IMac Vs. PC...

Jeepnut28 · Jul 19, 2006

pros? cons? I am a PC guy do all my post processing on PC......I need to get a new computer though.......I am seriously considering a Mac...but I am unsure....

what do you use?

how do you like?

pros?

cons?

thoughts?

thebeginning · Jul 19, 2006

oohhhh this is going to start a flame topic.

Macs and PCs are both very good if you make sure to use them correctly and pick the right one for you.

I know of many photographers and graphic artists that love their PCs, and many that love their macs. At this point it's more about your personal preference than one going 'faster' than the other. if you are very sloppy in your computer's security and upkeep, you might want to consider a mac because it has more leniancy for that type of thing. If you are good with security, that's more of a non-issue.

I personally like PCs because of the layout and file system, which I have gotten VERY accustomed to. I've used macs a fair amount, and while I like some things about them, the setup and such is too foreign and I don't have the time to learn it all...I also like the fact that you can upgrade/modify a PC, which you can't do with macs. I just had a custom built PC made several months ago for processing and heavy work, and it's working amazingly without any bugs or viruses or spyware, malware, anything. Not to say that PC's can't get bus and such, but if you keep them up right it's not a big deal at all. You need to make sure to get top quality parts, too. Many big companies like dell and hp make fairly nice systems but use cheap/dated parts, making them less reliable. if you build your own or pick the parts and have someone else build it (like www.monarchcomputer.com), you can get a much nicer rig for cheaper than buying it from a big company.

you should try out an imac at an apple store. if you like what you see alot, look into getting one of them. they are high quality machines.

Jeepnut28 · Jul 19, 2006

I am also just a little bit nervous about jumping in to a IMac right now, because from what i have been told, there is not a photoshop program on the market yet that will run natively on the new intel processors that are now going in them.....

does anyone have any insight to this?

thebeginning · Jul 19, 2006

hmmm that's odd. it should depend on the OS, not the processor structure. I know pretty much every media program is available for macs, so I don't see why that wouldn't still be fine...but i don't know much about it really.

droyz2000 · Jul 19, 2006

Right now very little media software is available for the new iMacs. Adobe has not made the full conversion over to the new intel based macs. Until that happens, I would stay with a PC, unless you are willing to spend the extra money and get a Mac with OS X and XP on it. So stores will program both os's on macs and then you can get the best of both worlds.

http://www.macmall.com/macmall/families/newimac/ This website has computers with both OS X and XP Pro or Home.

LWW · Jul 19, 2006

I prefer the Mac and here's why. I really don't care whether something can redo a PhotoChop adjustment in .9 secs versus .8 secs...the limiting speed factor on both machines is ME and probably YOU.

Macs are much more uniform in operation from program to program so if you learn 1 you have learned them all, and Macs are still far more intuitive although the gap has closed.

LWW

Ihaveaquestion · Jul 19, 2006

I love my new i-mac

thebeginning · Jul 20, 2006

LWW said:
Macs are much more uniform in operation from program to program so if you learn 1 you have learned them all, and Macs are still far more intuitive although the gap has closed.

LWW

i can agree that they're a little more uniform, but i'm not sure about that middle statement...not sure what you mean. you can't use garage band then automatically know how to use photoshop right.

Ihaveaquestion · Jul 20, 2006

The short cut keys or much better on a mac.

Or so I'm told. Ive never used photoshop on a pc?

thebeginning · Jul 20, 2006

Ihaveaquestion said:
The short cut keys or much better on a mac.

Or so I'm told. Ive never used photoshop on a pc?

hmm...i've used both and they seem similar to me, except more confusing in mac (mostly because some of the buttom combinations are switched...

).

LWW · Jul 20, 2006

thebeginning said:
i can agree that they're a little more uniform, but i'm not sure about that middle statement...not sure what you mean. you can't use garage band then automatically know how to use photoshop right.

Not every feature no, but all uniform commands between the two programs will be the same.

LWW

Mohain · Jul 20, 2006

Currently photoshop WILL run on an intel iMac but it will use a hidden emulator type program called Rosetta to run it. However reports are that it ain't great, running at about the same speed as a singe processor G4.

Adboe's next official replease, supposedly around the first quarter of 2007, will run without the use of Rosetta.

I use both (Mac at work, PC at home) and I must say I prefer to use a PC. The Mac OS looks slicker but that's about the only difference. I think OSX, all in all, is a mess. However I'm not going to get involved in THAT conversation right now. What I like about the PC is that's it's much more 'hand-on', you can open it up and replace/expand etc with ease. Have you tried to replace a motherboard in a mac? Have you tried to even BUY a motherboard for a mac?

If you already have an investment in software for a particular platform then go for that. If not and you like slick graphics and have deep pockets then go for Mac, otherwise Id go for a PC.

If I had my way at work I'd rip out all the Macs in the design studio and replace them with PCs. I can tell you it would make life a whole lot easier.

Good luck on your choice

usayit · Jul 20, 2006

My experience is pretty much opposite of Mohain's. Fustrated Window's user for quite a long time until I got an ibook and a g5 dual. About the only thing I do not like about Macs is the sheer cost. On the other hand, I'm coming from a Unix background so Mac OS X was a natural progression.

- Windows just made me feel handicapped and I was tired of how boated their operating system got over the years.
- I find mac os x aqua interface very well designed. Much better than the window managers I've used on linux and better than the Windows XP interface.
- Batch file scripting? wtf. No comparison to Unix shell scripting.
- Freebsd based mac OS X interfaced with a Unix/Linux environment much better. Much of the binaries are buildable.
- Windows does have more software support on the shelves at the local computer store.
- On the hardware side of things, my G5 dual is far more servicable than any Windows box I've ever had. Everything is so neatly laid out with very little cabling getting in the way (everything just plugs right into each other). I recently replaced one of the internal drives and accomplished the entire task without even picking up a screw driver. The internal design was so well thought out with 3 air chambers for cooling front to rear. Each chamber was being cooled by two fans. Quiet ball bearing fans rather than the brass bushing fans that tend to be louder and have shorter life spans.

From a imaging standpoint, Photoshop runs very well on my G5 dual 1.8 with 4 gb and a Apple Cinema Display handling 8 mp raw Canon images. It still runs exceptionally well on an old G3 Ibook 500mhz with 640mb which is ancient in computer years. I can't say the same thing for another Windows box of the same time period with 512mb. I can't really compare the G5 to my Windows workstation which is a bit slower with less memory. I'm holding off a bit on the newer Macs as I don't like being the guinea pig. My epson ink jet and scanner plugged right in with the Mac with no issues at all. I can't explain it but the Windows version of Epson Scan consumes a significantly larger amount of resources than the MAC version.

usayit · Jul 20, 2006

Oh yeh...

- Don't over look the display as in some ways the display is far more important than the machine itself when doing imaging. Make sure you have it calibrated as well.

Mohain · Jul 20, 2006

And there ya go. One mans meat ...

usayit raises two very good points:

usayit said:
I'm holding off a bit on the newer Macs as I don't like being the guinea pig.

and

usayit said:
Don't over look the display as in some ways the display is far more important than the machine itself when doing imaging. Make sure you have it calibrated as well.

Also ...