion application server on your WinXP parallel but do all your CFML coding on the Mac side with tools of choice, then "publish" the code to the WinXP "server".  This would also be somewhat like a real world scenario where development isn't (and shouldn't) be done on the real servers.

[Owainnorth]

As iilsac says as long as CF, the database and your machine can all see each other on the same network there's absolutely no reason this won't work.  There's nothing to stop you having ColdFusion, SQL, FTP and your IDE all running on completely different machines if you wanted to, but there comes a point where it's unnecessarily complicated.

Generally I prefer to do my development on a PC purely because, as you say, many of the tools are Windows-only, and I'd rather work locally than on a VM. That's purely personal preference mind, there's no right and wrong answer.

O.

PS except that MAC *is* wrong, it's a Mac

[Guest]

Thanks,

I think I will do the Windows side of it all, but maybe in the future I will try it separated to see if it is too complicated to mess with.

And sorry for the MAC Mac typo............ All thumbs today.......

[Guest]

answered.