Mac Book & I-Life question

[jtharvie]

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I am anamoured with the new Macbook Air but currently use PC and PC software (PSCS2). How does I-Life compare for amature / hobby photo software? Is there is big learning curve or is it as intuiative as all the Mac folk claim?

Cheers,

jth

[nhmitchell]

All of the applications in iLife are absolutely intuitive! And iPhoto is terrific for simple image fixes, cataloging and printing books.

 

Th e other programs are also very well-designed, comprehensive and simple to use.

 

You'll be happy!

 

Nick

[replay]

The Mac Book Air is a great laptop for some applications. I use it for travel and training.

The short comings are that it does not have a fire wire input just a USB input and some card readers do not fit in the USB connector. (Because of the drop down connection)

For my photos I use a MacBook Pro. You might just want a Mac Book, it is a great compact Laptop with a lot of features that you will like.

You will enjoy using Apple equipment and software. Have fun on your new purchase.

Jim

[andit]

Hi there jth,

 

You will be more than satisfied with your new Mac and the iLife applications. iPhoto is a fantastic package for working with your photo's. It gives you the option to do quite a few fixes (such as exposure, red eye, getting the horizon straight, cropping etc.) as well as being a great tool to organize your photo's with. You also have a lot of options in terms of printing (such as doing normal prints, in book format or even designing your own calendars). In terms of ease of use, it really is extremely simple to use. You will often hear discussions about Aperture here on the forum. iPhoto is a stripped version of Aperture.

 

I switched to Mac about two years ago. I was one of those people who created specialized software solutions for Windows (mainly communications and networking). I just got extremely tired of having to reboot the machine constantly. When Apple originally changed to the Intel processors, I was probably one of the first to make the switch - with Parallels software installed I was also running Windows. I have long since removed Windows from my machine. Believe it or not, I still write software for Windows - using a Mac. You have wonderful stuff like Real Basic, which can compile your code for Mac, Windows, Solaris, Linux etc. It works flawlessly.

 

I'm still using my original Intel Macbook Pro - works like a dream. I have not reset my machine in two years and don't regret the change whatsoever.

 

Hope this helps you a bit. If you need some more advice or help, you're welcome to private mail me.

 

Andreas

[cwf]

This is a matter of personal choice and so the decision is yours, but please allow me to suggest some caution with having the Air as your first and only Mac. It is another great Apple design.

 

I have both a PowerBook G4 and iMac G5, both several years old. The iMac gets all my photo work now, mostly because of its better display.

 

Your needs and wants are no doubt different, so I just throw this out as something to give whatever weight to you think it merits for you.

[ericperlberg]

I'm a long term mac user and like you I have gear lust for the macbook air. I'd advise caution, be realistic about the extra issues you'll face and try to figure out if after the "new" wears off, if you'll still want to put up with those issues. If you think you won't mind then go for it, it depends on your flexibility I think. Also be aware that the net is buzzing with Apple releasing an entirely reworked version of the MacBook in the not distant future. For certain it will be an aluminium or metal machine. It might even have the new screen (which on the "air' is beautiful) because of environmental issues with the older style screens.

 

1) Storage is limilted so you'll need to figure out how/where you're going to store you photos and music collection. There are solutions however (wifi like apple's Time Capsule or a usb portable drive with the caveat below about how many USB ports you'll need). In a few months the "air" will come out with its first revisions and I personally think that the hard drive space will increase significantly on both the base model and the Flash mem models. In any case, presumably you own an iPod which can carry your music where ever you go and maybe even your photos depending on the drive size.

2) Photoshop CS2 might be a bit much for it but I've read people using CS2 on a Macbook Air. In any case its not ideal. Adobe has some sort of arrangement for switching ownership for CS2 from PC to Mac. But since CS2 is not native on Leopard and has to run in an emulation like mode it runs even a bit slower than CS3 and slower than on a similarly spec'd PC (although for that matter you can buy Win XP and run it on your Macbook Air if you don't mind rebooting the mac into XP). I personally can't see anyone who has used CS2 using iPhoto as their main photo tool. It's mostly just for organising your images IMO.

3) If your photo needs are basic (limited colour management for example) Photoshop Elements 6 for Mac (not earlier) is less resource intensive and will run faster on the Air than CS2. I've read about people using Aperture and Lightroom also. But how acceptable this would be to you depends on your expectations.

4) USB ports are limited to one as you know so think through how many usb ports you absolutely need and how you'll do that (eg maybe a usb hub or a portable usb hub).

5) Think through how you'll do your backups.

 

Best of luck, apple makes excellent tools!

[ericperlberg]

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Is there is big learning curve or is it as intuiative as all the Mac folk claim?

Cheers,

jth

 

How intuitive one finds Macs depends on how intuitive you are with computers. Macs do some things differently than PCs and you'll have to adjust your habits. No computer operating system is "easy", all are essentially complex. Apple does a better job than anyone IMO at simplifying the complexity.

 

Have you seen these videos which Apple has made to answer your question?

[jtharvie]

Thanks one and all for the sage input.

I have much to consider here. I was unaware new MacBooks were in the near future, I may want to hold off and see what is offered. As for storage, I was considering the seperate optical drive. I am an amature and have become very frugal with drive space by deleting any photos that are deemed unworthy.

Thanks again.

Cheers,

jth

[Phillip_Meyer]

Hi,

 

I have had a MacBook Air since it was released and although I also have a MacBook Pro I have found that I have not touched it since the day I bought the Air.

 

I have the version with the SSD and the only disadvantage you may find is the small amount of storage space on the internal drive. However, I use Apple's Aperture and have the database on an external USB2.0 hard drive and this works really well. The lack of additional ports is not a problem as I have a very small USB hub which also has an SD card slot built in, therefore I can import all my photos straight of the card and into the external drive.

 

I would highly recommend this drive, it's especially good if (like me) you travel a lot with work but it's also fantastic for sitting in front of the TV because it's so light and doesn't get anywhere near as hot as my MacBook Pro.

 

The screen is fantastic too.

 

Phillip

[stunsworth]

Philip, apart from cost I think that what's missing from the Air could be significant for some people. The fact that you are using it with a USB hub and external hard drive indicates that it wouldn't be suitable for _me_ as a prtable device (you're obviously very pleased with it and I have no problem with that). In addition there'd be a need for an external CD drive if you wanted to install any software.

 

IMHO, and for my particular needs, it's been parred down to the extent that it becomes virtually useless. Add on all the bits and bobs and you have something that's no smaller than a standard MacBook at a much higher cost.

[johnjs]

I agree with Steve here, the Air is great only if ultimate portability is the driving force. After having looked at them in the Apple store, I preferred the 15" MacBook Pro which is still very thin and just a bit heavier, but it has a built in drive and all of the connections. SSD should become available in the upcoming Pro's, along with the new Intel processor based on the 45nanom fab. To each their own though, the Air certainly is a nice piece of design. I myself recently opted for the iMac 24 and really love it, also went with the AppleTV device and I now stream my music library from that computer into my B&W's via optical. I digress.

Best - John

[DTD]

I'd agree with stunsworth and johnjs about the MacBook Air.

 

I'd also say that although macs are pretty intuitive, I know quite a few Windows users who have been frustrated because they know how to do something on a PC and then can't work out how to do it on a mac.

 

I'd really recommend a book – probably OSX The Missing Manual for Switchers by David Pogue.

[Phillip_Meyer]

As someone said each to their own but I think you'd be pretty surprised if you had one for a while.

 

I bought the Air because my MacBook Pro was being repaired by Apple and I needed a laptop for a business trip. I bought it with the intention of returning it when my MacBook Pro was repaired (well, that's what I told my wife). Anyway, after a week with the MacBook Air I didn't want to go back to the MacBook Pro even though I managed to get Apple to exchange my 9 month old MacBook Pro for a new one. It's now my wife's laptop and I almost exclusively use the Air.

 

Just a thought about the external hard drive. I've always kept my photo-library on an external drive as it's so big, I then back the images up to jungledisk. To be honest, I'd prefer to have a network volume but even 802.11n isn't quick enough for that to work well.

 

Phillip

[wstotler]

I was unaware new MacBooks were in the near future, I may want to hold off and see what is offered. As for storage, I was considering the seperate optical drive. I am an amature and have become very frugal with drive space by deleting any photos that are deemed unworthy.

Thanks again.

Cheers,

jth

 

 

Hi. I'm coming in to this a bit late, but wanted to help (if you're still looking for comments):

 

(1) Wait for a product line "refresh"? This page, showing all Apple product refresh cycles, can help you make informed decisions: Mac Buyer's Guide: Know When to Buy Your Mac, iPod or iPhone The Air doesn't have a refresh cycle yet, but it will.

 

(2) I'd say that you should skip the Air, pick a MacBook with *reasonable* processor speeds (doesn't have to be top-of-the-line), and the screen size of your choice (err on the side of a larger, rather than smaller, screen), pay to max out its RAM, and go home happy.

 

(3) Skip iPhoto--it's probably underpowered for what you need, just based on you being here in this forum. (It supports LC1 RAW files, BTW.) Heavily consider Aperture. It will kill two birds with one stone for you--image development and image management. Lock the door, commit to an hour, and watch the tutorials for Aperture, **in order**, starting with the Introduction, here: Apple - Aperture - Tutorials

 

(4) Want to make DVDs and such with your photos? Use iMovie and iDVD in the iLife suite.

 

(5) Get an external hard drive you can plug up to the Mac. Shoot RAW (if you aren't) and never delete anything! Hard drive space is very cheap these days. . . . Put your applications on your hard drive and your data on an external drive. Keep only critical data that you *must* take with you on the computer itself. (BTW, many people have two external drives so they can back up data from one to the other.) I recently bought a 1TB (1000+Gb) external FireWire drive and have another on order. . . .

 

That's it! Good luck.

Thanks,

Will

[ericperlberg]

Hi. I'm coming in to this a bit late, but wanted to help (if you're still looking for comments):

 

(1) Wait for a product line "refresh"? This page, showing all Apple product refresh cycles, can help you make informed decisions: Mac Buyer's Guide: Know When to Buy Your Mac, iPod or iPhone ...snip

 

(2) snip... pick a MacBook with *reasonable* processor speeds (doesn't have to be top-of-the-line), and the screen size of your choice (err on the side of a larger, rather than smaller, screen), ...snip

Will

 

I have only two minor quibbles with what Will has posted. While the macrumors buyers' guide is a nice idea, the most recent update to the macbook was minor. Anyway, here's another "rumor" source with a different take. Pick your horse and place your bet. Also, I'm sure Will knows this but there is only one size screen on the macbook so his advice to get the bigger screen is a bit on the rhetorical side.

[Michael-IIIf]

I'm coming to this discussion a little late too but if I may say the thread has gone a bit off-topic into whether the Air is a good laptop or not. That wasn't what jth asked.

 

To answer the question posed I would say that iLife is easy to learn your way around but you might want to upgrade CS2 to CS3 and then take a platform swap so you can run it on the Mac. CS3 will take advantage of the Air's Intel chipset and if you are familiar with the PhotoShop environment you will find iPhoto very amateur in comparison. Why not stay with the package you already know, the package that is the world leader in image manipulation to boot.

 

Most other mainstream apps are available for the Mac: FireFox, Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Entourage, Skype - so there won't be a learning curve there either.

 

This Mac fan says: go for it.