Mac v. PC?

[Village Idiot]

OS X is built on a UNIX platform which is inherently more secure than Windows. All the latest "viruses" from Apple you've heard of lately have been trojans and such where the user actually has to install the program for it to infect their computer.

And this is the worst recommendation in the world if the person has never seen the inside of a computer and I'm betting the OP has never built a computer before because if he had, then he probably wouldn't have even started this post.

Oh, and a GPU that "supports hardware acceleration"? That's the point of a video card. Hardware acceleration is the computer using hardware to perform a function instead of allowing the software and the CPU to control it. A GPU that doesn't support hardware acceleration is called a banana in your PCI-E slot. Where are you getting your information from?

Your screen name suits you well! First, being a Unix derivative does't mean it's more secure at all; it is still left open for various viruses and exploits depending on what services are running. As other have stated, OSX is not more secure because it's made by Apple; it's more secure because crackers aren't as interested in hacking it (less people use it and not as popular for enterprises).

With that out of the way, regarding my post... I never said to build his own PC, I said to get a custom PC; this can mean for various source, although building his own PC is very easy nowadays and can be done by a 10yr old.

As for hardware acceleration, what the video card is generally doing is called video processing. While it is a form a offloading, it is NOT hardware acceleration. What hardware acceleration is, it's a special API (such as CUDA) allowing the card to process bits of code that are runner much faster on parallel processing RISC cores. Not all cards support this kind of processing and not many applications can take advantage of his feature (it's a specific API) but one of them is the adobe suite.

Before accusing people of not knowing there stuff, I would consider doing some research. As far as to where I took my information, it's coming from my experience designing hardware and my previous designs of RISC pipelined cores.

Ur such a smart feller! U made a joke about my user name!

UNIX is inherently more secure than Windows. Windows is improving, but it's still not there. With OS X, like Linux, when you create the admin account, it doesn't run as root. Any time you have to install something or make changes to the OS, it prompts you for a password where as everything pre vista would create an admin account for first time logins and would not require any permission to install. That's why hackers targeting OS X are primarily using trojans where a user has to run a program to get it to install the malicious code.

Hardware acceleration is using hardware to perform a function faster than it is possible with software on the CPU. That's what a graphics card does. There's no way an Intel CPU could run the graphics that a modern day 1.5GB-2GB GPU could. CUDA is a type of hardware acceleration, but for you to say, "Get a GPU that supports hardware acceleration" is completely redundant. Every GPU supports hardware acceleration. That's the point of the card.

 

[Bynx]

Does anyone know why, in every tv show or movie, when someone is using a computer, the white apple is always glowing brightly? Does Apple pay for product placement and always outbid the PC crowd?

 

[ngaerlan]

Hello I'm Mac, and I will perform the same way years from now as if you purchased me yesterday, You don't need to purchase an anti-virus on me 99% of the time, I'm not prone to malware or spyware 99% of the time. I am very user friendly and also work with your ipod touch. I suggest you use Aperture 3 for photo editing, but I can also run Photoshop and Lightroom from Adobe. As far as monitors go, you can purchase an iMac or if you want to go a step above an iMac go with the Macpro.

Eternal Eights Photography

 

[cedricb]

Ur such a smart feller! U made a joke about my user name!

Thanks, it came to me just like that! :thumbup:

UNIX is inherently more secure than Windows. Windows is improving, but it's still not there. With OS X, like Linux, when you create the admin account, it doesn't run as root. Any time you have to install something or make changes to the OS, it prompts you for a password where as everything pre vista would create an admin account for first time logins and would not require any permission to install. That's why hackers targeting OS X are primarily using trojans where a user has to run a program to get it to install the malicious code.

You are right but it would be unwise to claim that these are the only reasons that make OS X more secure. As it gain popularity, it is expected that the threats against it will also gain popularity.

Hardware acceleration is using hardware to perform a function faster than it is possible with software on the CPU. That's what a graphics card does. [...] CUDA is a type of hardware acceleration, but for you to say, "Get a GPU that supports hardware acceleration" is completely redundant. Every GPU supports hardware acceleration. That's the point of the card.

Agreed, however, the industry has decided to specifically use "hardware acceleration" (in the context of graphics card) when referring to running non graphic related code through a specific API on a GPU processor.

There's no way an Intel CPU could run the graphics that a modern day 1.5GB-2GB GPU could.

Be careful, this is misleading; the memory on a card does not affect the speed of the code, it is important for gaming where you don't want your environment to be redrawn all the time when spinning in circles but in the case of accelerating other type of work, unless dealing with large files (like an image a few gigs in size), the look ahead and prediction algorithms (usually they cache the following pages/blocks in sequential reads) should be able to cache data fast enough the prevent the units from waiting. The speed in Hz and the number of units would be a better indicator of performances for code acceleration.

Bottom line, I think we both agree to say:

• If the OP gets a MAC, it will be more secure
• If the OP gets either, make sure the graphics cards can handle one of the acceleration APIs supported by Adobe

Does anyone know why, in every tv show or movie, when someone is using a computer, the white apple is always glowing brightly? Does Apple pay for product placement and always outbid the PC crowd?

Yes, companies have a tendency to do it. Both Apple and other companies (cell phone companies are another group that push product placement a lot) are known to do product placements!

 

[Josh66]

Does anyone know why, in every tv show or movie, when someone is using a computer, the white apple is always glowing brightly? Does Apple pay for product placement and always outbid the PC crowd?

I've been noticing a few different Linux distros on TV/movies a lot lately too. I'm guessing because it's 'different' and most people wouldn't recognize it right away, and it looks cooler.

In the case of most linux distros and the software on them, it might also be because it is open source/free. There would be no issues using it in a movie - nobody to get permission from. Not sure if that actually matters though... I mean, I don't know if that's how it would be anyway, or if the producers would have to get permission from Microsoft to show an XP machine and MS Office in a movie... (The same way they would have to get permission to use a song.)

 

[table1349]

Yes, because when you are using a Mac the white apple glows. It quits glowing when the machine goes into suspend mode.

 

[table1349]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V1xnxKvu0HA


End of discussion!!! :lmao: :lmao: :lmao:

 

[Overread20]

Not sure if that actually matters though... I mean, I don't know if that's how it would be anyway, or if the producers would have to get permission from Microsoft to show an XP machine and MS Office in a movie... (The same way they would have to get permission to use a song.)

I've always thought that unless the production was making specific reference to the product being shown, that they (the film producers) didn't have to seek permissions - in similar light to editorial use of photos of people. Simply showing cars or computers (as examples) in scenes wouldn't count as direct marketing or affiliation - however they also know that many companies will pay big money for marketing advantages found through obvious media presentation - and thus they most likely sell any clear product possible shots to the various companies. As a result if you don't give them a permit for a brand association scene they just use a blank no-name item (probably a custom unit with some random name splashed on it or no name at all) whilst if you pay they more than your competitors they'll let your brand appear

 

[usayit]

Mac for everything because I am primarily a unix guy.... so its comfortable


that



and IT department would rather die than touch my workstation

 

[Raian-san]

Village why would you suggest them building their PC and use Hackintosh? You have to buy all the right parts that will work for OS X and install all the driver. I'm pretty sure like Derrel said, they probably never seen the inside of the computer. Now I have both, custom built PC that runs i7 and all that stuff but I also have a Macbook Pro. I've been using a Mac for years and never had a problem with it. So if I were to choose to have one, I would choose the 15' Macbook pro with i7 and buy an external monitor, then I would have a laptop and a desktop.

 

[guitarkid]

As people have said, it's your own personal preference. I can go on and on about how I love mac way more than pc. This is coming from ME!...A pc tech / network guy since 1996! I have owned, built and networked pc's FOREVER! It's what I do for a living still. I switched to mac 2 years ago and will never go back. All my workstations are gone and the only pc machine I have at home is a laptop, which is barely used. Sure, pc's are 1/3 or 1/2 the price and that's for a very good reason. Macs are made in USA by ONE company. All the design and hardware and software are made by THE SAME CO! Everything works together because it's done by ONE CO...I think you get my point. also, as someone mentioned, you cannot beat the screen resolution for editing photos. NIGHT AND DAY! Monitors for pcs are like your color tv's from back in the day, whereas macs are like plasma tvs. I use my imac for HD video production and my macbook for photo editing offsite and on the train during travel to work. In the end it's up to you. I also love never having to pay for antivirus software or doing any maintenance on the operating system. My macs are also faster than any pc I've ever owned...better operating system has a lot to do with that.

 

[martin_tapalla]

As guitarkid said, everyone is going to have their own personal preference. I have worked with, and actually still am, both a Mac and a PC. I have a iMac sitting at home with a 24'' inch monitor extension. But then I also have a HP dv6 laptop. I do a lot of heavy Graphic Design, Motion Graphics, and Photo editing on both of them and I have never had an issue with either one. Yes, your PC based one is more prone to getting viruses but as long as you don't do what you aren't suppose to or go where you shouldn't be, you should be fine. I've had my PC for about a year now and I have never gotten a virus, never had to take it to the shop to get it fixed. So as long as you, or I guess in this case your daughter, takes care of it, it should run perfectly fine. Longevity on either machine is up to you. My iMac is 2 years old and its running like a stallion, but you know what so is my PC. Being a design student, I've seen a lot of Macs (and I do mean a lot) and users who mess up their $1600 laptop like no other... so it REALLY is up to you on how long the machines lasts.

Somethings to consider is if you do get a PC (which you said you were) and it so happens to have some issues, is where to take it. Apple has the Genius Bar, PC... has... exactly, not much really. Yeah theres, Geek Squad at Best Buy, but those "Geeks" don't know a lick about computers. I had a friend, or a friend of a friend, who took her computer to get it "fixed," they ended up charging her $200 for a job that I could do in a matter of minutes... and they didn't even fix it!

But as far as software, they both pretty munch run the same programs. lol.

Recap:
• Longevity is up to your daughter
• Both are perfectly fine as long as she takes care of it.
• Apple has Genius Bar, PC has not a whole lot.
• Programs, in most cases, are on either machine.

Happy Hunting and Good luck!

 

[Josh66]

...I just can't stand the Mac GUI. Can you change it? Er, the 'desktop environment', I guess you would call it...

Personally, I use Linux. I love that pretty much everything is customizable. My desktop environment is probably somewhere between mac and windows... Not really either, but close enough to both. (No matter what you use at home, you could figure out how to do **** on my machine fairly quickly.)

I know I could 'learn' to use a mac in a day or less, but I just can't get over where/how stuff is. Linux just makes so much more sense for me... Everything is how you want it - if you don't like it, it's your own fault. And you can change things up any time you want...

I think if I ever did go with something other than linux, I would probably go Mac - just because it's close to what I'm used to...I still can't stand it though...lol. I guess after a while I could learn to like it...

 

[guitarkid]

Geek squad, what a JOKE! I also had a friend who's father's pc was down with some issues. They showed up in their little conformist car and spent 3 hours at his house! COULDN'T FIX IT AND CHARGED $250! THEY MADE IT WORSE. I fixed it over the phone in 5 mins! They're posers and nothing more! I have spoken to a few of these people at geek squad and it's so odd how they all know NOTHING of the basics. One of them told me there is no such thing as a monitor calibration tool. He said your good monitors should have a color adjustment and that's good enough! Aren't you supposed to be a geek? These are mainly kids working their first I.T. job for a retail chain. I can't tell you how many best buy customers I helped after the poser got done with them in the isle, giving them all sorts of bad / incorrect info! Steer clear my friend! Find an I.T. friend!

 

[HurtNoMore]

I read like 40 pages of a thread on this years ago. My conclusion: 15 years ago Apple was the industry standard for graphics and design, but ever since then their edge is has been slipping. But when it comes to photography software their is no discernible difference anymore.

Mac's do have some sweet uber-HD monitors though...