Hi Keith,
well, given what you want the machine for, by best adivce to you is: buy the 17". From what I have read, the only possible problem you may experience is a slightly unevenly lit screen (towards the bottom). It has a lot more screen real-estate, which you may appreciate, and it is still MUCH smaller than a desktop
BUT: if you are really keen on the 15", and if it comes with lines, my opinion on the PBLineFix problem still stands at what I wrote earlier ^^^
It can certainly reduce the perceived problem for average shades, but no matter what, if your images have a lot of dymnamic range, some parts WILL still show the lines. Either because the chosen opacity is not strong enough to cover them, or because the opacity is so strong that you start to see the overlay lines in lighter shades (like white, for example, which is normally line-free).
RE: resources. PBLineFix only uses CPU when you alter the opacity. After that it uses <1% in activity monitor, and 10MB. Note that, for me, it gets ignored in full screen view of Preview, and behaves like a window during expose, but it works during Full screen view of Photoshop, and VLC, so this is probably a minor niggle.
Good luck! You might even get a good screen. But I doubt it
Alternatively... I think Photoshop will not be such a dog on a MacBook, even in Rosetta - just give it >1GB RAM and it should be fine. From preliminary benches with the Intel iMac, I expect at the very least it will match the performance of running Photoshop natively on the G4. In the Keynote, Steve compared the performance to an iMac G5, which surpasses the G4 PB. And in addition, other native Apps will run a LOT faster, as will Ubinaries once they arrive.
By the way, I just got the audio looping problem again - in VLC this time. These bugs are a bit ridiculous, that is for sure.
zzzippp said:
Howdy,
I am embarking on a adventure in SE Asia that will keep me there for probably over a year. I've got a G5 and a PB 12" which I'm selling off for a new 15" PB with the 1440x960 screen. I simply can't travel with a desktop, and I have realized the 12" PB is too limiting in speed and screen resolution for my needs. I read about the issues with this machine before I ordered, but I'm taking the plunge because I can't bear the thought of troubleshooting a MacBook Pro 15" for the next six months and dealing with a digital photography workflow in a Rosetta/Photoshop environment that runs like a dog. So I've got some questions for y'all about how you've been dealing with the line issue. But first, I'll add my comments on my personal experience with the display pattern problem.
I went to my local Apple Store in Burlington, Massachusetts, and though I didn't try any of the test images (such as the excellent desktopsplit.png), all five PB 15" machines I looked at quite clearly had a horizontal pattern. I could take the same iPhoto demo image and view it side by side between one of the 15" PB's and a 12" PB or 17" PB, and the 12" and 17" PB's had no pattern, the images looked very smooth by comparison. I have been tested for visual acuity and have better than 20/20 vision, and I could see this as being a real annoyance while working on photos or graphic design for long periods of time. Coming from the pre-press industry, I know that this kind of screen quality would not fly with most designers, photographers or pixel-pushers. Certainly, it quite possible the mass majority of people out there may have no issues with this kind of pattern. Our eyes and brains are built to adapt to these kinds of things.
However my immediate impression of the pattern was that it is not so much a glitch or defect as much a deviation from normal LCD screen element manufacturing. It's likely that this screen element is a one of a kind manufacturered design, and that through Q&A the pattern was not really picked up on. My best non-knowledgeable guess is that the alternate horizontal rows are receiving different voltage levels to the LCD pixel elements in that row. For instance, if you were displaying an all white screen, all pixel elements on rows 1, 3, 5, 7, etc. are all receiving one voltage level - while the pixel elements on even numbered rows are receiving a slightly lower voltage level. This translates into each horizontal row being a different perceived light intensity value than it's two neighboring rows. I don't have a doubt in my mind that this is purely a function of how the screen was manufactured. It is unlike any other recently manufactured LCD screen I've worked with or looked at (and I've looked at many).
The recent report by rich*e on the previously mentioned Apple Forum thread gives creedence to the possibility that the manufacturing process of the 15" PB's LCD screen could be or has been revised recently such that the output of all horizontal rows on the screen are consistent. I am holding out hope that the 15" PB that is shipping to me right now will have one of these newer screen elements. However, if I am one of the unlucky ones - here are those questions:
When you sent your PB 15" to have it or the screen replaced, how long did the whole process take before you got your old PB back (or received a new one)?
And for the people who are using the PBLineFix app - I'm wondering how much system resources this program takes to make the transparent pattern over the entire screen. Does anyone know how much memory it lands up using to do it's magic? Does it slow anything down in your day to day use?
I'd appreciate any feedback at all.
I'm crossing my fingers and toes on my purchase, but I really hope everyone who's affected by this is eventually able to see it "fixed" to their satisfaction.
Thanks,
Keith
