Greetings,  There is no reason that a Macintosh can not be used to
play MIDI files.  They were the first to provide the ability (as with
most personal computer advances) and continue to be the best, according
to most professional musicians.  I am not familiar with the available
software but there must be some good MIDI playing programs.  I would
be very interested in hearing what others fiend to be good programs.

With respect to my files, specifically: You would not be able to play
BAR/ANN files with a Mac unless you were to run WindPlay under "Virtual
PC" or some other program that emulates a PC system.  I tried this a
while ago with a rather slow Mac and the results were not good enough.
With today's faster machines and advanced programs, this may be a
possibility today.  For the MIDI files, there is no problem at all:
just get a MIDI jukebox program and the necessary MIDI interface.
My favorite is the Roland Edirol USB adapter.

It is actually quite easy to set up a dedicated application on one
specific computer, but it's very difficult to provide a general
solution for any computer that one may want to use.  I have friends
who have worked in corporate situations where many users were given
the "exact" same computer with the same software, and minor differences
crept in during installation.  When the computers are just about
anything that is available, the problems become extreme.  It is more
a problem of the operating system than anything else.  Some computers
will work with one and not with another (if you are trying to use older
machines with newer OSs) so you are going to have significant
differences due to this alone.

Our new player, that is in the works, will solve many of the  problems
Jim Crank is having as the file handling will all be done by the
program.  We will even have an installer for program discs, that meet
certain standards, so that they self-install.  In spite of this, there
are still variations that can complicate matters.  Although the CD will
install itself, in most situations, this will fail if auto insert
notification is turned off.  In this case, the installer program will
have to be started manually.

If anyone is interested in having a particular computer set up as
a dedicated player and they do not have the necessary skills, they
can hire someone who does.  Most people struggle with their computer
problems forever when they would not even think of taking their watch
apart, which is a much simpler device.  Unfortunately, it may be
difficult to find a person who knows more than you do, but my general
recommendation is to find a young person (under 18, or they may expect
executive wages) who has a reputation for having advanced computer
skills.  They can learn anything faster than us old folks and may not
charge as much for their services.

Best regards,
Spencer Chase
Garberville, CA
http://www.spencerserolls.com/