Well, it looks like tomorrow I am finally making my first move into MAC computers. For my first I am going with the new 24-inch iMac with the 2.8 processor, 2GB ram and 500gb HD. I have most of my files in external HD so I dont need much internal space. I have all the programs I need but I do have some MAC related questions maybe some of you can help me with.
What exactly do you get with a .mac account? Do you find yourself using it? Is the 10gb of webspace they give you open to using your own domain names? If I can run my current website with this webspace it would be cheaper than what I pay for server space now.
My current external hardrives are obviously running on my PC computers. When I change to MAC can I just plug them in and they will work fine? I use Western Digital My Books. Just want to make sure its not going to try and reformat my drives and trash all my files.
Anyone using the iMac and a good photo printer? I have the Canon i9900 and want to know how well the iMac will do printing. I hope better than my PC does.
Anything else I should consider with the swap? Cool programs you have found beneficial to photographers aside from PS or Aperature?
I use the .mac acct for setting up quick and simple web galleries through iphoto that can be viewed by my senior picture cliets...no need to print proofs or go over their hoeses with the computer slideshow any more, they can look at them at their liesure...sales have been the same.
While you can use .mac for gallery space you can also use it for generic storage. The feature that I most like is really only interesting if you have more than one mac. .Mac allows me to keep email accounts, calendars, contacts, bookmarks, etc....on all of my macs in sync.
It's a great help to me.
OS X won't trash your external drives. Whether you can use them as is or not will depend on what format they're in. FAT32 will give you more options than NTFS.
I use an Epson printer but my experience with Canon drivers on Mac has been very good. HP is really the only one that I've had issues with.
I too use the $99 a year .Mac sync service but as soon as a program handles all syncing between both Macs, I will ditch it. Webspace including lots of mail addresses is much cheaper elsewhere.
BTW, congratulations & have fun with your new Mac! You'll enjoy it for sure - I have no doubt about that.
The Mac should read the external drives without problems because OSX can read Windows formatted drives. I have Seagate FreeAgent external drives formatted with FAT32 from the factory and the Mac here has no problems reading/writing to it. I swap the drives between Mac and Windows computers on a regular basis to move and copy files around and there's never an issue with compatibility.
You might also consider Network Attached Storage in the future, where you plug drives into a local network and all machines can access them easily without swapping drives around. Now with Gigabit Ethernet enabling fast file transfers this is really efficient.
.Mac is really intended for users with multiple computers, backup, and other sync services. Webhosting and email is not what it does beest. For $60 you can get much more from a webhost.
Get the minimum RAM from Apple, then load it with 4GB from where you find the best price for reputable RAM. Should be about $100 or less for 2GB.
Its Mac....just something us Mac geeks like to point out. MAC screams newbie
The comments on the external drives is misleading.
The Mac will NOT write to an NTFS formatted volume - they are read only.
That means you're stuck with FAT32.
My experiences printing so far is less than stellar with Epsons. Apparently the Mac packs some worthless Gimp drivers and it is loathe to use the ones provided by the manufacturer. Also if you're used to Windows and easy printer sharing prepare yourself for the fact that the Mac and Windows are barely on speaking terms with shared printers. I'll be playing with mine more this weekend since I upgraded to Leopard and I'll see if things have changed - supposedly Bonjour makes these things a lot easier - we'll see.
Now don't get me wrong - I love my new Mac but these rinky dink things are like finding a scratch in the paint on your new car right from the dealer... (to me anyway! ;-)
regards,
jon
Jon, you're right re: NTFS but his external drives would only be formatted with NTFS if he intentionally reformatted them. Worst case scenario, the data would need to be moved to another drive then the external re-formatted back to FAT32, and the data copied back over.
I'd rather use the MacOS Journaled formatting on the external than any other type but then Windows can't read the data from the drive.
Mike Pipes wrote:
The Mac should read the external drives without problems because OSX can read Windows formatted drives. I have Seagate FreeAgent external drives formatted with FAT32 from the factory and the Mac here has no problems reading/writing to it. I swap the drives between Mac and Windows computers on a regular basis to move and copy files around and there's never an issue with compatibility.
You might also consider Network Attached Storage in the future, where you plug drives into a local network and all machines can access them easily without swapping drives around. Now with Gigabit Ethernet enabling fast file transfers this is really efficient....Show more →
Could you share more about Network Attached Storage? You can PM me or email me at [email protected] if thats easier.
Do a lot of research with NAS Storage. I Know the HP Media Vault works with the MAC but I know the Netgear will not. The Iomega is a sealed unit and has to be sent back if there is an issue. I know the Lacie is about the best unit for the price.
Mike Pipes wrote:
The Mac should read the external drives without problems because OSX can read Windows formatted drives. I have Seagate FreeAgent external drives formatted with FAT32 from the factory and the Mac here has no problems reading/writing to it. I swap the drives between Mac and Windows computers on a regular basis to move and copy files around and there's never an issue with compatibility.
You might also consider Network Attached Storage in the future, where you plug drives into a local network and all machines can access them easily without swapping drives around. Now with Gigabit Ethernet enabling fast file transfers this is really efficient....Show more →
Thanks also for that bit of info. I'll be switching to the same iMac setup as well, although I think I'll forego the 500gig HD and opt for the 320gig. I can always pick up an external 320 for a little over $100, not to mention additional RAM.
I've been on a MacPro since March of this year. It's a far better platform for photo-editing I think. I didn't mind using Windows XP too much but Vista is just too big a problem for color management. As for printing, the mac does just fine using lightroom CS3 or Aperture. I use a network 100 B/T network connection for the printer (large format HP Z3100). It's very easy to manage profiles with the mac. I''m happy.
Brit-007 wrote:
Do a lot of research with NAS Storage. I Know the HP Media Vault works with the MAC but I know the Netgear will not. The Iomega is a sealed unit and has to be sent back if there is an issue. I know the Lacie is about the best unit for the price.
Now here's the thing with a NAS drive that most folks don't think about. They are actually a dedicated computer with an attached harddrive. Typically Linux based but most you just don't know. As such they typically have their own file structure. they are shared via SMB (Samba) which sometimes causes issues.
Where this could be an issue is if the hardware craps out - what will you do about the data on the NAS? If it uses some proprietary format it is absolutely unreadable by Windows so no cracking the case, attaching the drive and running a recovery program. Your only option would be to send it to data recovery specialists ($$$). Furthermore many of these NAS devices allow you to hook up additional USB drives which it adds to the pool. What they may or may not mention is that to do this the drive is formatted to whatever they use and all data is scrubbed.
I would go for a NAS that specifies what OS it is based on and details the file structure.
regards,
Jon
I actually thought of having a apple tattooed somewhere since I have not with the exception of one job in 2003 made any money of my photography that didn't go through my Mac's since 1999. I've owned 3 iMacs, 2 G3's, 4 iBooks, 3 G4's, a 1 G5, 1 PowerBook and 1 MacBook Pro and I need antihistamines whenever I have to deal with a PC.
So far I've always thought that .mac was a waste of money but I recently changed my mind, with the 10gig storage you can now have a decent amount on your iDisc and that allows for clients to log on and get jobs by simply downloading the files or browse through galleries to make their selections but most importantly is the new Back To My Mac service where you can log into your stationary computer at home from your portable from anywhere in the world. I've been stuck on the other side of the Atlantic when a client calls and needs images pronto but being 2000 miles away from the hard drives you can't do much since you didn't bring the files with you, the only hope then being is to have a colleague go over and manually go into the computer. With this you can now bring up the screen of your computer at home onto the portable and actually work on the computer at home from a world away. There have been other ways to do this before but now it's easy. This doesn't really apply to you yet but I'm sure like most of us you will end up being so addicted that you can't leave the house without your mac that you'll end up getting a Book as well.
Photo Mechanic is a great browser. I am about 3 months into my mac switch over. I was worried about my work flow because I was using Breeze Browser on the PC and it is not available for mac. All is good now and I won't be going back!
Baldur wrote:
most importantly is the new Back To My Mac service where you can log into your stationary computer at home from your portable from anywhere in the world.
Do you know if the computer needs to be awake? Can I put it to sleep and wake remotely? I will out of town for several weeks and may leave my MacPro at a friends so I can use this feature.
