Mac Pro question (graphics Programs)

H

Hacksaw

Weaksauce
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Aug 17, 2006
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Ok I have a question I have never used a Mac but I know that it pretty much is the standard for Graphic Designers. I am having problems with the PC I built about 6months ago, it just gets compleatly bogged down trying to handle large files (650mb). I currently use PS CS3, Illy CS3, and Corel.
Will the MAC PRO help with these issues? I can upgrade my C2D processor with a new Quad core but will that even help? my PC specs are in my sig.
Thanks!
 
It is true that most graphic designers use macs, however there are some firms that use PCs as well. For whatever reason they just seem to be more popular and I think that goes back a long time to before MACs had Intel processors. As far as your computer bogging down, any computer dealing with that size file is going to experience some kind of slow down, MACs are no different. The operating system is not THAT much faster that it would be noticeable in PS.

You could add some more ram, 1-2 more GBs and that would definitely help, since I believe CS3 is able to use 3+ GB of ram. Windows Vista would also help by allowing the system to support 4gb instead of 3.25gb in XP

This last thing you can do was shown to me by a professor, when altering large photoshop files, size down your original image to one that you can alter with quickly and not bog your computer down. Say 10meg file or so. Do all of your altering in layers. When done you can select the layers and simply drag them over to your large file. This will make everything alot easier.
 
wow, with those specs, you should be able to handle those files just fine. hardware wise, you probably wont notice a difference. the place that will most likely make the difference is the software. you can assume the photoshop and the likes will be coded to handle files similarly, but OSX may allow them to handle those files more efficiently. i really dont know about graphic design.

what i can tell you is when it comes to video, i would MUCH rather deal with osx and final cut pro because it does a much more efficient job handling the files. ive used windows and adobe premiere. DO NOT WANT. it was horrible.

so, if a relation can be made, there is a good chance the os, and the differently coded software will allow more efficient file handling. you could always swing buy an apple store and get some hands on experience. they have experts and workshops that allow you to learn about the mac and its abilities.

hope that helps.
 
As Wanktron was saying, he is dealing with video files, encoding, things like that so a Quad core processor would be extremely more efficient than a Core 2 Duo. He also mentioned difference in software which I do agree with in the MAC vs PC debate. Each OS has software that is unique to each and they both have very good software, just depends on what.

However, I think using Photoshop in both operating systems will be very similar since the program is the same. I have extensive use in Photoshop, Illustrator, Indesign, Flash, etc. in BOTH Macs and PCs.and I have found they when comparing processing speeds they are very much the same. I use dual core processors in both operating systems with similar ram and processor configurations. The only reason to buy a MAC now would be to familiarize yourself with the MAC operating system, since you already have a powerful PC.
 
rufus said:
This last thing you can do was shown to me by a professor, when altering large photoshop files, size down your original image to one that you can alter with quickly and not bog your computer down. Say 10meg file or so. Do all of your altering in layers. When done you can select the layers and simply drag them over to your large file. This will make everything alot easier.
Click to expand...

I'm confused by this recommendation. If you size your original file down and do all of your modifications and bring them over to your higher res file, the modifications will still be in a lower resolution. Resizing them back up to fit the higher resolution file will just degrade the quality unless the modifications were done using Photoshops "vector" tools.

Keep in mind Photoshop is not vector and enlarging graphics will always suffer a loss of quality.

The best thing you can do is 1) Be sure to use a scratch disk that is not on the same drive as your OS and 2) Get as much RAM as possible.

2 GB's is decent, 4 GB will help. I bet once you open that 650MB+ file you are probably using a large majority of your memory right off the bat, especially if you're using Vista. Once you make changes to the document that amount will increase.

Some small things you could do is decrease the amount of history events that Photoshop keeps in memory and merge layers as the layer amount rises. Just in case, you could start saving your document in separate PSD's that still hold the layers separately.
 
You have to do all of your manipulations in layers, levels, contrast, dodge, burn, etc.. I believe that photoshop does not use layers in the same way it would to alter an image. They are more mathematical and therefore pretty much like a vector tool.

Try it out, I have used it many, many times and have never noticed any pixelation or image problems.
 
If you're talking about adjustment layers, then yes they are fine. But any graphics/artwork/whatever you want to call it is just that, and will degrade when resized.

I've been using Photoshop for 13 years, I have a good idea of how it works. :)
 
I used both Mac and PC in studios before and I have to say that if your PC is configured correctly you'll barely notice a difference in how your system gets bogged down. If you're just using a image that is that large in size in Photoshop, you're going to see a bit of slow down.

I have a friend who does illustration and he's getting into 3D modeling and he swears by his PC and XP. He even told me he prefers the flexibility of the PC compared to the Mac OS... I swear by the Mac. Hahaha.

The slow down will happen in both environments, but if I were you I'd just upgrade to a Quad and save that money for a large screen to work on.
 
Thanks all for the help I will work with adjusting some different parts of my design which will hopefully help.
I guess my next step will be to install Vista (currently running XPpro) and drop in some more Ram luckily I have both here at my office (New 2gb Ram and And unused copy of vista). Hope fully that will help some.
I do want to learn the Mac OSX but I have been putting aside all my extra cash to pick up a Wacom Cintiq so if the Mac would not make a big difference I will hold off for now.
Also I should have specified that this particular file that is giving me problems is a vector design made in corel draw. It is just has so many clipping masks, transparencies, patterns etc. it's a design for a jersey so I have front panel back panel and sleeves.
Thanks again I really appreciate all the help!
PS I was kinda wishing that you would all say the MAC PRO would solve all my problems, just so I could get another toy ;)
 
Revo is correct, and I should clarify. Any adjustment layer can be moved from a small res file to a large res to save processing time. However any actual image manipulation like sharpen, dodge, burn, patch tool, should be used on the actual image and never transfered.
 
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