To be or not to be
Mac or PC
That is the question.
We are headed back to Houston soon and it is time to try to figure out what I'm going to do about bringing down a computer. In San Miguel de Allende, I've been sharing a laptop with Ned. It is a fairly powerful PC laptop and has worked fine for downloading images from the camera, scanning film and working on small size images for the net. But I need a dedicated computer for imaging.
I've always been a PC person because I used PC's in the business world. But I'm not in that world any longer. Should I move to a Mac? So many fine photographers swear by Macs. Am I missing something? The interface for Photoshop for the PC and Mac are almost identical....I can't justify the change because of that. And there are so many technical issues that are in flux right now that I'm really not sure what to do about buying a new machine. And I'm a photographer, not a techie.
My options are:
Bring down my 4 year old Dell workstation.
Buy a new PC to bring to Mexico
Buy a new Mac to bring to Mexico
If I'm going to get a new computer I want to get 64-bit dual processor capability.
When will Microsoft release their new operating system "Longhorn?" Will Longhorn enable the full power of the 64-bit dual processor capability?
If I get a Mac, what issues will I face as Mac moves to Intel processors? Should I wait for the Intel processor Mac?
What will the cost be to migrate PC software programs to Mac programs if I go with the Mac?
Will I have problems finding someone who can service the cutting edge choices of either system?
Can the Mac read my external firewire drives loaded with images from the PC?
Should I get RAID or no RAID?
How much RAM? 2G, 4G, more?
What is a sufficient graphics card?
These are just a few of the questions off the top of my head and it makes my head spin. I'm not sure if I'm asking the right questions and this is a lot of money for my pocket book.
To Mac or not to Mac.....
That is the question.
About Me
- Billie Mercer
- San Miguel de Allende, Mexico
- A widow, after 56 years of marriage, I'm starting a new phase in my life and the old Billieblog just didn't seem to fit. I'll be writing about finding my way.
2011 Books I Have Read
2 comments:
We have both in our household. My son is a web designer and swears by Mac - I spent MANY years supporting Mac only to be in an "elite" 2 % minoritiy - When MSN started closing the gap on graphical interface I relented and switched over. You live in San Miguel and are an artist GO MAC my son says ;-)
Calypso
I think it matters not. For what you are doing with photography, one is as good as the other. And you know your way around a PC, remember that.
As to waiting for 64-bit -- I don't think you should worry about it. It will be at least 2-3 years before the software catches up to the OS. And like you say, when will MS release Longhorn? I think by the time Longhorn and PS are available AND working correctly with each other, you'd be ready for a new machine.....again. What I mean to say is go ahead and buy a new machine now -- you can get a HP (or other brands) with a 64-bit AMD processor currently. As cheap as computers are right now, $800 will get you one super box with a good video card. No monitor, of course, but you don't need a new monitor.
Pitchertaker
Post a Comment