Any Mac Users? I haev a MAcBook Pro Question.

Hi, I am looking into switching over to Mac. I am a Landscape Architect and use phtoshop, illustrator, sketchup, indesign, and autocad a lot.

i have 2 set of questions:

1) what program is best for running windows only programs on a mac (autocad) and how well does it work?

2) designers who use mac: should i not even question going for the 17" over the 15" screen? And should I go mat of glossy?

thanks for your feed back people!

reply to post by Animal


Awesome...fellow Mac user. Macs are the best for graphic design....anyways, to the point..

for running windows programs on your mac you have 2 options really.

You can use Virtual PC for mac or you can have an Intel based mac with dual boot options. Either way you will have to have a copy of Windows to install on it. Virtual PC doesn't work very well for graphic intense applications however...like games, etc. At least not Virtual PC 7, which is the version I have. Your better off getting an Intel based Mac if it's an option.

Intel Macs are really superior to PC's because they can do everything a PC can do AND everything a Mac can do. PLUS, they run Windows alot better than a PC does.

And the 17" screen is the way to go. Hell, the 30" screen is the way to go. and what do you mean, should I go "mat of glossy"?

And FYI, Photoshop and Adobe Products are native to Mac. They run alot better than on a PC.

[edit on 6/9/2008 by Mad_Hatter]

[edit on 6/9/2008 by Mad_Hatter]

Mad hatter thanks for your reply.

I am glad to hear Adobe runs better on the Mac ,one of the main reasons I am switching is that I grown really sick of the lag time that builds up when my work starts getting really big in size.

I am going to get the MacBook Pro so the largest screen size I can get (on the laptop) is 1". I am also going to save my money for something over 21" to keep on my desk at home so I can run dual monitors, which will also help with my large projects.

To answer your question you can now select 'mat' or 'glossy' screens for the
MAcBook Pro, and I was wondering if anyone in design had a preference. I have herd that on the 'mat' screens colors may be a bit more true to life saving a lot of heart ache and money when things print wih different color tones than you were expecting.

Thanks again mate!

I personally use a matte screen on my laptop and desktop macs. The only advantage I really see for this is that you don't get glare on your screen from light sources in the room because the light isn't reflecting off of the glossy screen. I have a PowerMac G5 with dual core processors and a PowerBook G4 laptop. I will say though, you are more than likely going to have to upgrade your RAM from the jump. Most of the time they only come with a gigabyte of ram....at least that was the standard when I purchased mine. It may be different now. I recommend getting at least 3 Gigs of RAM or more for best performance, especially if you're going to be running extremely large files in PS CS3 and Illustrator CS3. I know my photoshop files get to be EXTREMELY large...especially when designing for print at 300dpi. But yeah, my applications hardly ever crash. I think you will be satisfied. However, don't expect to do much gaming on your Mac other than Blizzard games or you will be disappointed. Hope this helps.

my plan is to upgrade to the 2.6 processor and 4gb of ram.

nothing makes my work more frustrating than when everything bogs down and i work at 1/4th the speed due to my computer not being able to keep up.

Excellent choice..and I know what you mean...I can't stand my computer working slower than me. I mean, its a computer for christ sake...its supposed to be faster than us people.

reply to post by Mad_Hatter


right! i am always amazed and a bit miffed when my computer decieds to drool. THAT IS MY JOB!