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Mac vs. Pc: Need Some Ammo UPDATE
- Thread starter IgnatiusTheKing
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We're a small operation, so it shouldn't be too tough. Entourage for Exchange-based email and connection to our servers should be a snap. I've talked to our IT guy and he doesn't seem to think there would be any issues.
Update
It looks like the switch is imminent, but I'm not 100% what I'll be getting yet. Since our budget is (relatively) small, I might end up with an iMac with dual monitor setup, but it will still be a huge upgrade. It pretty much all depends on what kind of discount we get for being a non-profit. Should know something in a couple of days...
It looks like the switch is imminent, but I'm not 100% what I'll be getting yet. Since our budget is (relatively) small, I might end up with an iMac with dual monitor setup, but it will still be a huge upgrade. It pretty much all depends on what kind of discount we get for being a non-profit. Should know something in a couple of days...
I ran a Pentium 4 2.8 with 2 gigs of ram and it ran CS2 just fine, so I am not sure what your computers deal is.
Just tell him your computer is outdated and you'd be alot faster and more efficient on a new machine, and that "everyone knows macs are the way to go for design."
An iMac is better then no Mac in the end. I've only had Mac purchasing experience with my higher education jobs and not my non-profit ones.
So it looks like I will be getting a Mac afterall. Still not 100% clear on WHAT I'll be getting, so I need to do a little research. Right now I have two ViewSonic VG2021m monitors. Does anyone know if I'll have any problems hooking these up to a Mac Pro and if I'll need any adapters or anything?
Here are the specs for the monitors. It says they each have a 15-pin mini D-sub/DVI-D port.
Here are the specs for the monitors. It says they each have a 15-pin mini D-sub/DVI-D port.
Not fully sure, but on their specs page, it says this:
COMPATIBILITY
Mac®*
Power Mac™ G3/G4/G5 up to 1400x1050
(*Adapter may be required. Analog adapter available from ViewSonic)
I think the adapter they are talking about is the dvi to vga adapter that already comes with the MacPro, so I think you will be okay.
COMPATIBILITY
Mac®*
Power Mac™ G3/G4/G5 up to 1400x1050
(*Adapter may be required. Analog adapter available from ViewSonic)
I think the adapter they are talking about is the dvi to vga adapter that already comes with the MacPro, so I think you will be okay.
well, as long as you have 2 DVI cables (how are you connected now?) you should be fine. even the old MP with the 7300 had 2 DVI ports, and the new MP with the base card also has 2 DVI port. should be good to go.
if you are using the VGA (D-sub 15 pin) ports and cables now, then yes, you would need two new cables. cheap and easy to find. HERE for example. best of luck and nice upgrade if it comes through!
These are nice monitors you got there. They have an interesting profile and cable management on the back. I'm assuming they come with a dsub VGA cable, even though they have both DVI and VGA ports. This means you'll want to pick up a couple of DVI cables. I can't find on the Viewsonic site which cables come with them, but comparable models only come with the VGA cable. You can get DVI cables here. They also have them at Amazon, and both online stores are cheaper than Best Buy, etc. You will need DVI male to DVI male. I think I have a few of these cables laying around somewhere, so PM me if you want them for the cost of shipping.
That will be all you'll need in order to run these with a MP. Good luck.
That will be all you'll need in order to run these with a MP. Good luck.
so many times people go for a windows pc because it seems cheaper, but if i didn't switch to mac i doubt i'd have had achieved what i have and in that regard i have more than made up any price difference. Not just that.. less repairs, no antivirus software, and purely on time saved, a mac makes up the price difference in no time, as well as sanity which can be a very valuable asset to any workplace.
for example had your boss had a mac with iWeb i'm pretty sure the website would look better, would have been easier to design and will give a much better appeal for the business, and hence bring in more revenue.
and while a mac won't speed up applications you will save time in a lot of other ways. I remember when i'd get a new pc it would take a good long afternoon until it was set up to the way i liked it, when i got my new Mac Pro recently it took me less than an half an hour to have it updated and everything set the way i liked it, if anything i miss all that geeky time spent customizing windows.. and i feel that sums things up in general with a mac, you don't waste time doing pointless things, you spend that time producing and creating, and you just get more done with your time, and for any business that doesn't rely on windows only software i feel that is more than enough reason to make the switch.
and apps just seem to work better in Mac and simultaneously, even on my old pc that i built with the best possible components i'd run into conflicts, leaks and endless annoying problems that would completely distract me from the task at hand.. i seriously loathe windows, and get bored of mac vs pc debates, apart from the odd little thing and how some software isn't available on mac os, i cant think of a single reason why anyone would want to use windows if they aren't serious in getting their creative work done. Windows has a tough time having to deal with the endless hardware configurations, Mac OS knows intimately what hardware it needs to deal with and as a result software can be designed more efficiently, it's like a garage having to deal with every brand of car compared to one that deals with just one... you just know the latter is going to do a better job with your car.
there's a reason successful production houses are never solely windows operated, if your business relies on creative content then in my mind you HAVE to switch to mac, your boss would be silly not to.
Someone mentioned how Mac OS fuels creativity, and the way the OS looks does lend to that, for example in Vista or even XP if you want the best performance you generally have to turn off all the 'pretty' features such as aero, and the feeling is you are working in a dull grey or garish blue office block.. whereas in Mac OS you can't really turn off 'pretty' and you are always working at a nice upmarket london office with the windows open and nice warm colorful colors and rich textures. You can natively have your background change every so often, that feature alone makes my day feel more dynamic and exciting and it might be a small thing but its just something that adds to my joy of using Mac OS. I never have that feeling "ugh, i need to turn on the computer, clean the registry, remove spyware, fix a conflict, download updates, reboot, close all background processes, then manually open folders, find what i need, and then work"... with a mac its wake from sleep, go to spotlight type in the filename, press enter, and just start working - time saved - sanity maintained - happier and more productive workplace.
and if none of that works, tell your boss that clients, friends or anyone he wants to impress will just take him or her more seriously if they walk into the workplace and see those fancy apple mac machines everyone talks about and sees in films and fancy ads, that same notion translates to the workforce, who will feel they are working somewhere more upmarket and dynamic.
for example had your boss had a mac with iWeb i'm pretty sure the website would look better, would have been easier to design and will give a much better appeal for the business, and hence bring in more revenue.
and while a mac won't speed up applications you will save time in a lot of other ways. I remember when i'd get a new pc it would take a good long afternoon until it was set up to the way i liked it, when i got my new Mac Pro recently it took me less than an half an hour to have it updated and everything set the way i liked it, if anything i miss all that geeky time spent customizing windows.. and i feel that sums things up in general with a mac, you don't waste time doing pointless things, you spend that time producing and creating, and you just get more done with your time, and for any business that doesn't rely on windows only software i feel that is more than enough reason to make the switch.
and apps just seem to work better in Mac and simultaneously, even on my old pc that i built with the best possible components i'd run into conflicts, leaks and endless annoying problems that would completely distract me from the task at hand.. i seriously loathe windows, and get bored of mac vs pc debates, apart from the odd little thing and how some software isn't available on mac os, i cant think of a single reason why anyone would want to use windows if they aren't serious in getting their creative work done. Windows has a tough time having to deal with the endless hardware configurations, Mac OS knows intimately what hardware it needs to deal with and as a result software can be designed more efficiently, it's like a garage having to deal with every brand of car compared to one that deals with just one... you just know the latter is going to do a better job with your car.
there's a reason successful production houses are never solely windows operated, if your business relies on creative content then in my mind you HAVE to switch to mac, your boss would be silly not to.
Someone mentioned how Mac OS fuels creativity, and the way the OS looks does lend to that, for example in Vista or even XP if you want the best performance you generally have to turn off all the 'pretty' features such as aero, and the feeling is you are working in a dull grey or garish blue office block.. whereas in Mac OS you can't really turn off 'pretty' and you are always working at a nice upmarket london office with the windows open and nice warm colorful colors and rich textures. You can natively have your background change every so often, that feature alone makes my day feel more dynamic and exciting and it might be a small thing but its just something that adds to my joy of using Mac OS. I never have that feeling "ugh, i need to turn on the computer, clean the registry, remove spyware, fix a conflict, download updates, reboot, close all background processes, then manually open folders, find what i need, and then work"... with a mac its wake from sleep, go to spotlight type in the filename, press enter, and just start working - time saved - sanity maintained - happier and more productive workplace.
and if none of that works, tell your boss that clients, friends or anyone he wants to impress will just take him or her more seriously if they walk into the workplace and see those fancy apple mac machines everyone talks about and sees in films and fancy ads, that same notion translates to the workforce, who will feel they are working somewhere more upmarket and dynamic.
Oh come on, you have done something bad to **** up your PC. I use Indesign + Bridge + Corel Graphics Suite + Visual Studio 2005(Enterprise) + Oracle 10g Express edition + SQL Server 2005 Developers edition + McAfee Virus Scanner and my PC runs fine and I have the same processor and 2 GB ram.
Since you seem to be working for a non profit organization. Should you not be concerned about saving money!!. I think you are just trying to start PC bashing for no plausible reason.
You dont need a Mac to create a successful website. That is a retarded statement and unless you visit malicious websites , your PC would remain virus free too!!.
+1
while I dont love my windows machine. I ran vista for a full year without a virus checker. just cleaned up spybots every few months.
I helped design some of the biggest corporate websites out there on my 3.2 PC.
wtf is iweb???? real designers dont use that......
My PC has been that slow ever since we got it in January '07. We have our IT guys come and work on our machines every Thursday and they have never found a "problem" with it (in terms of viruses or anything else "wrong"). It's not always super slow, but when I have a "large" file open in PS (anything over 15MB), along with ID and Bridge, the thing seriously can't keep up. Sometimes I wait 5 minutes for it to save. FIVE MINUTES!!!
I never said you couldn't design a website on a PC. I said you couldn't design a good website with Front-freaking-Page.
Thanks for the monitor answers, gibbz, 4NJA and digitalnicotine. I do have it hooked up via the VGA cables right now.
Would this system work well for me (running CS3 on Leopard) and work with those two View Sonic VG2021m monitors?
Mac Pro
Two 2.66GHz Dual-Core Intel Xeon processors
4GB RAM (2x2GB)
Nvidia GeForce 7300GT 256MB single-link DVI/Dual-link DVI
250GB Serial ATA (3Gb/s); 7200 rpm; 8Mb cache
16x SuperDrive with double-layer support (DVD+R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)
Note also that most of my files are stored on a server, so HD size isn't all that important to me.
Mac Pro
Two 2.66GHz Dual-Core Intel Xeon processors
4GB RAM (2x2GB)
Nvidia GeForce 7300GT 256MB single-link DVI/Dual-link DVI
250GB Serial ATA (3Gb/s); 7200 rpm; 8Mb cache
16x SuperDrive with double-layer support (DVD+R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)
Note also that most of my files are stored on a server, so HD size isn't all that important to me.
yes, very well. buy/find/steal two DVI cables and you'll have one sweet setup.
if the upgrade gods ever bless you with more money, add more ram. 2 x 2gb in the other riser for max performance is what i would recommend. best of luck.
Great. Thanks for the info. One more question: where's a good place to pick up some DVI cables relatively inexpensively?
I don't think anyone ever said they were going to use FrontPage. As i’m sure you know FrontPage was (it’s now been replaced with ExpressionWeb) more of a hobbyists thing, not one to make a professional site in. Most web designers I know use Dreamweaver which is available to both Mac and PC users, just because you run windows doesn't mean you have to use Microsoft software...........