Alright so I'm the technical director at my college's TV station. We have a PC editing station and a new MacPro. We are looking into buying a time capsule or two to use as a drive that can be used by both of these computers, and by the rest of our computers that we will be adding soon. The one major problem we have is moving video projects and files between the two computers. Since they are different operating systems, our External drives can't move the large files (4 gigs or over) between the two. When I saw the announcement for the Time Capsule, considering the fact it says it is compatible with Macs and PCs, I figured this might be a good solution. Does anyone know if this will work or not, and if not, what solution would you recommend for me.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Time Capsule compatibility
- Thread starter ramlax13
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Interesting problem you've got here.
Time Capsule should work fine as a backup and transfer station for your work. You won't, however, want to use it as an automated backup unit [it is designed to do automatic wireless backup with Time Machine if you set it to] because, even with a 1TB TC, you'll fill it up insanely quickly.
However, as a file storage and transfer drive it should work fine. It will mount on both Macs and PCs as network storage, so you'll just have to set permissions for users and transfer files through it. You WON'T be streaming video from the TC, though- I doubt it will serve that purpose well enough for you.
With a limited amount of computer stations [less than 10] I don't think this is a terrible idea, actually, personally. If you get more, and as you get larger video projects, or start shooting longer HD projects, you'll run out of space and bandwidth.
I'd also recommend getting an ethernet switcher for the TC and networked computers, as video files will need faster transfer times due to their size.
best of luck, and keep us posted.
Time Capsule should work fine as a backup and transfer station for your work. You won't, however, want to use it as an automated backup unit [it is designed to do automatic wireless backup with Time Machine if you set it to] because, even with a 1TB TC, you'll fill it up insanely quickly.
However, as a file storage and transfer drive it should work fine. It will mount on both Macs and PCs as network storage, so you'll just have to set permissions for users and transfer files through it. You WON'T be streaming video from the TC, though- I doubt it will serve that purpose well enough for you.
With a limited amount of computer stations [less than 10] I don't think this is a terrible idea, actually, personally. If you get more, and as you get larger video projects, or start shooting longer HD projects, you'll run out of space and bandwidth.
I'd also recommend getting an ethernet switcher for the TC and networked computers, as video files will need faster transfer times due to their size.
best of luck, and keep us posted.
Thanks for your suggestions and answer. One question though, If I hardwire the Time Capsule to the computers, do you think it would be possible for me to use it for Video Capture/use for video projects straight off the Time Capsule. If not, what would be a good, cheap solution that you would recommend for me to setup storage that could be used by both the PC and Mac but also capture and use the video files on it for projects smoothly.
I don't know for sure but I don't think the time capsule can be used as a regular hard drive, just for backups over time machine. I think when they said mac+pc compatibility they meant the wireless router part, not the hard drive part, but I don't know for sure.
ramlax13
Please keep us posted. I want to do the same for my home network!
I have a question w/regard to what you think or know about the transmission and reception of this wireless router? The original Type N-router from Linksys had some pretty serious looking antenna's. That configuration is very different from a flat box? What's your thoughts?
I could be wrong, but sometimes I feel like companies put those big antennas on there for show. I feel like the typical consumer will look at two different ones and say to himself, "this one looks like it will perform better" when in fact the antennas might not do much at all. I'm sure that if they were a real important part in the range and signal quality of the router, Apple would have put them on their Airports (and the time capsule) by now.
ubercool
macrumors 65816
Hehe, I'm in the same boat as OP. I have a Sony TZ, iMac 320GB and MBA 64GB and would like to use Time Capsule for:
1. Wireless back up for my MBA and iMac (in one or two partitions?).
2. As a way to transfer files between TZ and MBA (second or third partition?).
The MBA's SSD is only 64GB, but the iMac is 320GB, so will the 1TB version fill up "insanely quickly?" 😕 😱
ubercool
macrumors 65816
Some reviews have pointed out that the multi-antenna versions put out a far stronger signal, so I'm sure they're not just a "marketing" feature. 😀
That said, I'm sure that Apple found some clever way to turn the entire enclosure into an antenna, given that I rarely hear anybody complain about the Apple Wi-Fi basestation's signal strength. I love the fact that Time Capsule combines both for $500, that makes it one helluva deal! 😎
interesting thoughts guys about the antenna question I posted...
Just can't wait for it to be released...🙂
Thx
Just can't wait for it to be released...🙂
Thx