PowerMac Delays

[Bhennies]

Try out garageband..it will kill even the mightiest pro tools machines. I have used it on emacs, g4 ibooks, 1.6 g5s and powerbooks. You get to about 6-8 virtual instrunment tracks and you have reached system overload...on all of the machines. All of the current machines are fine for protools, but suck for garageband! In fact what I hear is that most pro apps run better on current macs than garage band does. Pretty sad right.

Two solutions
1. new hardware
2. some tweaks so it isn't as processor intensive


Go to your apple store and try about 8 "green tracks" with maybe 3-4 "blue" tracks.....then hit play...watch it stutter, see system overload window. Repeat. I think it is pretty unacceptable.

I trust you...and I understand where you're coming from. I guess I don't understand why people would use Garageband then. The problem seems to be with the software, not the hardware.

I played around with it in the store the other day, and it seems gimmicky and amateurish to me. There are many pro audio apps, both for beginners and professionals, that will run fine, as you say, on the current machines, so why the hell would anyone want Garageband if you can only use 8 tracks without it crapping out? I use 32 tracks in PT with 10-15 Waves plugs (plus others) on a dual 500 Gigabit and it runs slow, but fine.

 

[Gaffa Bug]

rant

Apple is fantastic at debuting innovative products... Date of availability is another story. The consensus puts a new PM update at the WWDC in late June, which means an entire year without an update. This is terribly sickening. I have a single processor 867MHz Quicksilver with 1.5GB RAM(sdr) and Radeon 9800 PRO... I've been waiting for an update to make my next purchase, but unfortunately Apple can't get its act together. I've even considered just buying a DP2.0 PM G5, but after auditioning it, was incredibly disappointed. For example, I opened up a couple of apps and hit shift+F11... and what do you know? The dual 2.0 hiccups as much as my 867. Also, a folder containing images/pictures takes FOREVER to display the icon previews. Try moving a large number of files and you'll be forced to laugh. I'm by no definition a power user, but do enjoy the bells and whistles that accompany various tasks. There's no way I would settle for such a small step in performance. BTW: at one of the local Apple Stores I downloaded the UT2004 Demo to see how well it played. Any guesses as to how fluid the motion was??? It sucked! So you're telling me that I can pay $3,000 for an incremental performance step? Well, where do I sign up? The truth is, I'm getting sick of not being able to do the things I want to do (which are relatively simple). It seems Apple will never get things right. They release a nice product and then can’t follow up on it. Either they are having difficulty somewhere in the channel or they just don't care. Who in the hell cares about the over hyped WWDC? If Apple could release a product update at the WWDC, doesn't anyone believe they could have done it sooner? They like to make a big splash and shock everyone... while ignoring the basics of marketing. -I dare also say management. They should release incremental speed bumps as everyone else! On a similar note, it’ll take them six months after the release of the iPOD mini to deliver adequate supply. This is truly sad. Products are to be available to consumers in sufficient quantity at the time of demand… no more, no less. This is just fundamental logic and Apple still has a difficult time following such a principle. The concept of a product life cycle is bitterly askew in the practices of Apple. I'm disgusted enough to jump ship and never look back. It's always been a love/hate relationship with Apple but now I’m getting fed up. It’s eye candy, but that’s all it has become. My next computer will not be a Mac… I’m not ruling it out for the future, but certainly I will build my next PC. –And when Long Horn comes out in ten years time, I’m not sure what will make me switch again. -It certainly won't be a new Finder or the joy of chatting with a bunch of pot smoking hippies who blindly worship a goddamn company. Enjoy jerking each other off to your zealous rhetoric. Thanks for the laughs suckers; I get off here.

 

[~Shard~]

THEN SHUT UP AND DO IT! I AM SO SICK OF THIS! DO IT!!! ORDER YOUR OVER PRICED ALIENWARE AND LEAVE!

In all seriousness, no one around here gives a crap about what computer you pick. Guess what APPLE IS A HARDWARE company, THEY live off hardware.. that is how they EARN MONEY! You are stupid to think they would survive in the PC software market.

Please buy you alienware, and leave.. I don't even have any PC respect for you, you could at least save a thousand dollars and build it yourself, utilize the only real advantage that PC's have over Mac... but no.. you want to pay some overpriced PC maker for big plastic lit up flashy case! GOOD, DO IT! Please go run XP and enjoy talking on these forums about how fast your computer is running counter-strike.... NOBODY CARES!

You know, I pride myself on well-thought out, constructive arguments when replying to posts, however I just can't help but like this direct, aggressive and blunt post - well done!

To support this post, and add a slightly more balanced, rational voice to this position, I agree - Apple would not survive solely in the PC software market - I think this is a fair comment. In addition, I too grow tired of DHM's posts - his posts essentially say the same thing over and over. I don't mind hearing your opinion DHM, but please quit rehashing the same topics over and over. You complain about fellow forum members like thatwendigo always jumping in and arguing with you (although I believe a more accurate term would be "correcting" you), yet what do you expect when you make the same comments over and over?

Regardless, MrSugar is correct - one of the benefits of buying a PC over a Mac is indeed the cost savings involved with building your own system, along with the fact that you can customize your components, etc. - buying an Alienware system or the like definitely takes this advantage away.

And honestly DHM, what do you need a top-of-the-line system for? Gaming? Bragging rights? Or Pro applications (movie editing, rendering, sound editing, CAD design) which you base your livelihood on? I am assuming (and please correct me if I am wrong) that it is the former and not the latter.

Oh, and before you start rehashing your standard comebacks such as "here come the Mac zealots!" or "here are the foolish Mac fans getting all defensive!" like you usually do, please realize that in my post I have not made one single comment regarding Macs being superior, etc. etc. etc., so don't even try it.

 

[AppleJustWorks]

Wow

*Nods* *Claps*

 

[kobiashi]

Well...after considering that the updates are not likely till WWDC at end of June...and that it usually takes Apple 2-3 months to actually have something after they announce it, I decided to order a Dual 1.8 and 23" Cinema Display, which will arrive at my house tomorrow.

What with an additional 1 Gig of Ram FREE (from MacConnection...and NO SALES TAX), and the 500 dollar rebate from Apple, I decided that was a good deal. (So it's 1.8 with 1.5 Gig Ram and 23" HD display for 4,025.00)

I will use it for Photoshop and Painter. It will be plenty fast enough...

Every excited...have to share!!!!!

 

[nightcap965]

You're Going to Love It!

You are going to love the 23" Cinema Display. I came to the same conclusion you did a couple weeks ago when Apple started the current promotion. Getting the 23" (Barbie's Drive-In Theater) display for $500 off was the clincher for me. It's nice to have plenty of room to stretch out in.

Enjoy!

Well...after considering that the updates are not likely till WWDC at end of June...and that it usually takes Apple 2-3 months to actually have something after they announce it, I decided to order a Dual 1.8 and 23" Cinema Display, which will arrive at my house tomorrow.

What with an additional 1 Gig of Ram FREE (from MacConnection...and NO SALES TAX), and the 500 dollar rebate from Apple, I decided that was a good deal. (So it's 1.8 with 1.5 Gig Ram and 23" HD display for 4,025.00)

I will use it for Photoshop and Painter. It will be plenty fast enough...

Every excited...have to share!!!!!

 

[raven13mb]

I purchased a system on ebay from a pretty reliable seller. Shipping apparently takes time but all of his customers are thrilled with the buys they've gotten. I puchased a Dual 2.0 (1gig/ram) with a 23" cinema display from him for $4000 shipping included. Check out his other auctions for a similar deal. My auction was 'won' at $4300 but he offered $400 dollars off w/o FCP, plus $100 shipping ($4000). Here's the link if any of you are interested:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...&category=51036&sspagename=STRK:MEBWN:IT&rd=1

 

[thatwendigo]

I have a single processor 867MHz Quicksilver with 1.5GB RAM(sdr) and Radeon 9800 PRO... I've been waiting for an update to make my next purchase, but unfortunately Apple can't get its act together. I've even considered just buying a DP2.0 PM G5, but after auditioning it, was incredibly disappointed. For example, I opened up a couple of apps and hit shift+F11... and what do you know? The dual 2.0 hiccups as much as my 867.

Hiccups? My 700mhz eMac doesn't 'hiccup' on Shift+F11, though it's not as smooth as on the 1.4ghz G4 I have in the other room as a gaming machine. I use this thing as my daily computer, because it fits on the desk in my room and the footprint it a lot nicer in an already cluttered space (and I own it completely, rather than the sharing I do on the tower ).

Also, a folder containing images/pictures takes FOREVER to display the icon previews. Try moving a large number of files and you'll be forced to laugh. I'm by no definition a power user, but do enjoy the bells and whistles that accompany various tasks. There's no way I would settle for such a small step in performance.

You must be doing something wrong, yet again. I don't have all that much trouble, and I'm on a measly 700mhz G4 with a PATA drive.

BTW: at one of the local Apple Stores I downloaded the UT2004 Demo to see how well it played. Any guesses as to how fluid the motion was??? It sucked!

Coding errors, and a bug in the game itself. If you set a certain option off, the framerate doubles to the rate it should be at. You can't blame that on Apple.

So... Moving right along to your next illogical statement...

So you're telling me that I can pay $3,000 for an incremental performance step? Well, where do I sign up? The truth is, I'm getting sick of not being able to do the things I want to do (which are relatively simple).

How often do I have to repeat this? If Apple doesn't do what you want them to, then go find a company that does. Computers are tools, as someone says in their signature, and there has to be one out there that at least gets close to what you want it to do. Sure, it won't be perfect, if what you want is OS X and some ridiculous gaming performance, but that's just the breaks. Life isn't fair.

It seems Apple will never get things right. They release a nice product and then can’t follow up on it. Either they are having difficulty somewhere in the channel or they just don't care. Who in the hell cares about the over hyped WWDC? If Apple could release a product update at the WWDC, doesn't anyone believe they could have done it sooner? They like to make a big splash and shock everyone... while ignoring the basics of marketing. -I dare also say management. They should release incremental speed bumps as everyone else!

People don't buy macs the way that the general market buys computer. The average mac user tends to wait an extra year or two longer than a PC user, and so the extra costs of bumping aren't offset by the business you seem to think it would generate. What you want isn't even feasible in the mac market, short of a major revamping of how everyone around Apple reacts to them, including their suppliers.

I'm disgusted enough to jump ship and never look back. It's always been a love/hate relationship with Apple but now I’m getting fed up. It’s eye candy, but that’s all it has become. My next computer will not be a Mac… I’m not ruling it out for the future, but certainly I will build my next PC. –And when Long Horn comes out in ten years time, I’m not sure what will make me switch again.

Bye.

I hope you got it out of your system and quit rehashing the same ignorant, repetitive, and completely pointless claptrap that we're getting from all you 'fed up' people who never jump. Why don't you quit whining and do something real?

Order or build your computer, copy the shipping manifest, take pictures of your new wonder machine beside your mac, and send them and a nasty letter to Apple. Be sure to highlight the price. Print out what you think is an equally equipped mac, highlight the price of it, and be sure to staple them together when you send the packet, because what I don't seem to be able to get up with all the complainers is that the only thing you do that will matter is if you vote with your dollars.

--

Oh, and Shard... Beautiful, man.

 

[Gaffa Bug]

Hiccups? My 700mhz eMac doesn't 'hiccup' on Shift+F11, though it's not as smooth as on the 1.4ghz G4 I have in the other room as a gaming machine. I use this thing as my daily computer, because it fits on the desk in my room and the footprint it a lot nicer in an already cluttered space (and I own it completely, rather than the sharing I do on the tower ).




You must be doing something wrong, yet again. I don't have all that much trouble, and I'm on a measly 700mhz G4 with a PATA drive.




Coding errors, and a bug in the game itself. If you set a certain option off, the framerate doubles to the rate it should be at. You can't blame that on Apple.

So... Moving right along to your next illogical statement...



How often do I have to repeat this? If Apple doesn't do what you want them to, then go find a company that does. Computers are tools, as someone says in their signature, and there has to be one out there that at least gets close to what you want it to do. Sure, it won't be perfect, if what you want is OS X and some ridiculous gaming performance, but that's just the breaks. Life isn't fair.



People don't buy macs the way that the general market buys computer. The average mac user tends to wait an extra year or two longer than a PC user, and so the extra costs of bumping aren't offset by the business you seem to think it would generate. What you want isn't even feasible in the mac market, short of a major revamping of how everyone around Apple reacts to them, including their suppliers.




Bye.

I hope you got it out of your system and quit rehashing the same ignorant, repetitive, and completely pointless claptrap that we're getting from all you 'fed up' people who never jump. Why don't you quit whining and do something real?

Order or build your computer, copy the shipping manifest, take pictures of your new wonder machine beside your mac, and send them and a nasty letter to Apple. Be sure to highlight the price. Print out what you think is an equally equipped mac, highlight the price of it, and be sure to staple them together when you send the packet, because what I don't seem to be able to get up with all the complainers is that the only thing you do that will matter is if you vote with your dollars.

--

Oh, and Shard... Beautiful, man.

link

 

[thatwendigo]

link

Response

I mean, seriously... What kind of answer was that? I gave you some serious answers, and just like DHM and his cronies, you drop to a single personal attack against anyone who disagrees with you.

 

[~Shard~]

How about a little more effort?

link

Wow, that reply took a lot of effort. Funny, I viewed a completely different thread in which you used the exact same reply - as a result, I'm now trying to determine if you are simply lazy and don't feel like typing up a thorough reply, or if you simply cannot directly and constructively address the comments that have been made.

I'm not getting into your and thatwendigo's debate, but when I read a comprehensive reply like the one above, regardless of what is being said and whether I agree with it or not, I feel that deserves an intelligent reply back, not a simple link to an incorrect and heavily overused (and misused) statement.

 

[numediaman]

Maybe we can find some middle ground here without adding to the flame wars:

I priced out a pro-level Dell workstation and there is no question that the G5 is not only competitive, but less expensive as well. (And, of course, there is the OS.) I'm sure you could argue about specs, but the fact is that once you get away from the mass-marketed boxes, prices rise pretty quickly.

That is why I decided in December to stick with Apple for my next desktop.

But . . .

The critics have valid points, as well. The line is long in the tooth. Yes, the iBooks were fairly recently updated -- but they are not exactly speed burners, are they? And while the G5s aren't that old, the fact is that rumors have been circulating since December of updates around the corner. I'm sure this hasn't helped sales -- I know I regret not buying the dual 1.8 right after MWSF when we learned there would be no updates.

I say, let the critics complain -- at least they care. As for the true believers, its great that you love your Macs (so do I), but let's not drive away any customers -- there are fewer of us every day.

 

[AidenShaw]

of course it's more expensive - the Dell's a workstation, not a desktop like Mac

I priced out a pro-level Dell workstation and there is no question that the G5 is not only competitive, but less expensive as well.

</sarcasm>

 

[thatwendigo]

I priced out a pro-level Dell workstation and there is no question that the G5 is not only competitive, but less expensive as well. (And, of course, there is the OS.) I'm sure you could argue about specs, but the fact is that once you get away from the mass-marketed boxes, prices rise pretty quickly.

This is what I keep trying to point out, but people don't seem to want to listen to. If you take any OEM that actually has a hardware margin, spec out a PC that is competitive with the G5, and compare the two, then the PC will end up being more expensive. Sure, the performance is going to be interestingly fluctuating between the two (depending on task), but the point is that the G5 is still a damn fine machine after a year of the same configuration.

The critics have valid points, as well. The line is long in the tooth. Yes, the iBooks were fairly recently updated -- but they are not exactly speed burners, are they? And while the G5s aren't that old, the fact is that rumors have been circulating since December of updates around the corner. I'm sure this hasn't helped sales -- I know I regret not buying the dual 1.8 right after MWSF when we learned there would be no updates.

Fair enough, at least at first. The line hasn't ben updated in a year, and I won't try to deny or really even defen that fact. Apple obviously has something going on that we're not party to, and it could be that the hardware is just going to get bumped at WWDC, or it could be that the target for the summer is off. We don't know - and that goes for all of us, including me. However, you can't blame Apple for the rumors, and it's entirely unfair to be mad at them because you read on a website somewhere that Apple might, just might, be updating their line at X date because a shadowy, nameless source says so.

This is the internet. Why do people take what's said like it's fact, when there's no accountable source attached?

I say, let the critics complain -- at least they care. As for the true believers, its great that you love your Macs (so do I), but let's not drive away any customers -- there are fewer of us every day.

Complaining is one thing, lying and spreading FUD are another. I don't mind the first, but I will not sit idle for the second, because that is what will drive away potential new users. Every screed on the theme of 'macs are slower, overpriced junk,' 'AMD is the saviour of computing,' and so on, is one that shouldn't be made because it might confuse someone who isn't as informed as some of us are.

As for their being fewer of us... You're wrong, again. Apple is at an all-time high of userbase, even if the share of current sales is lower than it has been. That's because the market boomed, and Apple didn't grow proportionall, not because the company is at all dying. People don't understand marketshare, and they keep getting into a tizzy because they pay attention to the wrong figures.

Now I leave for work. Thanks for a more reasonable respose, though.

 

[jade]

This is what I keep trying to point out, but people don't seem to want to listen to. If you take any OEM that actually has a hardware margin, spec out a PC that is competitive with the G5, and compare the two, then the PC will end up being more expensive. Sure, the performance is going to be interestingly fluctuating between the two (depending on task), but the point is that the G5 is still a damn fine machine after a year of the same configuration.


Now I leave for work. Thanks for a more reasonable respose, though.

Well I think the bigger issue is, even though g5s are price competitive with the other pro level workstations in price and specs....but most people do not need or want or even look at workstation-level computers. And even though Apple has a high percentae of pro users...those of us looking at consumer machine get left in the dust....... and have to buy a pro machine to get a separate monitor. (but that is a different thread)

Even though intel-land hasn't made huge progress over the past year....leaving computer confirgurations and prices the same 9 months later, well it is ridiculous, because over the course of time since the g5s have been upated standard ram, hard drive, vram, and optical drive speed has inceased significantly. And those are the key easy to upgrade areas that are lacking in the current pro lineup. If the new speed bumps aren't ready, you can always add more value by speeding up the optical drive or putting in a bigger hard drive.

 

[form]

I agree with gaffa, based on personal experience, not limited to the next example:

One fine early autumn day on the year of 2003, I meandered somehow - barely escaping the edges of the automatic doors with my person, and attracting the inevitable leers from the security officer who seems always to be sitting just inside, watching, waiting...probably for me - I meandered into a not-so-nearby compusa, carrying upon my person a small amount of cash, a large amount of curiosity, and 2 overstuffed pants pockets containing a fearfully misshapen group of odds and ends (I begin to perceive a second motive for the security's close scrutiny of me). As I entered the building, I swerved right. Right to the mac section. They had several demo g5s that day, and I was wishing to see them for myself. I hastened my pace to a canter, with my eyes staring, wondering, towards the nearest g5 box. When I got within examining distance, I noticed, in fact, the very first thing that caught my eye was, they were...bigger. Much bigger, both in appearance and in measurement, than the last generation. Eh, tolerable, I thought, that's ok, I understand that they have those smoking processors to keep cool in there, so I can deal. I'd just have to move the scanner completely off the desk, and onto my directly adjacent pile of dirty clothes. Better underside ventilation anyway.

I liked the older design better as far as beauty, but I had to admit, the new case was much less subject to plastic fracture-related damage. Turns out this was a 1.8 ghz g5. On the screen of that 1.8ghz g5, they were looping that really stupid commercial where the guy gets blown out of his house, and they follow the holes in the walls to the source - a g5 - well, I couldn't help noticing that, at 320x240, that movie just kept skipping frames like nuts on their 1.8 g5. Is it supposed to do that? I hope that it's only a compusa thing, that somehow they install stuff on the computer that makes it function poorly...I checked a few other things. Opens a little faster than my 400mhz g3, yes...didn't have photoshop there, though, or any games...so my experimenting time was limited mostly to attempting to get the frame skipping to stop, by adjusting the movie size, checking parameters, turning off loop, and so on...no luck. Anyway.

I am disappointed as well, by such marginal improvements that apple always gives, and with the very long, delayed timeframes in which they give them, and finally, I am disappointed by the price which they charge for them, each time.

And I also realized recently that, even if I got a new g5, I'd have to get Maya as well, for 3d, because Lightwave currently has major issues with X.3, issues which make it unusable. Isn't that funny, having such a strong selling point, one they even pushed on their website at one time, now not work usably on their latest and greatest?

Upon browsing, within 30 minutes of this post, through their power mac hardware area, I noticed that they aren't advertising any 3d apps anymore as highlights for the mac platform...can't imagine why.

I dunno, apple, you've got me depressed about computers; and we all know what the best way of getting over certain object-originating depressions is: To desist ownership or use of that object.

One trait, direct from apple's announcement and release habits, has rubbed off on me, for sure, and it is summed up in this phrase: I'll get around to it, eventually....but for the time being, other matters are simply more important to me.

 

[thatwendigo]

Well I think the bigger issue is, even though g5s are price competitive with the other pro level workstations in price and specs....but most people do not need or want or even look at workstation-level computers. And even though Apple has a high percentae of pro users...those of us looking at consumer machine get left in the dust....... and have to buy a pro machine to get a separate monitor. (but that is a different thread)

Personally, I see no problem with this. If you don't want to buy what's on offer, then don't. It isn't Apple's responsibility to cater to every single desire in the market, nor do I think they really should branch back out much further than they already have. Simplicity is the Apple watchword, and I like it that way.

Even though intel-land hasn't made huge progress over the past year....leaving computer confirgurations and prices the same 9 months later, well it is ridiculous, because over the course of time since the g5s have been upated standard ram, hard drive, vram, and optical drive speed has inceased significantly. And those are the key easy to upgrade areas that are lacking in the current pro lineup. If the new speed bumps aren't ready, you can always add more value by speeding up the optical drive or putting in a bigger hard drive.

True, though I think that there are a couple of points in there that ought to be considered. While RAM, HDs, and and optical drives are largely cross-compatible these days (very, very few exceptions, and those are almost universally opticals), there is still a serious issue with VRAM/GPUs and the production thereof. For whatever reason, we don't get drivers and hardware as swiftly as the PC market, and that's going to make things comparatively hard on Applem who likely is paying a premium for what they get already. If you think that a mac is expensive now, I'd hate to see what ATI would charge for 9800 XTs or R450s right out of the gate, when they have to write drivers and solder on ADC connectors.

I agree with gaffa, based on personal experience, not limited to the next example:

I almost stopped reading, right there, since gaffa's argument was pretty ridiculous, but I'll give you the benefit of the doubt.

Turns out this was a 1.8 ghz g5. On the screen of that 1.8ghz g5, they were looping that really stupid commercial where the guy gets blown out of his house, and they follow the holes in the walls to the source - a g5 - well, I couldn't help noticing that, at 320x240, that movie just kept skipping frames like nuts on their 1.8 g5. Is it supposed to do that? I hope that it's only a compusa thing, that somehow they install stuff on the computer that makes it function poorly...I checked a few other things. Opens a little faster than my 400mhz g3, yes...didn't have photoshop there, though, or any games...so my experimenting time was limited mostly to attempting to get the frame skipping to stop, by adjusting the movie size, checking parameters, turning off loop, and so on...no luck. Anyway.

A few things to consider:

1) In early autumn, there would have been no dual 1.8ghz G5s. The G5 truly shines in the dual system, and the single processors are faster than G4s, but not blazingly so. As such, you were likely using 512MB RAM, a single 1.8ghz, and a Geforce FX 5200. That's not an incredible leap over the G4 towers in terms of the UI, but still an improvement. What you'd have seen the most improvement in was disk tasks, I/O, and purely processor-intensive processes.

2) Someone could have done something to the machine, the RAM might have been eaten up (my machine has 512 MB, and I tend to operate around 280-300MB actively used when I've been up for a while and doing things, because of the caching that OS X does), or there could have been a fault.

3) The G5s I've used haven't had this problem, and were smooth as silk. That probably doesn't count for much, but it's true.

And I also realized recently that, even if I got a new g5, I'd have to get Maya as well, for 3d, because Lightwave currently has major issues with X.3, issues which make it unusable. Isn't that funny, having such a strong selling point, one they even pushed on their website at one time, now not work usably on their latest and greatest?

Right, so it's Apple's fault that a third party didn't optimize properly, when all kinds of workshops were given at WWDC (and afterwards) on how to optimize for the new processors... Please.

Upon browsing, within 30 minutes of this post, through their power mac hardware area, I noticed that they aren't advertising any 3d apps anymore as highlights for the mac platform...can't imagine why.

FinalCut Pro plays 7 streams in real time
Photoshop CS filter tests show G5 leads
Bibble format decode shows G5 lead
Logic allows over 135 plugins simultaneously on G5

I don't see Lightwave, Maya, or Renderman on the list anymore, and I concede that... However, I can throw out a single explanation that may or may not be true (I'm not a graphics professional, so I'm just guessing here)... On consumer grade cards, PCs can use DirectX calls to access the graphics cards, but we can't, and I've been reading a couple of stories about how some companies want to try to code things to take more advantage of GPUs for general computing.

Also, as most people will readily agree, the PowerPC has traditionally been a better performer in vector and floating point. I don't know for certain if the integer performance of the x86 world would play much of a factor, but that huge cache on the P4EE probably would.

 

[paulsecic]

arg... so should I buy or not?

I ordered a G5 1.6ghz and an Apple 17" display on April 7th. ORDER!