[Satchmo]

I may have the opportunity to get a 15" PB through work. Problem is, I'd have to give up the Dual 2ghz G5 PowerMac I'm working on.

Of course the G5 is more powerful plus it has 2gb of RAM. But I'd love to have a laptop at my disposal say on the weekend or god forbid, bring work home.

I'd mostly be using Illustrator and Quark. Occasionally dipping into Photoshop, but not any serious high rez retouching stuff. More for position only.

I have a large LCD so screen real estate is not an issue. I'm just wondering if a 1.5ghz G4 laptop can cut it in a real world design shop environment? Anyone?

[T2dak668]

Originally Posted by Satchmo I may have the opportunity to get a 15" PB through work. Problem is, I'd have to give up the Dual 2ghz G5 PowerMac I'm working on. Of course the G5 is more powerful plus it has 2gb of RAM. But I'd love to have a laptop at my disposal say on the weekend or god forbid, bring work home. I'd mostly be using Illustrator and Quark. Occasionally dipping into Photoshop, but not any serious high rez retouching stuff. More for position only. I have a large LCD so screen real estate is not an issue. I'm just wondering if a 1.5ghz G4 laptop can cut it in a real world design shop environment? Anyone?

yes i work on my Pbook and its a 1.33GHZ with 1.5 GB of RAM... i can easily run the whole adobe suite ( illustrator, indesign, photoshop ) and have safari open and running, itunes playing, and even god forbid i need to work in Quark (BLECK) also open... the thing performs great.

[psmith2.0]

For print and web-based stuff, why wouldn't it?

Hardcore video or music stuff...that might be up for debate, but you do realize that all the print-based stuff you've seen around you for all these years was done - using Quark, Illustrator and Photoshop - one machines way the hell less than a dual 2GHz G5.



I've never used a G5 (just got our new iMac G5 at work, but I've not even set it up yet and it'll be my first experience with one). But for 12 years, I've used those core Adobe apps (plus QuarkXPress, earlier on) on '040, 601, 604, G3 and G4-based Macs...as has everyone else I know.

Most people I know doing print design (the apps you reference) are still using G4s of various designs. I only know a handful of people who own G5s who do the kind of work we do.

You say yourself you're not doing much demanding Photoshop work. Illustrator and Quark should be no problem on a decent G4. It's never been for me.

It's a personal, subjective thing. But, speaking for myself, I'll take a decently-spec'ed laptop over a "monster" desktop ANY day. It's simply too fun and cool (and handy) to have your Mac with you whenever you want. After 23 months of owning a PowerBook, I'd have a really tough time ever owning a desktop Mac again, I don't care how "powerful and fast" it was.

You'll get a wide range of thoughts and opinions on this, I'm sure. But the above is mine.

[Satchmo]

Thanks for the reassurance.

I too have used older G4 and earlier Macs with most Adobe apps and Quark. However, they ran under OS9 without the added bells and whistles that come with Panther.

I've only run OSX on a G4 based machine on my FP iMac 700 at home. It chugs along but is not snappy™ enough for my liking. Perhaps it's because I'm use to the Dualie I have at work.
I may need to make that same adjustment if and when I go to the PB.

But yes, not being tied to the desk will be an awakening. I can't wait to surf sitting out on my rooftop deck.

[psmith2.0]

Yes...once you "wires lack", you never go back.

I figure most any 1GHz-plus G4 with appropriate amounts of RAM (512MB up to 2GB?) would handle those apps pretty well. Before I had my PowerBook, I had the 800MHz G4 iMac (rev. A) for 18 months, and was happy with the performance. At the time, I was doing A LOT of Illustrator work and page layout (InDesign), but I never felt "held down" or anything.

Those types of apps never seem as demanding or power-hungry as Photoshop, of course. But I did use Photoshop quite a bit too, and was satisfied.

I'd imagine any 1.5GHz G4, while no dual G5, would be totally acceptable for that type of work.

That was one of the reasons I've always been glad I latched onto Illustrator - as opposed to Photoshop - early on...I've never felt the need to always have the latest/greatest speed demon Mac, simply because I didn't really have to with Illustrator being my primary "weapon of choice".



However, all my buddies who are heavy-duty Photoshop monkeys are forever trading up, upgrading, thinking about "what can I get next?", trying to squeeze every bit of speed and power that they can, always unsatisfied with their gear even if it's only a few months old, etc.



No thanks!

[Satchmo]

Hey pscates, I swear by Illustrator myself (although CS has been buggy).

My only concern is when I encounter larger files that have complex points. My G5 easily rotates and duplicates these files with ease. I suppose the one or two second wait won't kill me...I'll just have to adjust.

Damn, I'm gonna miss the speed of the Dual G5. I love the snappiness of it.
But I think the IT guy has already ordered the laptop...so I think I've made my bed (I wonder if he should have waited to see if a revised PB in Paris next week surfaces).

As it happens, I'm away on vacation all next week, so I won't see my new baby for another week or so. Hmm...here's one time I wish I wasn't taking time off.

[psmith2.0]

Yeah, on those kinds of files you might have to wait an extra second or so. Do you encounter them often, or just every once in a while? Just depends on your patience and temperment, I guess, as to how much that might irk you.



Things like that tend to not bug me, probably because I've not spent enough time on "killer Macs" to appreciate true dual G5 goodness. Perhaps I'd be a bit more critical and demanding if I've known that type of life, then had to "step down" to a G4-based PowerBook. That's an entirely plausible scenario, and I can understand why you might be hesitant on the issue.

As it is, ignorance is bliss in my case, I suppose. That's usually the case with me...what I don't know won't hurt me.



I tend to value the other things (portability, couch/porch surfing, working at other locations, meeting anywhere with freelance clients and performing changes on the spot, or whipping up something in front of them, etc.), so, for me, it's a do-able trade-off. For 9-10 years, I was chained to a desk whenever I wanted to use my Mac. Breaking free of that was the best thing I've ever done, to tell the truth. I use my Mac more, and for more things, than I ever have...and it truly feels like an extension of me, as silly as that sounds. Just knowing that I CAN "take it with me when I go" is something I've grown to really appreciate and enjoy.

We did just get new 2GHz iMac G5s at work, so I'm hoping my PowerBook doesn't start to seem creaky and slow in the coming weeks and months. I've been worrying about that a little. My PowerBook has always trumped my work computer (a nearly six-years-old 400MHz Sawtooth G4)...now that won't be the case!



As for Paris, anything released there, PowerBook-wise, couldn't be TOO major. I don't know how much room they have left to go up, you know? Small bumps and enhancements are about all I can imagine...probably nothing major enough to warrant extra waiting.

[Satchmo]

Well, I finally got my PB 15" from work. I've only had a day to really work with it, but here are my impressions.

It's gorgeous, but yes it needs some improvements. While the screen is nice, there are certainly better ones out there. It's also quite heavy...or maybe I'm just not use to carrying a laptop (Alas, where is that 13" widescreen!?)

The build quality on mine is also a bit suspect. Right away I noticed a bit of a warp as I began typing on the keyboard (awesome keyboard, btw). The trackpad button is rather "sticky" and not as clicky as I'd like it or seen it at some stores. Hopefully, that loosens in time.
And while I'm on the trackpad, it seems to have a mind of it's own. I'm going to try and reset it and see if that helps.

As far as speed, well....there really was no question my dual 2.0 G5 was going to be faster. I haven't thrown a gigantic file at the PB yet, but I can definitely feel it working hard on a few things I've done in Illustrator already.

It's still early...I'm hoping I'll get used to the portability lifestyle. It is wonderful to have all my files with me at all times. Although that also means I have all of my work with me too.
It's too bad the company couldn't have let me keep my dualie and thrown me a 12" Pb to play with

[Robo]

Originally Posted by pscates2.0 It's a personal, subjective thing. But, speaking for myself, I'll take a decently-spec'ed laptop over a "monster" desktop ANY day. It's simply too fun and cool (and handy) to have your Mac with you whenever you want. After 23 months of owning a PowerBook, I'd have a really tough time ever owning a desktop Mac again, I don't care how "powerful and fast" it was.

Ow.

As many of you probably know by now, I'm trying to decide between buying a Powerbook or an iMac for general use and fairly light video editing (well, as "light" as video editing gets). On Saturday, it would have been no question...Powerbook all the way! But then I started wondering if I would prefer the larger screen, massive hard drive, faster processor (with an awesomely fat FSB), and gosh-darn style of the iMac.

I guess I'm just trying to decide how much I want portability...the iMac (even the 20" model I'm considering) is portable in a pinch - I could lug it to school to show clips to my team - even have it on hand for an indoor shoot - but do I want more than just "pinch" portability? I'm actually leaning towards the 15" Powerbook now - I'm guessing it's still significantly lighter than the 14" craptop I'm used to - but that's the thing: I'm used to a laptop. I hardly ever use it anymore, because it's three years old and it barely met my needs when I got it (sorry, Dad), but I'm still kinda wanting something truly mobile - something I wouldn't have to "lug" to school.

Yesterday, I was really thinking I'd go for the iMac - even kicking myself for not buying it before the end of Student Union. But today, after reading Pscates' comments, I'm not so sure (again).

There's no way I can decide for sure until the Powerbook gets updated (hopefully tomorrow!), but it's going to be a tough decision - even if the Powerbook gets some super-awesome 1.8/2.0 GHz 7448 bump (*crosses fingers*).

[Franz Josef]

Originally Posted by Satchmo The trackpad button is rather "sticky" and not as clicky as I'd like it or seen it at some stores. Hopefully, that loosens in time.

Trackpad buttons change over time - they get used to you and you get used to them. It's weird but true.