[ezkcdude]

I've ordered a PowerBook, and since it's my first Mac (well we had one when I was 13 or 14), I want to know how powerful it can be for scientific programming and specifically, image processing. Does anyone out there know of a good web site for someone like me, and any books that may be helpful. If there are any engineers out there, what languages do you prefer on a Mac? Also, if anyone has compared the performance of Matlab on Macs and PCs, I'd love to hear about it. Thanks.

[Brad]

Just as an aside, don't forget about Maple, Mathematica, and tex. They all run great on Mac OS X, but I don't have any side-by-side Mac versus PC experience with them.

[Brad]

Ooh, and here's an obligatory apple.com link with LOTS of information:
http://www.apple.com/science/software/

This page has some little, simple shareware apps, but it also has some powerful titles listed too:
http://www.apple.com/downloads/macos...index_abc.html

Note, of course, that this is not an all-inclusive list of math/science titles.

[Kickaha]

For image processing, AltiVec and the programmable GPUs are a big win. Huge. CoreImage/Video are bringing that power to the more general class of developer, but the specialist can still tap into the raw underlying layers to do some really fantastic things.

FWIW, the PowerBooks are taking over the UNC CompSci department, and the PowerMacs/Xserves are getting quite the looking over at the moment. Aaaaaand what does this dept specialize in? Graphics and image processing.

I do software engineering, but even so, MacOS X has been a godsend. Python, gcc and the command line for my research tools, LaTeX via TeXShop for paper production, OmniGraffle for diagramming, Keynote for presentations... it's just plain the best mix you'll find.