After much soul-searching

[NeuroTypical]

And it kills me to say this, but I have to be honest with everyone here and with myself.

As my family looks for a computer that will let us teach our kids graphic design and do animation and stuff, we're probably better off looking at Macs than PCs. Aren't we. The full truth can't be found in the church of Windows.

I hope you all appreciate how hard this is for me to admit. This is tantamount to me deciding I don't want the ketchup in the refrigerator any more.

Anyway, the only thing I know about Macs, is that $300 is about as much as we will have to spend on one. I need to start learning.

Does anyone have links to the Mac version of a leaving-mormonism board? Any suggestions on what I should look at?

Edited June 20, 2013 by Loudmouth_Mormon

[Anddenex]

Only one problem with apple products, once you purchase and buy anything from the app store, you are stuck with a Mac -- good marketing -- but not so good if you choose to purchase another PC.

Macs are nearly twice as expensive also. Thus, I hope your soul searching has truly looked into all avenues and topics and not just your anti-PC apple lovers...just saying. :)

EDIT: for strict readers PC did not refer to prisonchaplain.

Edited June 20, 2013 by Anddenex

[prisonchaplain]

Dear Loudmouth,

This communique is to inform you that we are keeping you on our rolls for 10 years, should you decide to seek reconciliation.

With understanding and love,

THE MICROSOFT CORPORATION

[jerome1232]

The OS doesn't matter, one is however cheaper to acquire than the other.

[LittleWyvern]

Anyway, the only thing I know about Macs, is that $300 is about as much as we will have to spend on one. I need to start learning.

You're missing a zero there.

[skippy740]

http://www.lds.net/forums/mormon-jokes/52149-religious-fanaticism.html

[slamjet]

All kidding aside, most all animation, CG, etc software that were originally meant for MAC's have been quite successfully ported over to the PC. The problem is the industry is still stuck-on-Apple. And Apple's are a whole lot more expensive than PC's with not much to show for it. So you're $300 is a fraction of what it would cost to get a "decent" Apple system.

[Anddenex]

On a side note, should you not yet be swayed to the Apple-Zombie's way, if you don't purchase a MAC, then you can purchase a PC and a iPad, at the same price for a MAC.

I went that route in the beginning. Instead of purchasing a MAC I purchased a PC and a iPad.

[Windseeker]

I don't see any need to get a Mac in order to obtain your goals. The tools are what's important.

Get a Cintiq tablet and Photoshop. Later you can look at Zbrush for amazing 3d.

[Blackmarch]

And it kills me to say this, but I have to be honest with everyone here and with myself.

As my family looks for a computer that will let us teach our kids graphic design and do animation and stuff, we're probably better off looking at Macs than PCs. Aren't we. The full truth can't be found in the church of Windows.

I hope you all appreciate how hard this is for me to admit. This is tantamount to me deciding I don't want the ketchup in the refrigerator any more.

Anyway, the only thing I know about Macs, is that $300 is about as much as we will have to spend on one. I need to start learning.

Does anyone have links to the Mac version of a leaving-mormonism board? Any suggestions on what I should look at?

300 isn't going to get you much anymore. even with home built computers (unless you have connections that can get you items at a good discount). still if your focus is on graphics that's going to drive up the price considerably. (you'll need a good processor, good video card and good chunk of ram for that stuff, more for 3d and animation and video crunching... photoshop sort of graphics is not quite as intensive)

if you want an easier time with things out of the box, then yes you should go with macs... if you know how to put something together and get down to the nitty gritty to streamline things, then go for a home built PC.

Most major graphics companies pander to both platforms, if your looking for freeware graphics stuff theres probably more variety on the PC side.

For macs there's a suite of software that's pretty versatile for all sorts of different things that you can add to a purchase without it being terribly expensive

Edited June 20, 2013 by Blackmarch

[classylady]

My husband says $300 is probably low. You're probably looking at least $1000. Husband loves Mac and has worked on both PC's and Mac's for a school disgtrict. He says PC innovation is still years behind Mac. He also says Mac's are more intuitive, and anything that was designed for the Mac and brought over to the PC side is still not as good as a Mac. There probably more steps to accomplish the same task using the PC. That's his .02 cents.

I know next to nothing about computers, so unable to debate any issues. I use whatever my husband sets up for me, which of course is a Mac. He used to put together PC's for the Univ. of Utah, and now won't touch them.

[Wingnut]

I hate ketchup.

[Traveler]

300 isn't going to get you much anymore. even with home built computers (unless you have connections that can get you items at a good discount). still if your focus is on graphics that's going to drive up the price considerably. (you'll need a good processor, good video card and good chunk of ram for that stuff, more for 3d and animation and video crunching... photoshop sort of graphics is not quite as intensive)

if you want an easier time with things out of the box, then yes you should go with macs... if you know how to put something together and get down to the nitty gritty to streamline things, then go for a home built PC.

Most major graphics companies pander to both platforms, if your looking for freeware graphics stuff theres probably more variety on the PC side.

For macs there's a suite of software that's pretty versatile for all sorts of different things that you can add to a purchase without it being terribly expensive

I would add - it depends on how serous one is about graphics. I do not know any professional graphic designers that do not use MAC. It is possible to get by with cheaper stuff - but if graphic design is indeed a priority the choice is obvious - especially if one does any research.

The Traveler

[prisonchaplain]

Being relatively ignorant about computers, I'd say that if hubby works on Macs and likes them, then get that. Any problems and you have an in-house tech guy. That's bank. Buy a PC, and he gets to grimace, delay, and give you the "told you so" look everytime the thing doesn't cooperate.

[mnn727]

As a Computer tech by trade, it used to be true that Macs were better than PC's at anything graphical, but it has not been true for about 3-4 years. Anything you can do on a MAC you can do on a PC.

Now, having said that you will still find that most people who do graphic intense work, do work on MAC's, Why is that? because they've been doing it for a decade or more and its what they are used to.

These days MAC's are more about being a fanatic than actual computer capability.

Edited June 20, 2013 by mnn727

[RipplecutBuddha]

If you're able to build a PC yourself, and you know all the ins and outs of such a process, Tiger Direct is a good website to go to for pricing components, cabinets, etc.

I bought a remanufactured HP from Best Buy for about 700 dollars that normally would have been close to twice the price new. I've had it five years now, and it's been flawless. I recently found out that for the same price, I can source everything from Tiger Direct and get a serious upgrade from this machine.

A joke to end on; How many Apple users does it take to change a light bulb? None, when the light bulb goes bad, they go buy a new house.

[slamjet]

...

A joke to end on; How many Apple users does it take to change a light bulb? None, when the light bulb goes bad, they go buy a new house.

I'm so stealing this

[LittleWyvern]

A joke to end on; How many Apple users does it take to change a light bulb? None, when the light bulb goes bad, they go buy a new house.

Apple users wouldn't dare keep a light bulb long enough for it to burn out. Why keep your iLight N around when Apple just released the iLight N+1 that's totally* different and better?

* Not really.

[jerome1232]

This thread is going exactly where I had hoped it would

[Mahone]

My husband says $300 is probably low. You're probably looking at least $1000. Husband loves Mac and has worked on both PC's and Mac's for a school disgtrict. He says PC innovation is still years behind Mac. He also says Mac's are more intuitive, and anything that was designed for the Mac and brought over to the PC side is still not as good as a Mac. There probably more steps to accomplish the same task using the PC. That's his .02 cents.

I know next to nothing about computers, so unable to debate any issues. I use whatever my husband sets up for me, which of course is a Mac. He used to put together PC's for the Univ. of Utah, and now won't touch them.

Your husband and I do similar jobs i.e. I'm an IT systems manager for a large educational establishment, and I have an ever growing number of macs encroaching on my network, but have opinions about macs that are on entirely different ends of the spectrum - I spent many a late evening night after night (11PM onwards when I was supposed to finish at 5) a couple of years ago trying to fix the many issues presented to us with our macs when we first integrated them onto our network, only to discover that the root cause was yet again another bug in that particular version of OSX, and an upgrade fixes it, only for that upgrade to break something else.

The only analogy I can use to describe what it was like was trying to use the first version of apple maps (which started off as a complete failure), but with less well known features so only myself and a few other network engineers out there in the world were suffering with the bugs contained in them for months at a time. Apple were claiming everything was fine, and their documentation said it was fine right up until they released the next update, at which point they discretely acknowledged issues had existed.

Of course for a home user macs are all fine and dandy - they won't use 50% of the features that OSX actually has, as they will never need them. But in a corporate environment, the setup becomes more complex, more of the features are needed and that's when the bugs really become apparent.

I detest them, I loathe them. They don't work well with anything that wasn't made by apple, regardless of the fact that apple say such a setup is supported. And lets not get started on apple documentation... which is worse than what I'd expect to see on an elementary school IT network in the middle of Afghanistan.

Edited June 21, 2013 by Mahone

[Windseeker]

Macs being better at rendering graphics is just no longer true. With the majority of graphic intensive video games out there you can't tell me they develop them on Mac then port them to the PC and then only make them available on the PC and not the Mac. It's just simply not true.

Apple has intel processors no different then any PC you can pick up. You can beef up your PC to whatever standard you want.

[Blackmarch]

I use both macs and PCs... and currently Microsoft still holds more wishes from me for Thank you bombs and atomic around the world wedgies than apple does. (altho apple has been racking up quite a few over the last few years).

At the consumer end, the OS for apples (OSX) is still smoother than whats usually used on PCs (Windows), for the average Joe.

that and with a mac you still have the option of having a windows machine as well if you prefer.

Edited June 21, 2013 by Blackmarch

[Magen_Avot]

Anyway, the only thing I know about Macs, is that $300 is about as much as we will have to spend on one.

Actually,...

Think "law of consecration" over mere tithing...

Covenants over casual commitment...

In other words...

This is not a discount purchase!

Capiche?

[dahlia]

Loudmouth_Mormon I wanted to respond when you first posted this, but my freakin' iPad was giving me fits. For some reason, I could only get partial pages of websites. I posted on FB, but couldn't see any text as I typed, but when I hit 'enter,' there was my message.

So, I am right with you when it comes to Apple products. I have an iPad because my department gave them out, but I bought myself an Asus.

I am spoiled because my PhD program was in Seattle and we got tons o'tech from Microsoft (as well as a few faculty). Yes, MS has its problems, but when I see a Mac my skin crawls. I don't find them intuitive at all.

And oh yeah, that same morning, the tech people were trying to set up a Mac for my PowerPoints. Something didn't connect with the projector and it was getting scary - I thought I wouldn't have my PPTs. Along comes another attendee with a PC and bing, bam, everything works fine. As it always does with a PC. : )

Good luck with your new Mac. I know people use them for graphics, it's just too bad one has to stoop so low to get pretty pictures.

[Mahone]

And oh yeah, that same morning, the tech people were trying to set up a Mac for my PowerPoints. Something didn't connect with the projector and it was getting scary - I thought I wouldn't have my PPTs. Along comes another attendee with a PC and bing, bam, everything works fine. As it always does with a PC. : )

It was likely that the mac display output was something like mini DVI/displayport and the projector input was only analogue VGA (and possibly a couple of digital options but not mini DVI or display port).

A lot of PCs on the other hand still come with VGA output, especially laptops.

An adapter would have resolved this issue, but they probably didn't have one.