Computer direction requested

Yowch - sorry for your loss.

I've worked in IT security for a decade, used PCs professionally and personally for years. Switched to all Macs at home a few years ago because I was sick of constantly upgrading my PC, repairing Windows problems, searching for drivers for new hardware etc. Now I'm a happy Mac user.

If I was starting from scratch - I'd go right back to Macs because they are familiar to me.

Which leads to my point - switching operating systems and applications is usually a major undertaking - is that something you really want to deal with on top of everything else? You may be familiar with OSX already and this is moot - but for as easy as OSX is to use, there is usually a period of frustration while you figure out where everything is.

Do you really want that headache right now?

tim wrote in post #10684758
I suspect Macs are liked by graphics designers and such because they don't really understand computers, and macs have traditionally been easier to use. Even though Windows 7 is easy to use, it's probably still not as idiot proof.

I wouldn't mind mac, but only because it has a unix shell. I like being able to mess with things, no matter what platform I use. I'm the same with cameras actually, they're just tools to me.

the good thing and bad thing about MAC is limited hardware. depends how you look at it.

1) limited hardware choices
2) limited upgrade paths
3) very limited custom options

what is the benefit? simply apple has tigher grip on things with limiting what you can use and what you can't

what is the con? well being limited and forced to use components that some company picked out for you.

Depends what type of person you are, if you like being told by someone what to do, then maybe mac is for you.
No blu-ray for you, no you can't use that motherboard, no you can't buy video card from the store, buy it from us for 50% mark up. having phone issues? hold it different. you want usb3? no you can't until we approve it down the road eventually, just look at blu-ray 3-4 years and still waiting. AMD? what is that

buddy4344 wrote in post #10686861
When I started this thread I was hoping for feedback on features folks like in software and operating systems when using the 2 system options.

Win 7 and OS X are effectively the same in terms of GUI. It's under the hood where they differ substantially. You can get just about any of the major photo apps for both Win and OS X with the exception of Aperture (OS X only). If you do any video then Final Cut is also an OS X-only application, but there are Win options for that, too. My sister, who isn't the sharpest tool in the shed when it comes to computers, made the transition about a year ago after dealing with malware nightmares, made the switch. I had calls just about daily for a couple of weeks but now they're not that often. When she does call it's usually something esoteric. I don't think the transition time from Win to OS X or OS X to Win 7 should be in the equation, unless you do a lot of terminal/cli work.

Actually the GUI (and the rest of the user interface) have some major differences that are the reason some people really prefer Apple once they have given it a reasonable try (and to be fair it drives others absolutely nuts).

Apple has defined and published some pretty strict user interface guidelines that among other things require any thing that is accessible from a context sensitive menu or a keyboard shortcut must be available in the normal menus for a program. Apple has also provided the developer tools and frameworks to make this a very simple thing to do. Some companies (mostly those porting from Windows) don't always follow this guideline (or used the provided frameworks) but that software is often poorly received by those who like Macs.

This is one of many UI guidelines/rules that Apple has developed but it has a huge impact on developers (hey cool, I get all this applescript/automator tie in for basically no effort) and even more on users and the support team (go to the menu at the top of the screen, select X than Y.... vs. go to the color palette, you see the small window with all the color tiles(ad nauseum) and right click, no the other mouse button..., to bring up the XYX menu). If you need any sort of assistance using the computer (voice over, simplified interface, sticky keys) on the Mac OS it is available with nearly every program (except maybe that thing that was poorly ported).

None of this matters to the power user (well most of the time) but it can and does make a huge difference for those who are not power users. Under the hood differences (both SW and HW) can be pretty large too but most users won't see those except for the impacts (things like perceived quality and customer satisfaction and the whole just works thing).

-Eric

buddy4344 wrote in post #10686861
Since I am so busy with the rest of the house, I am wanting some expert comments to expedite and direct my search

I can't even imagine the kind of things your dealing with having to rebuild.

However, from a computer stand point:

My ideal photo editing rig is a quad core with 4-8GB of ram.
3 to 4 separate hard disks.
1st is used for holding the operating system and programs.
2nd is used as a working photo storage drive.
3rd is used as an internal back up of the photo storage drive
4th is optional, I use a 4th for a scratch disc and to store other media on, files, games, movies, music etc.

By seperating your photo storage you make it easier to migrate to a new system in the future, easier to recover from any kind of disc failure (you only have to rebuild one disc), easier to manage back ups (i.e. just back up the whole disc) and the internal redundancy means I can keep working if one fails with out resorting to a back up, or I have quick access to my files if I screw something up and delete or modify something I shouldn't have (which so far, I've only done once).
There are also theories around it increasing drive life as each drive is only used when it's needed, i.e. the load is share across all drives, rather than having one drive running all the time.

I also need a DVD burner (gotta get the photos to the customers)
A Card reader (gotta get the photos off the camera)
eSATA connection for very fast back ups.
Quite operation as it sits on my desk and runs for a long time.
Reliable high end components, including the power supply, with local warrent support as it needs to have a minimum life of 3 years and will be used for long hours each day.

It also needs to be upgradeable to cope with increasing file sizes from future camera purchases.


That was the spec I used nearly 3 years ago when I got my current rig.
It will be the same when I look to replace/upgrade it next year.

I looked at Apple, Dell, HP, a number of local systems and building my own.

In the end I built my own, using components from a well established local store with an excellent reputation for service.

I investigated and decided against Apple because there is no Apple NZ, they are all sold through Apple Australia via local resellers. This means any problems have to go through an extra step to get resolved.
There was no Apple computer in the market that matched the above requirements. The Mac Pro comes close, but has no eSATA, limited expandability and is VERY expensive. I didn't need a server.

I also decided against Dell and HP for similar reasons. Dell NZ and HP NZ only do large business support. At the time they didn't have the more high end lines they now offer, and so parts quality was questionable. And, the prices were much higher than what I could source from a local builder. They are also designed with limited expandability in some cases.

I ended up building my own, as I feel very comfortable handling hardware, although if I wasn't, I would have had my current system built for me.
In the time I've had it the photo storage drives and RAM have been doubled in capacity to cope with a new camera.
Next year I will most likely replace the mother board, CPU and ram for more current technology. This will be less than half the price of a complete new system.
That means I get two generations of technology for 1.5 times the cost of buying two new systems.
This would cost the same whether I do it myself, or have it done for me, as the store I buy from installs hardware upgrades for free.


I also have a very fast, quite, reliable system with no compromises that does exactly what I need it to.

Moppie wrote in post #10692378
I ended up building my own, as I feel very comfortable handling hardware, although if I wasn't, I would have had my current system built for me.

QFT, building a custom rig is the best way to go


to the OP, if you don't feel confortable with that option, open the newspaper or yellow pages and find someone that can do it for you.

On the forum you can help you decide on good components and get a rig build.