I should have placed an order for a Mac mini with a SuperDrive on the day of Steve Jobs' keynote at MacWorld, but since I didn't I'll have to get my Mac mini fix today with the box unpacking photos that were posted on UNEASYsilence.com yesterday.

There are two things that I find interesting about this photo gallery and its associated comments, other than the fact that they got a Mac mini ordered through normal channels (i.e. The Apple Store) already:

1. This series of photos is in an HTML frameset. I think that they'll miss some direct linking opportunities from other websites like Operation Gadget. A good example is the size comparison shot with a standard desktop hard drive. Yes, they've watermarked each photo with their URL, but linking to the photo directly brings up an HTML page with no navigational tools, no captions, etc.

   By using Coppermine for the Operation Gadget Photo Gallery, I'm trying to provide visitors who drop in from other sites with more obvious links to the rest of the services on the main Operation Gadget site.
   

2. Someone brought up the idea of using a Mac mini as a "file/web/print/media/server" and connecting to it via VNC. I'm not sure the Mac mini is particularly well suited to that use from a components standpoint. I would have particular concerns with the expected life of the hard disk if the Mac mini were used as a server. Maybe I'll have to do some research into this, and see if it's a real issue.

   Another issue related to using a Mac mini as a file, web, and print server is the opportunity cost, for lack of a better term. The Mac mini is pretty much designed as a "switcher's desktop Mac". Sure you can use it for a home theater or in-car project if you are a hobbyist, but why you'd want to forego the use of included applications like iLife '05 by making the machine a server is beyond me. Maybe if you already sit in front of a Mac all the time, you might think this way.