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Thread ID: 18084	2002-04-17 07:42:00	Macintosh Or PC ???	Guest (0)	Press F1

Post ID	Timestamp	Content	User
44288	2002-04-17 07:42:00	I have a friend (17, with an interest in design on computer, and intending to do a university course in computer multimedia etc.) who asked me for advice on a computer which he planned to use for Graphics and multimedia design. I suggested an AMD XP1800+ as a cheap option to a Pentium 4. I assume that they would both require large amounts of RAM for textures and stuff, but I have never been into that side of computers. Someone else suggested an Apple Mac as a better idea, but i have never had any thing to do with them. What I am looking for is an unbiased opinion and\or facts on what he should get for these purposes ( i am aware that the competition between PC's and MAC's is about the same as Holdens and Fords at bathurst) it needs to be an easy machine to get good at multimedia and stuff, but must also allow for expansion to more advanced software and designs. Any suggestions on software which would be usefull would also be appreciated. Thanks	Guest (0)
44289	2002-04-17 08:10:00	It depends on what he wants to use the computer for. If he wants to play Counter Strike, Quake3, Jedi Knight 2, etc as well as the multimedia and graphics programs, then a PC would be best. It also depends on what computers he has knowledge of and what the University uses. JM	Guest (0)
44290	2002-04-17 08:21:00	Jim When the Mac vs PC dust settles, people might finally come to recognise that the programs running on screen are almost always identical, especially in the specialist graphic areas. For most of the serious programs there are versions for both platforms. Why pay a huge premium for single-source Mac and have restricted access to upgrade technology, when you can buy a top spec PC and keep it up to date for a great deal less. I speak from (almost) practical experience here as I have a family member who spent over $30,000 to set up a Mac based desktop publishing/typesetting system. After 5 years it has a residual value of squat and it can't be upgraded to anything worthwhile without expending huge sums again. That much cash would have built a new PC based system every couple of years if necessary and would have upgraded an initial PC for 10 years or more. Use a professional OS, stay away from warez and other suspect software, maintain a current image of your full installtion and you'll never have reason to question which platform you should use. Besides, this is a PC forum and you wouldn't expect me to talk up Mac. Cheers Billy 8-{)	Guest (0)
44291	2002-04-17 08:28:00	My Dad is a graphic artist and i otfen help him and his boss out at his work on a regular basis. First off, either way you are going to need a GRUNTY system either way. At his work they use both Mac and PC purely becuase the market needs compatibility for both. the leading graphic artist packages (Corel, Adobe etc) come in versions for both. Personally i would recommend a PC over a MAC for the fact of upgrade costs. Chances are as the guy gets better and better, he is going to be creating bigger and bigger files and need more grunt. MACs can be extreemly expensive to upgrade. The one main difference, MACs tend to crash less (in my experience) than PCs.	Guest (0)
44292	2002-04-17 09:39:00	Here is some info to help you decide. I use both Macs and Windows systems and the Mac is the winner by a mile. Why are Macintosh computers better than PCs running Windows? Ease of use, speed, power, compatibility, superior multimedia and value...just to name a few! Macintosh is the computer of choice for creative individuals who want to spend their time changing the world, not changing jumpers and interrupts, fighting viruses or reinstalling programs for the third time! www.marrathon.com www.marrathon.com	Guest (0)
44293	2002-04-17 10:17:00	As the battle reigns on: The best bet if money is not an issue, is to get the same hardware as the campus has... the reason for this is it saves on compatability issues, and chances are the campus will fully teach how a package operates in the environment they have, and if you can go home and pick up exactly where you left off, it is a hell of a lot easier to learn, than to try and operate on more than one platform. I know this from personal experience as i had a newer version of CAD software than that which my campus had, it was extremely difficult to learn to use both, as there were at least two upgrades between them, and they were barely compatable... let alone on different OS's and hardware... However, if the person is familiar with PC's and windows, get a PC, and if they are familiar with mac's get a mac. If costs are an issue, than a PC is definately better, and there is more software and hardware available for them. [on a side note to Jim B, i personally find macs to be a cow to use, slow and a lot more expensive!!! but i have years of experience in PC's so it is not suprising, they are very different...] Jimbob.	Guest (0)
44294	2002-04-17 10:49:00	Ah Jim! Sorry but, the battle was lost years ago. Ease of use, power, speed, vastly superior compatibility and infinitely better value all describe the PC, and we don't pay through the nose for fancy coloured cases either. And MACs get viruses too, only like any other minority group, there's too few of them around to make it worth the average virus writer's while. Not enough exposure for their evil deeds you see. The killer development? All MACs have to be able to read PC files in order to survive in a PC dominated world, but I've yet to see anybody with a need to read MAC files on their PC. It was a one-way capitulation by Apple that admitted the MAC couldn't stand alone in the business world. There you go Billy 8-{)	Guest (0)
44295	2002-04-17 12:27:00	Whatever the good arguments may be for choosing a PC, and there are many, the fact remains that the 'print' graphics industry has long since standardised on the Mac as a platform. The reasons for this are too many to go into here, but essentially it boils down to the early Mac's superior GUI and something called PostScript which revolutionised the printing industry 18 years ago. Now, it can be argued that the Mac's superiority has long since evaporated and there is much truth in that as well, but there is also a long Mac history, a vast investment in hardware and software, and massive inertia in the print business; they do not change quickly. For those reasons, the Mac will continue to rule as long as Apple makes 'em. But that applies only to print as the major Mac sector, (and to a much lesser extent to the video and sound industies). Web design is a graphics area where the Mac has lost its position to the PC. And the 3D animation industry is fast changing to Wintel boxes, albeit running Unix/Linux instead of Windows. Horses for courses, as they say. If his goal is a job in the print industry and he can afford it, he should get a Mac. If he intends to design for the web or 3D, he should get a PC. I use both and although I started on a Mac waaaayyyy back in '86, I prefer the speed and, *gasp* stability of the Windows OS over the Mac, with the caveat here that the Mac I use runs OS 9, not the more stable, more elegant OS X. And I disagree with those who claim the Mac OS is easier to use than Windows. That *was* true, all those years ago, but since the release of Win95, Apple has been playing catch-up. But there's no getting round the fact that what you're used to will ultimately dictate what platform you prefer. :-)	Guest (0)
44296	2002-04-18 05:40:00	I would go with the Mac, especially for graphics (please don't flame me!!). MacOS X is way more intuitive then Windows, and the mac version of Adobe PhotoShop is much more stable than its Windows version. (as is the actual OS).	Guest (0)
44297	2002-04-18 07:54:00	Thanks heaps guys, my friend found your advice very usefull. If your interested, he went for the PC, for ease of use, upgradeability and the lower cost. Thanks!!!	Guest (0)
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