A question for apple mac users

OK, first of all i do not want to get into a disscision of which is best....mac or pc.

i'm a long time PC user but have these thoughts of switching to mac. however a number of the programs i have and use are availible for pc only, now i know you can get a program called "virtual pc" which allows you to run pc programs on a mac............... my question is ...anyone out there whith a mac that uses their mac as both MAC & PC and how do you like it????

any help would be appreciated.

PS sorry if this is in the wrong section

I'm a long time Mac user and along the way I ended up doing more work on PC's btu still use Macs quite a bit. I do not own or use a new G5 os the dual core processor machines so I don't know if things have improved, BUT, in the past virtual PC was never a good choice, as it was slow and crippling at times. I know the product has evolved, as the OS has but I'm a bit leery of virtual PC on a Mac.

I use a new 20" intel iMac running both OS X and Windows, and I've found it a great solution. I currently work using Bootcamp, so I actually boot into a Windows partition, and this works very well for what I use it for (3DS Max and video games). You can also now buy a program called Parallels, which is cheap and very good for a virtual PC product. It causes very little hit on performance, and is generally very nice to use.

Depending on which software it is you want to use I could recommend either of these methods. Running Windows from Bootcamp gives it performance identical to a PC (it is basically a PC then) and I find it hugely useful.

I switched from a PC, and I've gradually adapted more and more to using OS X, and I barely even use XP anymore. Only things are really 3DS Max, which is windows only, and a good number of games that don't run under OS X.

Seeing as how you're in Oxfordshire - head over to Milton Keynes and look in both the music store there (who usually have a load of macs), as well as that big department store (John something) who will have displays of all the macs. Just ignore the salesmen at all costs.

I have the 20inch intel dual core mac and enjoy using aperture on it. However, my new and cheaper dell is much much faster. The mac beachballs too much and there's no photoshop version to run on the intel macs yet, although I heard that cs3 beta is out today. Also, virtual PC does not work on intel macs. So overall, I'm a little disappointed with the intel mac. I guess I had high expectations.

Thanks for the replies.......i should have explained that i currently use a sony vaio, which serves its purpose but i was thinking about a portable storage device EG a epson p5000 or a giga vue pro then i thought a laptop would be even handier and i thought this would be a good opportunity to get a MAC book 13" and aperture 1.5.

hopefully this would make learning mac type stuff easier and i could also continue to use my pc stuff. if the mac works for me ultimately i may in the future swap my vaio for a Mac g5 desk set up.

i was in John Lewis to day and the black mac book is stunning ......... unfortunately i couldn't get anyone to demonstrate it as they were to busy.

I have an Intel MacBook Pro and use a program called Parallels (http://www.parallels.c​om/). It works very well for me and was very easy to setup. I have Visio, Macromedia Studio 8, Adobe CS2, OneNote and SQL Server installed and it's nearly as fast as my Dell desktop.

It's also nice that you can switch between operating systems on the fly without a reboot (like BootCamp requires), can share files and can even copy/paste from the Windows instance to and from the Mac.

halfmoonray wrote in post #2403818
I have the 20inch intel dual core mac and enjoy using aperture on it. However, my new and cheaper dell is much much faster. The mac beachballs too much and there's no photoshop version to run on the intel macs yet, although I heard that cs3 beta is out today. Also, virtual PC does not work on intel macs. So overall, I'm a little disappointed with the intel mac. I guess I had high expectations.

There are a couple of misleading statements in your post. Photoshop runs perfectly fine on the Intel-based macs (I use CS). While it is true that VPC does not run on the Intel macs, you can certainly install Windows XP (SP2, I think) on it, as either a boot partition, or as a virtual machine using Parallels Desktop. Either way, the apps run natively. I use Bootcamp to run mine under XP.

Also, when you say your Dell is "faster", how do you conclude this? Under what circumstances does the beach ball appear?

Glenn.B wrote in post #2403602
my question is ...anyone out there whith a mac that uses their mac as both MAC & PC and how do you like it????

I rarely use my mac as an XP machine. When I do it's to run a software program specific to an instrument in my lab for data analysis. It runs fine, but I have internet access disabled when I boot XP because I don't want to get any malware on it. It certainly runs faster than the Dell computer that runs the instrument (single-core chip with on-board video card).

Tony-S, i read about bootcamp as a possible way of running pc programs on a mac but it sounds a bit scary when you install it and possible not for a newbi on mac's? ( like me )

i want to be able to continue my normal photo stuff as well as learn mac and aperture. this could be a big purchase..............​.or should i just stick with a sony vaio and wait for Lightroom?

oh the dilemma

Glenn.B wrote in post #2404367
Tony-S, i read about bootcamp as a possible way of running pc programs on a mac but it sounds a bit scary when you install it and possible not for a newbi on mac's? ( like me )

i want to be able to continue my normal photo stuff as well as learn mac and aperture. this could be a big purchase..............​.or should i just stick with a sony vaio and wait for Lightroom?

oh the dilemma

Did you look into using Parallels?

Glenn.B wrote in post #2404367
Tony-S, i read about bootcamp as a possible way of running pc programs on a mac but it sounds a bit scary when you install it and possible not for a newbi on mac's? ( like me )

It's actually rather easy. When you run the bootcamp installer it determines what hardware is in your particluar mac and then installs Windows drivers for each device onto a CD. You then reboot with your XP installer CD and and do a regular install. After that, you insert the custom CD with the drivers for the mac devices and you're done.

(This sort of sums my opinion on the switch to Macs. It certainly isn't for everyone {and maybe not even for most people}, but it's reflective of my personal uses.)

I don't think switching to a mac just for photography is necessary. If I were a pro, my hardware decision would be based upon my software needs, not the other way around. Workflow is a personal preference ("to each their own"). With that said, my personal workflow habits would have me using a mac, anyway. I have used Aperture for almost a year now, and it has improved dramatically in that time. I gave Lightroom a try last summer, but it was rather clunky compared to Aperture. I'm sure it has improved with each beta release, but I've not tried it since and I'm pretty much committed to Aperture. There are a few issues to be addressed with Aperture (e.g., all EXIF data), but I'm pretty sure Apple will address these really soon.

If your computer needs are more than just photography, such as video editing, no worries about malware, more security, more stability, and less hassle with Microsoft (especially with Vista, which will have all sorts of restrictions), then you should consider switching to Mac. I've never owned a Windows PC, although I was forced to use one at work for a couple of years. After a few months it wouldn't shut down. A few months after that I'd get the Blue Screen of Death (TM) after leaving it on for a few weeks. IT's solution was a reformat and reinstall of the OS. What a pain. My OS X-based macs have never crashed and I have never had to reinstall the OS. Since it is UNIX-based, it also has many nice background tasks that not only clean up the file system (usually at 2 or 3 in the morning), but also a journaling system to help recover from a crash should one occur and, thus, minimize the prospect of file loss. I don't use antivirus software and I've never had a virus. I've never had spyware. I'm not a big gamer, so that's pretty much a non-issue for me.

Prior to my Mac days (1992), I was a Tandy Color Computer guy. Talk about a great computer!

Glenn.B wrote in post #2403602
OK, first of all i do not want to get into a disscision of which is best....mac or pc.

i'm a long time PC user but have these thoughts of switching to mac. however a number of the programs i have and use are availible for pc only, now i know you can get a program called "virtual pc" which allows you to run pc programs on a mac............... my question is ...anyone out there whith a mac that uses their mac as both MAC & PC and how do you like it????

any help would be appreciated.

PS sorry if this is in the wrong section

I am also a Long Time PC user, its in my blood, but I bought a Mac just to have some software like DVD studio pro and Final Cut Pro. I tried Virtual PC, and IMO, its crap. I much rather have a PC and a MAC computer.

I feel like im going to end up switching back to PC anyways, my mac gets little to no use from me. Its a wonderful computer tho, I wish PCs had build quality like the macs do. Id use each machine for their respected use.

If anyone wants a 1.8 G5 Powermac in prestine condition let me know. Original Everything, ill post picts if anyones intrested. =) sorry if im highjacking. PM me.

Tony-S wrote in post #2404233
There are a couple of misleading statements in your post. Photoshop runs perfectly fine on the Intel-based macs (I use CS). While it is true that VPC does not run on the Intel macs, you can certainly install Windows XP (SP2, I think) on it, as either a boot partition, or as a virtual machine using Parallels Desktop. Either way, the apps run natively. I use Bootcamp to run mine under XP.

Also, when you say your Dell is "faster", how do you conclude this? Under what circumstances does the beach ball appear?

Yes, you are correct. I meant to say that there is no "universal" version out yet. I found applications running via Rosetta are visibly slower. I also thought that the new OS version will have a boot partition as part of the system upgrade on the mac....still waiting for that and bootcamp is still in beta so it's technically not "out" yet and at 10GB plus all the space required for installing Windows on the mac. I just move my file and use PS on my PC, quicker than restarting the mac and the applications every time I want to switch to check my email or use an application running on the other operating system.

To answer your question about when does the beach ball appear, I have to say it appears all the time. This is my snooty answer because it appears so much that it seems like it's appearing all the time. It is noticeable enough to comment on it. I don't have such a comment on the hourglass on the PC because it doesn't appear as much. If I wrote down when it appears, the list would be quite long on different applications and files

In all fairness, I will try Parallels.
And I'll give another hoot for Aperture.

This is easy.

1. Buy a mac, be sure to have 1gig memory and large disk
2. Buy Parallels
3. Enjoy both at the same time at full speed

If in the event you do not like the mac system. It can become your windows platform also.

Just have to decide which one.