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8 Reasons Going Mac Makes Sense for Dental Practices

The intense Mac vs. PC debate has been going on for years. Unfortunately, for most of that time dental professionals have been forced to watch the debate from the sidelines, because despite some compelling advantages, the Mac platform has never been a particularly realistic option for dental practices. Thats true for a variety of reasons. From the very beginning, the PC dominated most areas of the business world, including the medical and dental industries. For many years, there were no viable Mac-based practice management options available, and virtually every dental technology systemfrom imaging to insurance managementwas designed to work and integrate exclusively with PC hardware and software. That meant the legendary performance, reliability, design and simplicity that dened the Mac and caused millions to become die-hard Mac fanatics were simply unavailable to dental practices.

But times have changed. The days when Mac-loving dentists were forced to leave their iMacs and MacBooks behind when they went to work are ocially over. Because in 2013, most of the traditional platform barriers between PCs and Macs have been broken down. Macs are becoming an increasingly attractive option for all kinds of small businesses especially with the exploding popularity of Apples iPhone and iPad. And new Mac-based software solutions are making it possible for dental practices to embrace the complete Mac experience like never before. As a result, the Mac platform is nally in a position to oer dental practices the same core capabilities as the best Windows-based solutionsalong with the simplicity, quality, and sense of style that have set the Mac apart since 1984. So what are some of the biggest advantages to going Mac? What can Macs oer your practice that Windows PCs cant? And most important, does an all-Mac dental oce make sense for your practice? The answers to these questions have changed signicantly in the past couple of years, and theyre worth exploring. So here are 8 solid reasons you may want to consider (or reconsider) the role modern Macs can play in your practice.

Apple has married all the elements of its experience and connected with its customers in a deeply emotional, irrational way. Steven Walden Senior head of research and consulting, Beyond Philosophy

Iconic Design that Makes an Impression Macs have always been known for their beautiful materials and stunning functional designs. Making Macs part of your practice can instantly enhance your image and make a bold statement about your commitment to quality.

1. Enhance Your Image

In 2012, Apple held about 12 percent of the personal computer market in the United States. So why are Apple computers featured almost universally in the biggest movies and TV showsfrom Iron Man to The Devil Wears Prada ? As with most things in Hollywood, the answer is image. They need the right style to make the right impression. So although you probably wont be saving the world from aliens in the next big summer blockbuster, that softly glowing Apple in your front oce and operatories will tell patients that you value quality and simplicity. You understand the importance of world-class technology. You have a well-developed sense of creativity and style. And because most of your competitors likely use Windows PCs, the Mac makes an impact and sets you apart from the crowd. Apple, Inc., has very successfully cultivated the style, culture and image of the Mac user as young, current, ecient and real. Your patients will automatically transfer these attributes to you and your practice if youre using Macs. Janice Hurley-Trailor, Image Consultant

2. Streamline Your Operations

The Mac aesthetic starts with elegant, distinctive designs that make a strong rst impression. But the Mac is more than just another pretty face. The same craftsmanship, attention to detail and commitment to functional simplicity that drives the Macs hardware design extends to every aspect of the overall user experience. Millions of people have fallen in love with their Macs (and other Apple devices) because they make complex tasks surprisingly

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easywith clean uncluttered interfaces, simple menus and logical workows that simply work the way you expect them to no matter what application youre using. Thats certainly true of the core Mac operating system and Apples own application software. But thanks to strict development standards and an impressive array of extended capabilities built into the core operating system, its also true of most third-party software, including Viive, the latest Mac-based practice management software. Its no wonder that hundreds of small businesses have reported a noticeable rise in productivity when they switch to Mac. It also explains why Mac has developed a reputation for making work more productive, less stressful and even more funall natural by-products of spending less time guring things out and more time getting things done.

In the eight years that Apple has led the PC industry in customer satisfaction, its stock price has increased by 2,300 percent. Apples winning combination of innovation and product diversication including spinning technologies into entirely new directionshas kept the company consistently at the leading edge. Claes Fornell Founder of the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI)

3. Ditch the Glitches

Some tech experts have criticized Apple for maintaining such tight control over Mac hardware and softwareand carefully dictating the way core hardware and software components can interact with each other. Its a fundamentally dierent model than the Windows world, where Microsoft licenses its operating system software to any hardware or software vendor that meets certain requirements and relies almost exclusively on a network of partners for integration. But that level of controland the fact that every Mac computer consists of hardware and software that were developed by the same company and designed specically to work togethertranslates directly into fewer glitches and crashes, legendary performance and reliability, and lower support costs. It also helps that the core Mac OS X operating system is built on the Unix kernel, which has a well-earned reputation for stability, reliability and security. So when you make the switch to an all-Mac practice, that infamous Windows blue screen of death becomes a distant unpleasant memory. And youll almost certainly spend less time troubleshooting compatibility problems, dealing with unexpected glitches and searching for the right support number to cure your latest technology headache.

4. Invest in Technology You Can Count On

Macs are generally more expensive to buy than PCs, but you should consider the cost of the computer over its life. That initial purchase price is only a small part of your total investment. For example, how long will each machine last before you have to replace it? How much will you spend on antivirus and security software? How much time will you spend troubleshooting and resolving hardware and software problems? How good are the service, support and warranty programs when problems do pop up? Macs have a stellar track record in virtually all of these areas. Mac laptops have a lower malfunction rate than Dell, Gateway, and HP machines (http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-10400447-1.html). People use their Macs longer and replace them less frequently than Windows PCs. And the Apple Care service and support programs are consistently rated the highest in the industryespecially when you consider the unique ability to take machines to a network of local Apple Stores for troubleshooting and repairs. As a result, Apple has led the PC industry in customer satisfaction for more than eight years (http://news.cnet.com/8301-13506_3-20108336-17/apple-tops-in-customer-satisfaction-for-8th-year).

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iPads and Macs: Better Together

The phenomenal success of Apples iPad has created even more interest in Mac desktops and laptops, because both are designed to offer the same simple, elegant user experience and work flawlessly together.

The bottom line is that when you invest in Macs, you invest in well-designed, top quality, expertly supported machines you can count on over the long term. And that means lower costs and fewer problems down the road.

5. Stop Stressing (as much) about Malware and Cyberattacks

Security and compliance are top priorities for every dental practice, and hackers and malware are becoming more numerous, sophisticated and dangerous every year. In this dicult threat landscape, the Mac platform can oer you an environment thats signicantly less susceptible to malware and other forms of cyberattacks than Windows. Both Apple and Microsoft obviously work hard to keep their operating systems secure and protected against hackers and malware. But nearly all security experts agree that Macs are much less susceptible to malware for a couple of important reasons. First, the latest Mac OS X operating system is built on the Unix kernel, which has developed a solid reputation as one of the worlds most secure operating systems. Second, because the Mac operating system runs on a relatively small percentage of the worlds computers, its a much less attractive target for cybercriminals. So although Macs are certainly not immune to malware and other forms of cyberattack, the number of threats that target Macs is a small fraction of the number of Windows attacks. As a result, Mac-based dental practices are at a much lower risk for malware and cyberattacks than their Windows counterparts.

6. Enjoy the Best of Both Worlds

In 2006, Apple switched from Motorola PowerPC-based processors to Intel-based processors, which had major implications for anyone who wanted to switch to Mac but still needed to run specialized Windows applications. In this new Intel-based Apple universe, its surprisingly easy and painless to run the Windows operating system and Windows applications natively on Mac hardwareeither by using Apples Boot Camp to install Windows on a separate partition or by using products like Parallels for Mac or VMware Fusion for Mac, both of which allow you to run Windows and Mac applications side-by-side without rebooting. In most cases, we dont think it makes sense to turn a shiny, powerful new Mac into a Windows-only machine, although many dentists do, and many people claim that Mac hardware runs Windows better than most PCs. The ability to seamlessly run Mac and Windows applications side-by-side oers you the best of both worldsby allowing you to take full advantage of the speed, simplicity and reliability of the Mac platform while still running the occasional specialized Windows app whenever you need to.

7. Create the Best Foundation for Your Mobile Practice

Manhattan Research recently reported that in 2012, 62 percent of physicians used tablets in their practices. And according to InformationWeek Healthcare, the Apple iPad has emerged as the dominant tablet platform in the healthcare industry. In other words, Apple iPads are quickly becoming an integral and essential part of the healthcare and dental industries, and as more dental practices come to depend on iPads, the Mac platform becomes an even more attractive option. Because iPads and Macs are made by the same company, they both share the same kind of clean, elegant user experience. They are designed to work awlessly together. And they provide tightly integrated capabilities that Windows simply cant matchfrom Apples iCloud sharing service to the smooth, seamless integration between Mac OS X and iOS applications.

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8. Take Advantage of a Practice Management Solution that Delivers the Full Mac Experience
The Mac platform oers dental practices a long list of potential benets. But those benets remain mostly irrelevant and out of reach without a complete and viable Mac-based practice management solution. For a long time, this essential piece of the puzzle was missing. But today, Viive from Henry Schein is changing the face of Mac-based practice management with a solution that was designed from the ground up by dentists who are as passionate about the Mac as they are about dentistry. The result is a solution that combines all of the advanced clinical, front oce and nancial capabilities your practice needs with the elegance, simplicity and style of the full Mac experience. With Viive, you can: Make patients the central focus of your practice with an innovative, Mac-inspired workow where every feature, function, and task revolves around a central patient screen. This approach also eliminates the inecient module-based approach to practice management that forces you to jump among dierent screens to complete simple tasks. Experience blazing performance by matching the fast, reliable Mac OS X architecture with a exible and powerful PostgreSQL database engine. This combination delivers speed and performance Windows simply cant match, allows you to make multiple changes to patient records simultaneously from dierent workstations, and keeps all your records synchronized in real time. Take advantage of smart, advanced practice management capabilities on the Mac platform, including integrated imaging, intelligent scheduling, ecient charting, advanced note taking, eective treatment planning, perio charting, advanced e-services and much more. Get the world-class service and support you deserve. Viive is the only Mac-based practice management solution thats fully backed and supported by Henry Schein, the largest and most trusted practice management software provider in the world.

Practice Management Software Designed for the Mac

Designed from the ground up for the Mac platform, Viive brings the full simplicity, elegance and ease of use of the Mac experience to the world of dental practice management software.

Is Your Practice a Mac or a PC?

Today, only about 4 percent of small businesses are standardized on Macs. But that number is growing quickly as the Mac platform becomes more business friendly and as more people are introduced to and embrace the Mac experienceoften through their iPhone or iPad. In the dental industry, the adoption of Macs is probably even lower for many of the reasons discussed earlier. But now, the traditional barriers are gone, and there is nally a complete, viable Mac-based practice management alternative that dental professionals can depend on. So if youre already a Mac addict at home, if youre looking for ways to set your practice apart from the crowd, or if youre simply looking for a more intuitive and people-focused technology foundation for your business, its denitely time to take a fresh look at what going Mac can oer your practice. The answers will surprise you.
For more information on how Viive from Henry Schein can help bring the Mac experience to your practice, visit www.viive.com.

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www.Viive.com | 1-855-MAC-VIIVE
2013 Henry Schein Inc. All rights reserved. Henry Schein Practice Solutions makes no representations or warranties with respect to the contents or use of this documentation, and specically disclaims any express or implied warranties of title, merchantability, or tness for any particular use. All contents are subject to change. Henry Schein, Dentrix and the S logo are registered trademarks of Henry Schein, Inc. Other products are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners. C-VIWP-Q413