I am in need of a new computer to step up from my Pentium 4, 512K RAM desktop replacement HP notebook and a couple of large external hard drives. I currently run Adobe PS CS and Lightroom using this configuration. You can only imagine how slow it is. And shooting sports photos, where I review and edit hundreds of photos per week, the SLOW factor is magnified.
I have heard bad things about MS Vista and its stability. I have heard good things about Macs and Macs running XP and use of Parallels software. So, I started down the path of considering a MacBook Pro (lower end, but with 4GB memory) and a 23" Cinema Display. This would be my primary system, but I cold unplug and use the MacBook Pro solo, if traveling.
However, the new MacBook Pros come with Leopard and I have been hearing about problems with Lightroom and Leopard. Since my budget is only allowing me to get into this hardware configuration, I can't afford to upgrade all my software to Apple. Therefore, I would try to continue running my CS and Lightroom, via the XP through Parallels, until I could afford to upgrade my CS and Lightroom to apple and they had worked out the problems with Lightroom and Leopard.
So, some of my questions about the Windows to Mac migration are as follows:
1) Are the problems with Lightroom and Leopard only with the Apple version of Lightroom?
2) Is anyone running Lightroom successfully through Parallels/XP configuration on a Mac or Mackbook Pro?
3) If there are problems in my proposed configuration (besides running slow and using the Mac as a Windows machine temporarily), what are they and can they be overcome?
4) Will my external hard drives (Western Digital) and printers (Epson 340) work with a MacBook Pro? I think I read that there are sometimes issues with how your hard drive is configured (FAT vs. NTFS).
5) Any other ideas or advice is certainly welcomed!
I would like to make the switch in January 2008, but need to get some of these questions answered first. I would think that with Vista coming out, many people needing a new computer, may be contemplating some of these same questions. And I would think there would be a lot of PC to Mac converts in this forum. Thanks in advance!
I found a solution that walks both sides of the road. At Mac Connection I found a Macbook that was preconfigured with VMWare (which is a PC virtualization package) and Vista, as well as Leopard. Voila, a Mac that runs both Windows and Mac software, right out of the box.
Performance could be impacted by running the software inside an emulator, but I suspect not all that badly insofar as the machine uses an Intel processor.
I'll let you know how it performs with PC software after Christmas, when the box gets opened. So far my other experiences working with VMWare have been positive.
Thanks for the quick and informative response! I look forward to hearing your responses after having used the machine. I do hope to eventually migrate to full Mac uage, but still have a lot of useful software that runs on Windows, including my Pocket PC phone, which synchs with Windows. I'll try to look up Mac Connection to do futher research. Thanks again Noel and I can't resist, but to note that your name has a holiday feel about it!
There where initial problems between Leopard and Lightroom but with the latest upgrade of Lightroom they have disappeared - I now run it happily on both an iMac and a Macbook Pro.
I have used a variety of virtualisation software to run Windows on a Mac (though I always went for XP to avoid any problems with Vista) and it works fine albeit a bit slow. If you really want to run in windows, I would install XP under Boot Camp and have the machine boot natively into Windows rather than via another piece of software - then you get full performance. One survey I saw even suggested that the best machine on which to run Windows was a Macbook Pro....
I understand the issue with windows based software but my view would be that you would be better off going straight to the Mac version of Photoshop and Lightroom and use emulation or Boot Camp to run the remaining software. I think (but check) that Adobe will send you a Mac copy of PS if you can prove (and presumably deactivate) you own a windows version but I can't remember where I saw this. There is no need to use emulation software on an intel mac other than for avoiding the hassle of not rebooting.
You would need to reformat your drive but I think it is only your boot drive for Leopard that needs this. If you search on google there was a lot of debate on this - obviously this isn't an issue if you are buying a new machine. Your back up drive might need this too (assuming using Time Machine) but this needs to be a clean drive to start anyway. Printer should be fine - all the Epson drivers have been updated for Leopard.
Thanks Dave for the insight! I know that the Macbook Pro comes with Boot Camp and didn't know the difference between Boot Camp and Parallels and which was better. Good news about use of the printer, although I rarely produce prints, I do print a lot of reading matter.
It sounds like I'll have to work on the hard drive issue. Also, since my Lightroom database was formed in the Windows version of Lightroom, will I have problems with converting to the Apple version? Is the database a different file format?
I have yet to upgrade my Lightroom from the initial version. I heard some people had problems with this process. However, that is for discussion a different forum. Thanks again Dave!
There is no need to use emulation software on an intel mac other than for avoiding the hassle of not rebooting.
Well...
1. The Mac is a secondary machine both to provide me a platform on which to build and debug Mac products, and also to be used by my son.
2. There will be times when buying the Mac version of some software isn't desirable, while I have perfectly good licenses that we had used on the old Windows laptop which is being retired. On the other hand, there will be some new apps we'll want to run under Leopard. A good example is Photoshop... I am allowed to install it on a desktop and a laptop. I don't ever intend to switch over to Mac whole hog.
I guess I see the emulation systems as a nice migration and integration aid. I've been doing development work where I run Linux in a VMWare virtual machine and frankly it's wonderful to be able to have my familiar Windows development environment and be able to switch into and out of Unix as needed. I just wish Apple would license OSX to run in an emulator. Then all I'd ever need is this amazing Dell Precision workstation.
It's worth noting that VMWare (and quite likely Parallels) allows access to the host operating system's files directly from within the virtual environment.
Happy birthday and I guess we now all know where the name Noel originated! Yes, I'm thinking that having the flexibility to choose between Mac and Windows (in my case) is great in that you can choose which application is best and if you are on a tight budget, can migrate without the huge investment. The only other investment is one of learning, one that continues to pay huge dividends. My son is also saving up to go with a Macbook for college, as he is using one in his digital photography class at his high school. So, with me having a Mac as well, we can learn together.
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