Giving in
A long time friend of my family who happens to be an incredible graphic artist recently suggested (nay, ordered) me to get with the program and buy a Macintosh, as it is the only type of computer I do not currently own, and my familiarity with BSD will make it a snap to learn. He was really suggesting that I dump Paint Shop Pro and learn Photoshop, as its UI is the lingua franca of the web design world, and he believes that I can "do far better".
Putting the "better" backhandedness aside, I have come to agree with his premise. (Of course V, you were right all along.)
The problem is, of course, that I have 0.00 clue about what my future Mac should look like, cost, etc. I know there are a few mac types that stop in here regularly, and I am openly asking for your advice, or perhaps a point in the right direction vis-a-vis websites, etc. Some tips on where to (eventually) buy Photoshop would be appreciated too. ◊
13 Missives So Far
01 uberwheat said on Tue May 24 17:03:49 EDT
I don't know about current Macs, but if you need a copy of Photoshop, make friends with someone in education (k-12 or higher ed). The "educational" versions of many apps are identical to the pro versions and sometimes cost quite a bit less.
02 josh said on Tue May 24 17:12:34 EDT
Yeah wheat, I am actually considering taking a Photoshop class for this reason. For one, the regularity and focus required by a class will probably help me a great deal in migrating my current understanding, based on PSP, to the Photoshop idiom, as it were. The cut-rate cost of an "educational copy" of CS wouldn't hurt either. ;)
03 Mad said on Wed May 25 6:33:20 EDT
Nooooooooooooooooooooooooo *sobs bitterly* I can't believe you're joining the dark side! PSP is our little rebel army and you're joining the Sith PS'ers...
As for the Mac they make lovely ornaments, how about a Mac Mini? Good price, nice size etc. *whispers* Even I have been tempted by the mini :o
04 iammattthomas said on Wed May 25 11:06:38 EDT
If you've got a monitor, keyboard, and mouse that you like, the mini's a pretty fuckin' good deal. I've got a PowerBook running at 1GHz (slower than the mini) and I never have a problem with speed. I do, however, have a gig of RAM, so if you get the mini you'll definitely want to bump the stock 256mb way, way up.
For some extra oomph, the iMac is also really nice. I'm using the iMac G5 here at the office and am really impressed with it. The dual-processor G5 tower is fucking crazy-fast. It all just depends on your budget.
Actually, the only Mac I wouldn't recommend is the PowerBook. While I love mine, they're overpriced for what they currently offer. I'm hoping against hope for a PowerBook G5 sometime this year...
05 Gone Away said on Wed May 25 19:10:11 EDT
Don't believe the hype, Josh. Any program for the Mac you can get for a PC, including Photoshop (although I agree with Mad - stay with PSP!). And, for the price of any Mac, you can get a PC that would kick its ass royally. :D
06 josh said on Wed May 25 19:47:23 EDT
I dunno Gone, truth be told, I have seen the power of the Mac rendering engine, and it is really something to behold. As Matt had suggested, the right compromise would be to go with the Mac Mini I have been hearing so much about, and run it perhaps on a KVM with this 19" monitor and wireless mouse and keyboard I have come to love so much. As far as PSP is concerned — Jasc was purchased by Corel last year, and Corel in turn was purchased by Microsoft, so sticking with PSP, even for sentimental reasons, might be impossible in the future, and if I am to change horses midstream (I LOVE mixed mataphors!), I would much rather have it be to Photoshop than CorelDrawXP (blecch).
07 Gone Away said on Thu May 26 6:57:51 EDT
Corel was purchased by MS? You have destroyed my world. That does it, Linux here I come...
08 josh said on Thu May 26 14:56:08 EDT
Well, not purchased, as such — more like a passive-agressive takeover back in 2000. MS clearly has an unstated veto, and I read somewhere that, even though the 24 million shares that MS bought were "non-voting", Corel sought approval from Redmond before buying Jasc.
It's all corporate two-stepping hankypanky, but the results are the same.
09 vanessa said on Fri May 27 15:19:43 EDT
(Of course V, you were right all along.)
I never tire of hearing that you know:)
And as for PS - wooHoo!!! Then it's just a hop-skip-and jump on over to Illustrator - my favourite! Mmmmm, vectors!
10 josh said on Fri May 27 20:06:24 EDT
I would love to learn both flash and illustrator, and I am seriously thinking of taking a flash course in the fall in addition to photoshop.
11 jp said on Tue May 31 14:49:18 EDT
For (about) the price of a tricked out Mini (yeah, you're gonna want to add ram and wireless *natch*), you can get a great used G4 tower with a dual processor that'll run pretty much any slap-happy wireless card and takes cheap(er) ram. Lots of room for another HD, etc. Dual processors under OSX make a big difference (smoother experience), I have found. Look for a dual 800 or better.
12 Kim Siever said on Tue May 31 18:31:08 EDT
I used to be a heavy PC user, but with the new Tiger OS, I'd love to set one of those babies on my desk.
13 josh said on Tue May 31 18:36:22 EDT
I am certainly interested in a used G4 — I am a tinkerer and I would hate to buy a Mini and have a self-imposed ban on taking it apart, etc.
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