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AndyWest

AndyWest

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Hi all

Just got back from the new Westfield shopping center in Hammersmith ( a must for photographing architecture!) and my eldest wanted to buy an ipod so it was off to the Apple store we went. While he was choosing what he wanted i had a look at the iMac's they had on display and i just thought WOW!!!! they are amazing! The quality of the screen was the best i had ever seen and the amount of stuff preloaded was impressive. I was very interested in the 20" 2gig ram model at around £920ish which for an all in one unit was good value.

The trip home had me thinking of what software i had on my PC i could either reload onto a mac or do without. So i have a few questions:

Who has made the leap and gone to the apple side of life and how did you do it, i.e gradually by keeping the PC too or just binning everything PC and going for the Mac?

I know there is a good selection of free office and image software for the Mac but i have the following programmes that i have just bought:

Photomatix pro, elements 7 and the Canon software that came with my camera. I know the canon software is mac compatible but Elements 7 says Windows XP / Vista on the box so I'm guessing it's not for Mac. Can i sell this on or is the licence for one person/machine? Photomatix is fine and i can download for Mac and use my current licence so that's ok.

Any other software that is a must for Mac & editing (Not CS3/4 as that's too dear and so is lightroom) i may get Elements7 for mac!

Thanks in advance

Andy
 
If you are looking at an imac it looks like apple are drawing down ready for the new version. I went Mac about 8 months ago, i still have a windows laptop but never use it. Ive also got xp on my macbook both as a dual boot and a virtual machine for the odd bit of software i need thats windows only. It felt a bit odd at first but its the best move i made.
 
I made the switch (after umm'ing and arr'ing for years if I'm honest). I managed to get transfers for almost all my licenses or download the mac variants and use the same license. I kept the PC around but then a few weeks later it blew and so kind of forced me to live without it - odd thing is that other than a few key documents, like CV's lol, I haven't missed it one bit.

I do have Parallels 4 on my Mac which does allow you to run any PC applications and in a mode called Coherence mode in which the application appears on your Mac desktop as though it's a Mac app - no having to go into full screen Windows (although you can if you prefer). I'm presently running the Windows 7 beta on it and it works fine - so your options are open :)
 
I made the switch a year ago, think my iMac arrived on 4th Jan.
I packed up my PC and gave it away, I won't be going back, didn't miss the PC one bit.

One thing, I felt that I wasn't using it, but realised that I was doing what I needed and turning it off, instead of running system tools to keep it sweet, you can use the spare time to take photos :)
 
Hi Andy

I made the switch last Christmas and I just dumped the PC apart from image files and went with the mac.

For a starters you will be able to use iphoto to get you up and running, it will do RAW files but as you say you have the canon software.

There are plenty of office apps to pick from but I use iworks as I am not worried about office compatibility.

Aperture is another great program and it is only 120 so it is cheaper than lightroom and I have no complaints about it.

Overall transition period for me was about a week to get used to the OS.

Will not be going back.

Nigel
 
If you read the small print on the EULA ( but then who does) you may find that you are not allowed to sell the Elements software on.

However I'm still not sure how this could be policed?

You could always look at the purchase of Elements for Mac as part of the cost of transferring over.

I have both Macs and PC's (PC on XP) but tend to use the Mac more and more
 
I got a macbook 13 yesterday after being MS for the last 20 years or so. It feels like a quality laptop, but apart from that its a laptop. Some of the stuff is the same as windows, some is slightly different. In 24 hours I have been able to do everything that I have wanted to and nothing has felt too weird - after I got the trackpad sorted.

If you fancy a change and you hqave the spare extra cash, go for it. My plan was to buy the macbook with the view of replacing an aging PC when the new generation iMacs come out - I probably still will and end up totally Mac.

My main reason is because they look nice. Both Apple and MS have some OS issues, neither will invoke world peace or even make the tea. But they do look nice.

Chrisx
 
Chappers said:
You could always look at the purchase of Elements for Mac as part of the cost of transferring over.

I have both Macs and PC's (PC on XP) but tend to use the Mac more and more
Click to expand...
You don't need to. You just contact Adobe support, they verify your registered versions and then send you a Letter of Destruction (LOD) which you will have to sign and fax/post to them. They then supply you with the new CD/download. For the CD's they will charge you shipping (which is fair enough imo)
 
I miss my PC a lot, which might sound strange coming from someone that converted to Apple Mac for work and play. Although I've got a really good machine going back to a non Mac machine is still a distinct possibility for me, especially when cost is a deciding factor as well as third party components.
 
badgerbaiter said:
Tip: buy your mac from john lewis. You get 2 years warranty rather than one. And it's the same price.
Switched to macs 8 years ago. Never regretted it. Not even for a moment.
Click to expand...

They never seem to have the top of the range when I looked, and Looking at the Mac Pro range you cant change anything from the base model.
 
Andy,

iPhoto is bundled and has basic photo editing, and will do cropping, brightness/colour/saturation etc. It should also import the photos straight from your Canon. Photomatix is available for Mac, there is also an app called Hydra - http://creaceed.com/hydra/, that has been designed to be a very 'Mac' app in its use and compatibility with iPhoto and Aperture.

New iMacs are due though, so if you don't absolutely need one right now, hold off for a while. New ones should have a better graphics system similar to the Macbook Pro, maybe even quad processor (I said maybe there though, ok? :) ).

OpenOffice or NeoOffice are free and open source equivalents of MS Office
 
I quite enjoyed playing with photo face recognition in iLife 09 yesterday. It sometimes works, strangely the more awkward the picture, the better it worked. Not tried to much else yet but all the supplied software looks nice.

Chris
 
Chris, How does the 6% off work then? I work for Surrey Police so am a civil servant.

Also checked my bank balance and not looking good at the mo :( Looking at the Mac Mini which is afordable and i already have a 21" widescreen montor. It would be the top spec one too! I borrowed one a few years ago and it seemed to poodle along quite nicely even on 1 Gig of ram, i would go for the 2 Gig version with the bigest HDD.
 
Thanks Chris, If i get one i'll deff use it!
 
My brother has always had a Mac and uses them for work as a Graphic designer. He keeps banging on about how they 'just work' and by that he means everything works well together seamlessly.
 
bought my son a macbook pro on thursday, 15% student discount, and £280 worth of 3 yerwarrenty/24/7 support for £53:D
he starts in september, so I may give it to him:LOL:
 
Had the iMac about 18 mths now, the Sony lappy just sits on the desk and is only used now and then, you won't regret the change.

Jim M
 
After checking my bank balance i think i'm going to stick with what i have and save up for a nice new version of the iMac when it comes out. Shame but theres no rush as my PC isn't even anyear old yet.

I also need a new Tripod before i go to Cornwall so that needs sorting.

Hey ho....one day.
 
I'm still debating the switch to mac - but I'll wait on the new imacs.
 
The prices of the current model won't be cut, unless you are buying from somewhere other than Apple. There's a lot of good feedback about the refurbished products.
 
My one bit of advice, upgrade the RAM to 4GB (or 8GB if your feeling frisky). This is mainly just so you get much longer usage out of you iMac.

I upgraded my macbook to 2GB, which was the maximum for the time and its still going strong after 2 years, using CS3. Apparently CS4 requires 3/4GB of RAM. Also, my girlfriend bought her iMac a few years ago with only the basic Ram spec (512k) and its really struggling with pretty much everything now.

Other than that, I would leave the spec as is, it isn't worth upgrading the HD as you can buy a massive external disk that will serve as a better backup drive.

Didn't regret moving to mac from my PC, will be looking to purchase a new 24" iMac sometime this year myself.
 
I wouldn't expand the RAM until you feel you need it. Buying RAM from Apple is very expensive, compared to buying RAM from someone like Crucial. Also as time goes by RAM will get cheaper...
 
My advice would be to find a friend who has one and have a bit of an 'extended' play on theres, so maybe take a batch of photos over or something. I used a mac at the weekend all weekend and to be honest - its put me off. Sure they look nice and they do some things better than PC but I found it the other way round, it took alot longer to do basic tasks than it does on a PC. Renaming files for example, I had a batch of 40 files I needed to rename and it took me about 15 minutes on the mac compared to about 3 minutes on the pc. The lack of right click really bugged me too.

My opinion is its not worth dropping £1000+ on a mac just 'coz' but if my PC truly nakers up and the Motherboard goes or something I might look into it more seriously.

Regards, James
 
Funny all the macs ive had do right click.
 
Euan said:
Funny all the macs ive had do right click.
Click to expand...

This is true, either by holding down the cmd key and clicking or activating it through the touchpad settings. The additional funcitons of being able to rotate, zoom, change application and clear the screen with just a single hand are all welcome. It's easy to focus on a single, incorrect, difference and overlook what is greater functionality.

I have to say (and have already elsewhere) that I was initially frustrated with my Mac when I got it home and did wonder if I had made the right choice. Certainly some tasks are simpler on a pc but it very quickly stacks up in favour of the Mac as you get into using it.

I turned on my old PC laptop yesterday and found it painful waiting for the boot and then getting at the files I needed. Then again I didn't spend time maintaining my copy of windows (but should I have to?).
 
it's alive said:
I have to say (and have already elsewhere) that I was initially frustrated with my Mac when I got it home and did wonder if I had made the right choice. Certainly some tasks are simpler on a pc but it very quickly stacks up in favour of the Mac as you get into using it.
Click to expand...

Couldn't agree more, i remember when i first got a pc with windows 98 it took weeks to work out how to do things on it! But we have all got used to windows in one form or another. When i first got a mac i thought the same and wondered if id just wasted money, but if you stick with it and accept you need to learn a whole new OS then its worth it in the long run.
 
I didnt know they had right click :p - was using an iMac and there wasnt a visible right click on the mouse. How do you operate it? (Man I feel thick :p) but again my point stands - before dropping £1000+ on a completely new system etc I would try one out over an extended period of a day or 2.. not just a quick 'oo this looks nice' in the shop.

Regards, James
 
you just click with your middle finger where the right click should be on the mouse and it knows you're right clicking. or you buy a logitech mouse with loads of buttons ;)

on a laptop you simply tap with 2 fingers instead of one. can't live without it once you get used to it. :)
 
xeno said:
I upgraded my macbook to 2GB, which was the maximum for the time and its still going strong after 2 years, using CS3. Apparently CS4 requires 3/4GB of RAM. Also, my girlfriend bought her iMac a few years ago with only the basic Ram spec (512k) and its really struggling with pretty much everything now..
Click to expand...

I only have 1gb Ram in my macbook and cs4 works ok :) although could do with more.
 
Jamesbuk said:
I didnt know they had right click :p - was using an iMac and there wasnt a visible right click on the mouse. How do you operate it? (Man I feel thick :p) but again my point stands - before dropping £1000+ on a completely new system etc I would try one out over an extended period of a day or 2.. not just a quick 'oo this looks nice' in the shop.

Regards, James
Click to expand...

All you need to do is use the finger you would normally use to right click on a mouse-HOWEVER....you need to lift your left button clicking finger off the mouse before right clicking otherwise it won't work as the Apple Mighty Mouses have sensors that work by pressure and heat and they will detect your left finger still being there if it's not raised when right clicking!!

Confusing I know, but you get used to it after a while. ;)

Michael.
 
One of the things I really like with the mac is the ability to right click and then search in google. It seems so trivial - and such a good idea!

Chris
 
AndyWest said:
Photomatix pro, elements 7 and the Canon software that came with my camera. I know the canon software is mac compatible but Elements 7 says Windows XP / Vista on the box so I'm guessing it's not for Mac. Can i sell this on or is the licence for one person/machine? Photomatix is fine and i can download for Mac and use my current licence so that's ok.

Any other software that is a must for Mac & editing (Not CS3/4 as that's too dear and so is lightroom) i may get Elements7 for mac!
Click to expand...

Don't forget to have a good read of my thread "A tip a day for the Apple Mac" !

Adobe NORMALLY transfer registration between one computer and another - CS2 serial numbers worked with either, for example. It is certainly worth an email to find out what they say.

You might be able to use the Elements 7 for the PC as an upgrade path to either Elements 7 on the Mac OR Photoshop CS4 - again its worth a look and if you can get Photoshop CS4 for £130 as an upgrade it might be worth it for the extra functionality. I have noticed the difference whilst writing the Talk Photography/Cowasaki Script Writer add-on for Elements and Photoshop (SEE MY SIG).

I switched 3 years ago and clearly am a complete computer nerd :) It takes no time at all to get up to speed on the Mac as you know what you want to do and just need to work out how to do it - That was the reason for my tips thread but there are other tips thread and if you get REALLY stuck just call into an Apple shop and ASK them the staff will go out of their way to find out how to do things. They don't even hide when I walk in!! (as I keep asking them the most ridiculously complicated questions that they have to discuss for ten minutes !! - but they get there in the end or confirm its not possible).

All in all they are a bit more reliable in the hardward but not perfect, software wise they are far far more reliable. I still use both but only as I have to in order to check compatibility for scripts/web pages etc.
 
Cheers for the info. I have a brand spanky new version of Lightroom sitting waiting to go on and elements 7 is the PC version so i'm not bothered about that especially now i have lightroom. I have Photoshop 7 for Mac which will do me fine. Photomatix say that i can use the same licence for the Mac but not sure if i can use the same serial number. I'll try and see if it works, if not i will email them. It's gonna be a loooong night! :LOL:
 
Jamesbuk said:
Renaming files for example, I had a batch of 40 files I needed to rename and it took me about 15 minutes on the mac compared to about 3 minutes on the pc. The lack of right click really bugged me too.
Click to expand...

I'm curious as to what you did on the Mac that would have taken you 15 minutes to rename 40 files. Even if I did it manually file by file, there's no possible way it would take me 15 minutes to rename 40 files and I'm by no means the fastest typer in the world.

All Macs have right click and have done since about 1990, if not earlier.
 
Jamesbuk said:
Renaming files for example, I had a batch of 40 files I needed to rename and it took me about 15 minutes on the mac compared to about 3 minutes on the pc. The lack of right click really bugged me too.
Click to expand...

You can right click using two fingers on the trackpad and pressing the normal button OR ctrl + click OR right click if you have a mouse !

Also you dont even need to right click to rename a file on the mac just double click on the actual letters which makes them editable, then change them!! See thats even quicker than right clicking :)

IF you need to change the extension then click on the filename and then [CMD] + to bring up the file information window. Then change the extension. MacOS will ask if you are sure then click yes.

For more top tips see my top tips see my "tip a day for a year" thread here http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=94135&goto=newpost
 
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