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Mac Question
CrystalDreamer59
Member Posts: 32
I'm finally going to college and have decided to major in visual communication, which is basically the same thing as graphic design. I was told that I would be working a lot with mac computers because I'll be using the adobe creative suite and because they have good graphics. Luckily I happen to have a macbook pro that I got about a year and a half ago. Other then that I would have to use the school's computers. I'm hoping that since my macbook isn't that old and has been updated to the latest version of OS X that it will do a good job for school. My main concern though is I was looking at the specs and I noticed it doesn't quite have an hd resolution.
anyway here are the full specs of my macbook pro
macbook pro (13 inch, mid 2012)
processor 2.9 gHz intel core i7
graphics intel HD graphics 4000 1024 MB
display 13.3 inch (1280x800)
storage 750 GB SATA disk (726.26 GB free of 748.93 GB)
memory 8 GB
I'm expecting this will be good enough for the graphic designing I'll be doing, but I just want to check.
Comments
It will be fine for starting out. It won't be a speed demon but it will run. You may want an external monitor for your apartment/dorm room (that would let you get to full HD - you don't have to use an Apple monitor, a cheapy one will work fine), but depending on the size of files your required to make for your class it may not be necessary.
Once you get into the really advanced stuff (probably not until your later years), you may want something with dedicated graphics (the higher tier MBPs have nVidia today, but they frequently go back and forth between nVidia and AMD).
That - and you'll hear a lot of people say Adobe suite will also run on Windows machines - which is true. But if your working in a mostly Mac ecosystem, it's harder to swim upstream.
"Good Graphics" is a very relative term.
PCs tend to have more powerful graphics hardware available - that doesn't mean that all PCs have more power graphics hardware, just that there are many many more variations of PCs, and PCs tend to be more flexible in terms of allowing the latest technology to be used and upgrading to that technology. The flip side of that is that graphics drivers for PCs can be a bit of a headache, whereas on Mac Apple tends to take care of most of that stuff -- not perfectly, but it tends to have fewer headaches associated with it.
Available software is another part of that equation. Adobe Creative Suite tends to be pretty equally matched on their PC and Mac software. Not all companies or software are like that - companies like Microsoft and AutoDesk support both, but support Windows a good bit better than Mac. A few companies focus on Mac, but not nearly as many that focus on Windows.
Different parts of graphics tend to be dominated by different platforms. Layout and print design happens to be heavily Mac, whereas graphics such as rendering are typically more Windows oriented. You can pretty much do whatever you want with whatever platform you want, but it's usually easier if you are going with the flow of the rest of your class/office/whatever - little things like file naming, file shares, email, tools, etc will all work a lot smoother for you and your entire group.
That was probably why I was told to use my mac then.
Your Mac Book Pro should be fine for graphic design. I would advise you never to buy another Mac since Macs are overpriced pieces of shit. Most in the graphic design field use Macs because they are computer illiterate and are set in their ways. From a software standpoint, a PC will run the software faster. From a hardware standpoint, it will be cheaper on the PC. From a usability standpoint, there is no difference since the files are independent of file system. Working between 2 OSes is also not a difficult task. The Mac will be harder to use purely for the fact mac designers are morons who don't understand usability. You will be doing things primary with the mouse on a Mac since they didn't have the fore-sight to use 2 buttons. They also didn't have the fore-sight to make the mouse wheel work logically.
I will tell you the ultimate secret on why graphics professionals think Macs have better graphics. They use an LG AAA grade IPS panel. You too can buy an LG AAA grade IPS panel.
The main reason I tell you to never buy a mac is because a Mac for work and a PC for play makes no sense when you can just have a PC for play and work. There are only 2 programs that make more sense to use a Mac, Final Cut Pro and ProTools. If you are not using them, then don't bother.
What can one say. You certainly show your quality.
OP: I wouldn't fret it. Get to school, see what you need, what software they offer and what discounts they offer.
Believe it or not you can get quite a few discounts for being a student. Some schools will offer discounts for Mac users (I believe Berklee school for music does so it's possible others do as well.
Additionally, you can also buy used computers fairly cheaply. a Friend of mine always buys her macs used, they last for quite a while and then she upgrades and buys used again.
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