Happy with Windows?

I'm guessing most here would rather own and work with a Windows PC rather than the Apple OS. It is quite clear that you can get more bang for the buck in terms of RAM, and other computer specifications. And switching over would be a pain.

But I will probably need to buy a new computer this year, and itt seems that most professional photographers and Photoshop experts use Apple Computes.

I do not need super speed for video games. I do not batch large files. I am most definitely not a pro. My camera is only 12MPs. I use Nikon NX2, Photoshop (CS4), Lightroom, and have lots of plug-ins from OnOne, NIK, Topaz, Alien Skin etc.

The main thing that I would like my next computer to do better than my present one (a Sony Vaio AR laptop) is to be more stable. I seem to bog down and crash quite a bit. And every time Photoshop crashes I want to buy a Mac to make the pain go away. But I am probably kidding myself. I am sure people crash all the time with Macs. But I have heard they are more stable.

Do you think that if I buy the right PC it could be just as stable as a MAC?

And what company or considerations are needed to buy a super reliable non-crashing and stable PC.

This is the endless debate of coke/pepsi, chevy/ford, etc. so expect the worst.

Having owned both, I'm happy with PC (although I enjoyed owning a mac). Vista 64-bit is solid as a rock. Never crashes/locks for me. All my devices work (have about 10 things plugged in via USB regularly).

I have 8 GB RAM and a slightly older 6700 processor but everything runs REALLY well (CS4, LR2, Sony Vegas 8.1 for video, same light gaming). I have no grudge against mac or microsoft so I'm probaby not normal. ;-)

I will say that apple is just not a good value for me when an i7 920 system with 1 TB hard drive, 6 GB RAM, and a high end video card can be had for $1250. Apple can't touch that price/performance value (mac pro equiv is roughly twice the price). I'm not sure what I'm truly getting for twice the $?

Joe

Yes, I am happy. The thing is that my Windows is not really "Ms Windows XP". I integrated SP3, IE7, WMP11 and some other things (like exFAT, etc.), drivers, themes with nLite and a couple of other tools. I also removed some components. My edition of Windows it what the original Windows ought to be ;-)

--
Smena 8M---> Practica LTL---> Minolta XTsi---> Fuji S6500fd---> Olympus E-420

I've followed the latest AppleMac products, they're nice, but for the $, you can get much more power/RAM on PC's.

My latest PC is a Dell Inspiron 530 with 2.5G QuadCore and 6G RAM...it FLIES and MULTI-TASKS like lightning!

The new i7's are even faster...

I choose my DESKTOP PC mainly on price, it's a REFURB from Dells on-line refurb site and it cost $600.

They also offer a large selection of laptops, but they tend to be less powerful.

If you need the mobility of a laptop, Sager offers a QuadCore PC that is highly configurable with multi-HD's,etc. It will be in the price range of Sony for sure...

The main reason for AppleMacs is their OS...the rest doesn't matter and are not any better quality built than PC's..

Gary

I just came back over to the pc side after being a mac user. It was due to work related issues, but I will admit, I am glad I am back. Nothing against Mac's at all, I just prefer the comfort level I have with a pc. Owning a mac is really about the OS itself. You either buy a mac for the operating system or you stick with a pc. As for the crashing, I would say that part is over rated. I think mac's do a better job when the program locks up so that you do not end up locking down the entire system, but programs do still crash on a mac and often times, you will still run into some compatability issues.

I am now running windows 7 (yes, anyone can jump on me for running beta as my main application, but I am well aware of how to deal with any issues) and really like where they are heading with this. I would guess you will see a late August release date for this OS. I also just built my own system using the Intel Core I7 920 processor and Asus mobo. I run 6gb of ram with 64 bit OS.

My recommendation is to build your own. Use the new Intel Core I7 (920 is a good choice) processor, a decent mother board and make sure you move to 64 bit OS with enough ram. Really not difficult at all to build one.

Codis said:

I'm guessing most here would rather own and work with a Windows PC
rather than the Apple OS. It is quite clear that you can get more
bang for the buck in terms of RAM, and other computer specifications.
And switching over would be a pain.

But I will probably need to buy a new computer this year, and itt
seems that most professional photographers and Photoshop experts use
Apple Computes.

I do not need super speed for video games. I do not batch large
files. I am most definitely not a pro. My camera is only 12MPs. I
use Nikon NX2, Photoshop (CS4), Lightroom, and have lots of plug-ins
from OnOne, NIK, Topaz, Alien Skin etc.

The main thing that I would like my next computer to do better than
my present one (a Sony Vaio AR laptop) is to be more stable. I seem
to bog down and crash quite a bit. And every time Photoshop crashes
I want to buy a Mac to make the pain go away. But I am probably
kidding myself. I am sure people crash all the time with Macs. But I
have heard they are more stable.

Do you think that if I buy the right PC it could be just as stable as
a MAC?
And what company or considerations are needed to buy a super reliable
non-crashing and stable PC.

Click to expand...

I had no complaints about XP or Vista, but I am not an OS operating system guru. I just want the system to work and don't bother with many tweaks. Price is an issue these days. I bought a Gateway about 8 months ago with an AMD quad core processor, ATI discreet video card with 256 meg, 2- 500 gig HD's and 3 gig RAM for about $700 minus monitor. For this price, I'll just buy a new system instead of fiddling with OS upgrade issues when I have no alternative. Hardware quality is apparently hard to predict these days. My notebook (huge brand) has been a disaster of hardware failures even though it receives light use around the house.

Greg

Once your in the application like CS4 or Lightroom, or whatever you'll be using, there really isn't a difference.

Get yourself a colorimeter like the Spyder3 or Eye-one to calibrate your display, which you should do anyway, PC or Mac.

--
The following is not an advertisement, editorial or political commentary.

http://cmgd.net

I pretty much agree. I also use Vista 64 with 8GB RAM and a Core 2 Duo [email protected]. It really is a good solid OS and Lightroom runs pretty good even with the 21MP RAW files from 5D mkII. For a short period I had a Macbook 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo, but it was just too slow for Lightroom IMO.

Also unless you absolutely need a laptop, forget about it. Laptops are so damn slow IMO compared to similar priced desktop PC's. Especially the slow harddrives really kills performance. Get a desktop with a good RAID setup... you wont regret it. I just added a 2x1TB RAID0 to my PC and those disks (Samsung Spinpoint F1) are very fast.

If you have not tried using Mac OS X you should really try it before diving in. IMO I dont think it is better to use than Windows allthough it may or may not be less troublesome.

Joe Marques said:

This is the endless debate of coke/pepsi, chevy/ford, etc. so expect
the worst.

Having owned both, I'm happy with PC (although I enjoyed owning a
mac). Vista 64-bit is solid as a rock. Never crashes/locks for me.
All my devices work (have about 10 things plugged in via USB
regularly).

I have 8 GB RAM and a slightly older 6700 processor but everything
runs REALLY well (CS4, LR2, Sony Vegas 8.1 for video, same light
gaming). I have no grudge against mac or microsoft so I'm probaby
not normal. ;-)

I will say that apple is just not a good value for me when an i7 920
system with 1 TB hard drive, 6 GB RAM, and a high end video card can
be had for $1250. Apple can't touch that price/performance value
(mac pro equiv is roughly twice the price). I'm not sure what I'm
truly getting for twice the $?

Joe

Click to expand...

I'm running 8GB RAM and the system is stable. Much more so than my previous XP machine.

Currently my present session has been running 58 hours. I typically have the same session (just hibernate during the nights) running for maybe 80-90 hours before I boot due to updates or such.

And CS4 is superfast. I love the way it uses the graphics card for smooth effects.

No complaints from here.

The specs:

MoBo: Gigabyte GA-EP45-UD3P
Graphics card: Gigabyte Nvidia Geforce 9800gtx+ 1GB
Processor: Intel Core 2 Quad Q8200 2.33GHz
OS: Vista Ms Win Vista Ultimate Sp1 64-bit OEM
RAM: 2x OCZ DDR2 4gb Pc2-6400 PlatinumXTC D = 8GB
HDs: 2x Western Digital 500gb SataII 16mb = 1TB

Earthlight

--

Mostly harmless

Thanks for all the positive feedback.
I think I will buy a desk top and hope for the best.

Sounds like with enough ram and with the i7 things hum along nicely.

I really don't want to learn a new OS. So again, thanks for the encouragement.

I recently replied to another tupperware/pc thread explaining in detail what made me ditch the cupertino-based fruit-distributor permanently, and I'll skip getting into another rant over their "service"-department.

If you want a laptop that is stable, you can do a lot worse than a Thinkpad. Period.

As for photoshop crashes, don't blame application crashes on the OS. Bad programming is bad programming.

Svein
--
Hi! I'm a .signature virus!
Copy me into your .signature to help me spread!

I have bought box-standard PC's, built PC's,, bought components and had them built for me.

I feel over the last 15 years, from Pentium 60, right up until last December, I have had my share of PC's. I've also had a fair share of crashes! Let me tell you, towards the end of my current PC's usefulness, every task was hard work.

Then I bought an Imac.

EVERYTHING goes smoothly. Lightroom in conjunction with CS4, tethered shooting, Capture One, Aperture. I have Office for Mac and for the VERY few Windoze applications I occasionally use, I run Vista on VMWare fusion....basically Windows on a Mac.

Never liked Vista, but it works better on the Imac than it does on my older PC, and my lappie.

Laptop will be the next to be replaced with a Macbook.....and there aint anything wrong with it!

The Apple OS is more user friendly, smoother, less proine to crashing.
Everything just WORKS!

If I were you, go for a MAC....as big as you can afford.

One last thing.....the Imac looks damn good on my desk
--
http://www.hortonportraits.co.uk

Thanks for so plainly pointing out the reasons why some people compare the reality distortion field surrounding hardware from the cupertino fruit company to the CoS.

Svein
--
Hi! I'm a .signature virus!
Copy me into your .signature to help me spread!

Svein Skogen said:

Thanks for so plainly pointing out the reasons why some people
compare the reality distortion field surrounding hardware from the
cupertino fruit company to the CoS.

Click to expand...

It's APPLE mate. I stopped making stupid remarks like that when I was 10.

Anyhow, the OP asked for opinions, I gave him mine, including some back history. I may be looking through rose-tinted glasses at my shiny new Imac, but it's MY Imac and I love it.
I also have 3 Ipod's in my home. A shuffle, a touch and a classic.

Then again, I still have 2 PC's runnning too. My kid's use them as they can't stand the pace at which I work anymore.

It's obvious you have had issues with Apple, but don't lower yourself to stupid sideways comments about them.

When I went to mac I thought the same thing about the OS being more user friendly, but then began to get frustrated with the Apple Finder. I really just do not think the finder is user friendly at all. Having now used Windows 7 for a while, I am a lot more comfortable with this OS than I was with OSX. The Apple OS is nice in many ways, but in others it can be difficult and unfriendly. This is just my opinion of course, but there are some things that are not as smooth as the commercials, many users, and myself (a little while back) claim.

modehead said:

I have bought box-standard PC's, built PC's,, bought components and
had them built for me.
I feel over the last 15 years, from Pentium 60, right up until last
December, I have had my share of PC's. I've also had a fair share of
crashes! Let me tell you, towards the end of my current PC's
usefulness, every task was hard work.

Then I bought an Imac.

EVERYTHING goes smoothly. Lightroom in conjunction with CS4, tethered
shooting, Capture One, Aperture. I have Office for Mac and for the
VERY few Windoze applications I occasionally use, I run Vista on
VMWare fusion....basically Windows on a Mac.

Never liked Vista, but it works better on the Imac than it does on my
older PC, and my lappie.
Laptop will be the next to be replaced with a Macbook.....and there
aint anything wrong with it!

The Apple OS is more user friendly, smoother, less proine to crashing.
Everything just WORKS!

If I were you, go for a MAC....as big as you can afford.

One last thing.....the Imac looks damn good on my desk
--
http://www.hortonportraits.co.uk

Click to expand...

You are absolutely right, thanks for the open, honest and non-sarcastic reply.

Maybe I just got fed up with BSOD's, and the whole Windows "experience".
Maybe my Imac is still shiny and new anda novelty....either way, I love it.
We all have opinions

Mjs said:

modehead said:

I have bought box-standard PC's, built PC's,, bought components and
had them built for me.
I feel over the last 15 years, from Pentium 60, right up until last
December, I have had my share of PC's. I've also had a fair share of
crashes! Let me tell you, towards the end of my current PC's
usefulness, every task was hard work.

Then I bought an Imac.

EVERYTHING goes smoothly. Lightroom in conjunction with CS4, tethered
shooting, Capture One, Aperture. I have Office for Mac and for the
VERY few Windoze applications I occasionally use, I run Vista on
VMWare fusion....basically Windows on a Mac.

Never liked Vista, but it works better on the Imac than it does on my
older PC, and my lappie.
Laptop will be the next to be replaced with a Macbook.....and there
aint anything wrong with it!

The Apple OS is more user friendly, smoother, less proine to crashing.
Everything just WORKS!

If I were you, go for a MAC....as big as you can afford.

One last thing.....the Imac looks damn good on my desk
--
http://www.hortonportraits.co.uk

Click to expand...

Click to expand...

--
http://www.hortonportraits.co.uk

modehead said:

Svein Skogen said:

Thanks for so plainly pointing out the reasons why some people
compare the reality distortion field surrounding hardware from the
cupertino fruit company to the CoS.

Click to expand...

It's APPLE mate. I stopped making stupid remarks like that when I
was 10.

Click to expand...

You mean like your Windoze comment?

Your comparison was typical hype - Apple is flawless, Windows crashes all the time, and blah, blah, blah.

Joe Marques said:

You mean like your Windoze comment?

Your comparison was typical hype - Apple is flawless, Windows crashes
all the time, and blah, blah, blah.

Click to expand...

I was just as obnoxious and iBrainwashed myself when I had an Apple, and all the way to my last run-in with their "service" department. After that I got myself a Thinkpad, and started noticing how brainwashed the apple crowd really was.

Svein
--
Hi! I'm a .signature virus!
Copy me into your .signature to help me spread!

it is not that you have to make the programs run faster, it is your pc that has to run faster. you should already be doing the following-

-have and be using a pc maintenance routine. this includes defragging, antispyware sweeps(do not let the antispyware run all the time, it just slows down your pc), the program window washer(or something like it, to dump all unneeded files), a good registry cleaner(if you have never used one, the junk builds up in the registry from all the installs and uninstalls you have done ever, plus any pc problems that you ever had), consider running chkdsk R on your c drv(once a week or once a month).

note wise has a free disk cleaner as wellas a a registry cleaner that work great, they also have the paid versions. The free ones do good. I use them.

-make sure ALL unneeded programs are not running on startup. this means going to msconfig via start/run and selecting the startup tab then you uncheck what you wish(be carefull you have to know what you are doing here some of that stuff your pc needs. also go to start and right click click explore and under user names/start menu/programs/startup right and drag all unneeded programs out of the startup folders check all startup folders(i have a folder labeled startup on my desktop where i put the stuff i have dragged out of the startup folders).

-you can uninstall any programs that you do not wish via the control panel/addremove programs. for any debris left by the program uninstaller you can use the program Your Uninstaller 2008. or use it instead of addremove programs. the program removes everything rpt everything. you run it first, it shifts to the program in question uninstaller, then after that runs it tell you what the uninstaller left behind and do you want to remove it? believe me it works. it also removes programs that have a completely broken uninstaller.

no hrd drv should be running with over 85% full. The drv has to have room to access programs, do the paging file, and defrag. If you have the c drv over 85% get some data off it. Use an ext hard drv to store data on it. I have a 500gb drv just for storing my pics. Plus another 500gb drv to backup the first. The only pics on my c drv are the ones that I am currently working on. I have 2 more ext hdr drvs to store data on.

It is not necessary to keep every pic the user has ever shot. When you download the pics to the pc, throw out the duds, either bad from a technical point of view or bad in composition. You are going to take more pics. When throwing out your discard pics you have to be utterly ruthless rpt ruthless rpt ruthless. Otherwise you are just going to fill up hard drv space.

if you are not doing this then the pc is laboring under a messy and dirty system, and has to run more programs than you need to.

i use and recommend easycleaner for the registry. it is free and seems to set to get the obvious registry stuff. i also use registry first aid platinum which is not free but does a through cleaning.

Wise also has free disk cleaner and registry cleaner programs. They are very good and fully automatic. I use them. They work.
in msconfig to find out what the abbreviated programs are go the website-
http://www.pacs-portal.co.uk/startup_content.php
and select program then the full list. there is also a search feature.

if you have never done the above then do it all you will see much more efficient easy running pc.

i have a 4+ yr old dell with 1 gig of ram(lately upgraded to 3gb of ram) and a 3.0khz processor and my pc is very fast. i also maintain it as stated above and have been doing so for a long time. I do my full maintenance routine on Friday of EVERY week.
good luck. gary.

Svein Skogen said:

Joe Marques said:

You mean like your Windoze comment?

Your comparison was typical hype - Apple is flawless, Windows crashes
all the time, and blah, blah, blah.

Click to expand...

I was just as obnoxious and iBrainwashed myself when I had an Apple,
and all the way to my last run-in with their "service" department.
After that I got myself a Thinkpad, and started noticing how
brainwashed the apple crowd really was.

Svein

Click to expand...

I fell for the hype and bought my kids an iMac. It was good but nothing special and grossly overpriced. No more stable than any XP or Vista machine I've built or bought. Ironically, it's the only computer I've owned in 25 years to stop working due to hardware failure.

It had a bad power supply which makes sense given how small it is and how hot it runs. Apple did fix it for free - it was a recall for that problem. Sold the iMac and with the money from that sale bought a BRAND NEW Dell.

I'm really trying to find fault with Vista but I just can't. I have 3 vista machines plus I'm the "tech support" for 3 friends with Vista machines. No problems at all so I'm wondering how authentic some of the complaints are given the long history of anti-MS pablum.

Much like the photographers on this forum, you don't know who you're dealing with and there's no way to "post samples" demonstrating computer knowledge. ;-) So when someone says "Vista sucks" they could simply be the guy who has a D3 and barely knows how to operate a P&S - blaming the equipment instead of their own user error.

Joe