I have a 350mz G4 "Yikes" model with 384MB ram, that has served well using OS9 but will be upgrading to Panther shortly and will likely need more speed (using CAD software- Archicad now but perhaps changing to Vectorworks or Powercadd). Is my machine worth upgrading or should I dispose and buy new? Advice, particularly from CAD users much appreciated. Cheers.
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Upgrade G4 Yikes for CAD or dispose?
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the machine will most likely run the software you need, but not nearly as quickly as one might consider necessary to be worthwhile, so you will probably end up with another machine.
that being said, the machine is still good enough to serve other functions, so i would look into what other uses you could put it towards (as opposed to trashing it or selling it, especially since the resale would be so little). or you could donate it to a school or library or someplace like that.
that being said, the machine is still good enough to serve other functions, so i would look into what other uses you could put it towards (as opposed to trashing it or selling it, especially since the resale would be so little). or you could donate it to a school or library or someplace like that.
Tell me the best way to learn CAD, and I'll tell you how to get a little ( fairly inexpensive ) extra boost from your SawTooth..
Max.
Max.
i used vectorworks 9 in os 9.2.2 on a G4 400 Sawtooth and found it was fine, then i upgraded to panther and vectorworks 10/11 and found it quite slow. i now run it on a G4 800 which it seems to be fine but i havn't used it that much yet (still having font problems for some reason)
Ihave been a Vectorworks 10 user for about 3 years and soon will be upgrading to version 11, it is a fantastic program. I have been using it on a 700 iMac that is almost 3 years old as well and its performance has been fine. However, as you begin to work on larger projects, render images, QTVR, and movies, the system becomes a handicap. Drawing lines and arcs doesn't take much processing power, but if you intend on using the built in rendering engine you NEED to upgrade. Every time I adjust a light source or alter the mapping of a material, I choose to see the changes and waste valuable time waiting for the photo to render. The newer versions of Vectorworks, 10 &11, take advantage of the G5 and dual processors. If you are serious about CAD and want to take advantage of Vectorworks or Archicad 3D and rendering capeabilities, upgrade to a new iMac or Powermac. If you just want to do typical CAD tasks like drawing simple lines and shapes, the choice is yours.
Yikes!
I would upgrade. 350Mhz is on the low side for a computer user. I would suggest picking up a 20" iMac G4 from the Apple Store's Older Computer section. Right side of the web page, scroll down some. It will have a SALE tag there. Sale! Save!
I would upgrade. 350Mhz is on the low side for a computer user. I would suggest picking up a 20" iMac G4 from the Apple Store's Older Computer section. Right side of the web page, scroll down some. It will have a SALE tag there. Sale! Save!
Duff-Man says...whether you should upgrade or buy new depends on your finances which you have not said anything about. I would say that if you can afford a new Mac - go for it...but if every penny counts and you need to squeeze every last bit from that ol' thing then maybe upgrade is your answer...but I still that that even for a moderate upgrade you can get a new/refurb G5 for not too much more....oh yeah!
Thanks AdamZ. I am considering changing from Archicad to Vectorworks (Archicad upgrade cost is more than a complete new Vectorworks!). How did you find the learning curve for Vectorworks? Archicad is an excellent program but cost is high and I don't need all the 3D capability. I'm impressed that you have been working effectively on the tiny 700imac screen.AdamZ said:
VektorWorks cost pretty much, and its stupid to use much money on a program and have it running like crap on an old computer.
Get an eMac or a new iMac if you can affort it.
The CAD programs are also using OpenGL acceleration (i could be wrong..)
and therefore you also want to upgrade your gfx-card.
So for your yikes you need a new proc ($200-300), a gfx card (like radeon9200, $129) , more memory and maybe more hdspace.
If you are going to spend more than $400, then see what you can get for your computer... If you get $300 for it there is not much more before you can get an new eMac or iMac than the $400 you would have spend on an upgrade
(i'm a little sleepy now, hopefully you got my point... zZZzZzzz...)
Get an eMac or a new iMac if you can affort it.
The CAD programs are also using OpenGL acceleration (i could be wrong..)
and therefore you also want to upgrade your gfx-card.
So for your yikes you need a new proc ($200-300), a gfx card (like radeon9200, $129) , more memory and maybe more hdspace.
If you are going to spend more than $400, then see what you can get for your computer... If you get $300 for it there is not much more before you can get an new eMac or iMac than the $400 you would have spend on an upgrade
(i'm a little sleepy now, hopefully you got my point... zZZzZzzz...)