What to look for in external HD

I'm about to buy a new external hard drive. I've always looked for an apple logo when buying this sort of stuff, but seriously, it's a stupid hard drive. I need a USB 2 port and power. If it is formatted different than I want then I can change it. Time Machine will make a separate disc image anyways, so does a logo matter? Should I just look for something on super-duper-extra-laser sale? Yes, budget-brand drive and my MBP COULD crash at the same time? Am I forgetting anything?
Unrelated, but I just saw the CEO of Seagate talk about backing up from "an internet or an iTunes". Internet gold found at:
http://online.wsj.com/video/seagate-latest-consumer-launch/96D2BB41-DDE1-4D89-A2 84-23CEEB1520EE.html

I would pick an HD that you feel comfortable with. FYI, Apple outsources its HDD, so an Apple logo doesn't really mean much if you are looking for an HDD. Apple puts Maxtor and Western Digital HDDs in its iMacs and Hitachis in its 500GB Time Capsule. I don't know if there are any other makes Apple uses, but I hope you get my point. Just make sure that once you pick one out, check the partition scheme and formatting and re-partition and re-format. Many are formatted for PCs out of the box. If you need wireless Time Machine backups and in the market for an AirPort Extreme Base Station, check out the Time Capsule.

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What to look for when purchasing external display

Hey everyone,
First and foremost I want to say I am a web developer and graphic designer so what I am looking for is a display (not too big) 20" - 23" TV OR Monitor. This way when I am developing I am not making things HUGE so i can see them while other viewers can't. I have seen the display on a 30" screen and no that isn't going ot work.
I am now searching for an external display for my newly built office but I don't know what to look for besides DVI support. What resolution do I need to make sure it goes to? There is just so many options when looking at TVs or Monitors..
any input?

DVI support is a must and most LCDs in the size that you are looking for are going to have it.
Your MB can drive a display with a resolution of up to 1920 x 1200 which just happens to be the resolution of the 23" Apple Cinema HD Display. I didn't want to pay Apple prices for a display, so I went looking at Dell. I picked up a 20" 2007WFP display from them for about $360 shipped and it works like a charm with the Apple Mini-DVI to DVI adapter.
I prefer displays that use a S-IPS panel over the more common and cheaper TN panels. S-IPS is much better for color reproduction and that is why Apple uses them in their Cinema Displays. Dell uses the same panel is some of their 20" models - I got one - but some buyers are very upset that they got a TN panel instead of the S-IPS panel. I was lucky I guess.

Looking for an (external) Vendor Supported DVD burner

Hi all,
For years I've been working with pleasure on my 700 MHz eMac, despite of the loud fan noise. The only thing is that not until now I regret the fact I didn't bought the SuperDrive at the time, for budget reasons.
Looking for an external solution, I encountered the LaCie FireWire DVD burners, but those machines don't seem to be cooperative as it comes to iMovie and iDVD. Apparently Apple don't consider them equal to 'their' SuperDrives
What brand and type (or part number) should I be looking for to have the external drive be recognised as a Vendor Supported device?
Please, somebody help me here. Otherwise I will have to ask a new Mac with those specs for Christmas and that means waiting another year....
Olaf

Patchburn is a free software download that allows you to use Apple's iApps application such as itunes for burning of non native drives. Your OS will most likely be ok with the new drive for playing movies & audio cd's but have you tried burning with your drive? If you have iDVD this will most certainly not be supported by your drive due to special firmware within Apple superdrives that technically you cannot get around. Though if you have the version of iDVD with iLife 05/06 it places a disk image on your desktop so that with application such as Roxio Toast you can burn freely with.
eMac 1.42 GHZ (2004) Mac OS X (10.3.9) 512 DDR, 120GB HDD, Emprex 16x DVD RW

What to look for in free fonts?

I want to download some free fonts (I am a student) to use for some 300ppi print pieces and am wondering what to look for in a free font to determine whether it will print nicely at a high quality. What makes a good quality font? I know there is lots of garbage out there though there are also many good quality free fonts.
Thanks.

This is not remotely a Photoshop question.
Try the Adobe Typography forum:
http://forums.adobe.com/community/design_development/typography

Looking for a external blu ray dvd burner for my mac

looking for a external blu ray dvd burner for my mac

There are plenty of options but I have found that the LaCie d2 http://blu-ray.burnworld.com/burners/lacie-d2.htm works more consistantly. I use Toast 11 mainly for Blu-Ray. The drive does come with a basic verison of the software which is good for most but you need to upgrade to do some serious authoring.

Pointer on what to look for (NullPointerException in FontManager.getFont2D)

I have a screen that we are trying to display remotely (via an RMI bridge). On the local application it displays properly everytime, but when displayed remotely It displays properly once. From then on it comes up blank with a null pointer exception (Posted below). Right now I'm thinking there is something in the set-up for the local applicateion that is not happening on the remote one. But I didn't write either and my brute force investigation hasn't trned up anything.
Since I only have to disconnect and close the remote application and restart to get it to display again this could also be a problem cleaning up resources on a window close. I'm hoping that someonw might have an idea of what causes this Exception. Moste references I've found to it appear to be listed as fixed (And aren't the same thing since they happen all the time) or are in threads that just stopped with no resolution. I'm hoping that if I find out what it means I might have a better idea what to look for.
java.lang.NullPointerException
     at sun.font.FontManager.getFont2D(Native Method)
     at sun.font.FontDesignMetrics.initMatrixAndMetrics(FontDesignMetrics.java:343)
     at sun.font.FontDesignMetrics.<init>(FontDesignMetrics.java:336)
     at sun.font.FontDesignMetrics.getMetrics(FontDesignMetrics.java:284)
     at sun.swing.SwingUtilities2.getFontMetrics(SwingUtilities2.java:943)
     at javax.swing.JComponent.getFontMetrics(JComponent.java:1599)
     at javax.swing.plaf.basic.BasicTabbedPaneUI.getFontMetrics(BasicTabbedPaneUI.java:1801)
     at javax.swing.plaf.basic.BasicTabbedPaneUI.calculateMaxTabWidth(BasicTabbedPaneUI.java:1754)
     at javax.swing.plaf.basic.BasicTabbedPaneUI$TabbedPaneLayout.calculateSize(BasicTabbedPaneUI.java:2314)
     at javax.swing.plaf.basic.BasicTabbedPaneUI$TabbedPaneLayout.preferredLayoutSize(BasicTabbedPaneUI.java:2261)
     at java.awt.Container.preferredSize(Container.java:1599)
     at java.awt.Container.getPreferredSize(Container.java:1584)
     at javax.swing.JComponent.getPreferredSize(JComponent.java:1636)
     at psip.gui.util.UIDelegate.defineComponentSizes(UIDelegate.java:927)
     at psip.gui.util.UIDelegate.applyAllResources(UIDelegate.java:865)
     at psip.gui.jfc.panel.AbstractContainer.applyAllResources(AbstractContainer.java:254)
     at psip.gui.jfc.panel.AGDTabbedPane.applyAllResources(AGDTabbedPane.java:471)
     at psip.gui.jfc.panel.AGDTabbedPane.<init>(AGDTabbedPane.java:101)
     at psip.gui.jfc.panel.ControlPanelFactory.getUIDelegate(ControlPanelFactory.java:167)
     at psip.gui.uiDelegate.UIDelegateDirector.getUIDelegate(UIDelegateDirector.java:124)
     at psip.gui.viewMap.GUIComponentFactory.createUIDelegate(GUIComponentFactory.java:593)

Anna:
Yes, rule no. 1, Firewire or FW/USB
2. Largest HDD you can afford (having more space than you need it not a problem; needing more space than you have, is.)
3. 7200 rpms. (Most of them are, but not all)
Here is a list of some of the best buys already sorted for 200-300 GB.
Different folks like different manufacturers. I have had my LaCie for 2 years. No problems. I like it for it's compact size and elegance.
Here are some good hints from Dr. Smoke on Backup and Recovery. Instead of Retropect, which I could never quite figure out, I use Carbon Copy Cloner or SuperDuper.
Post back with further questions or comments.
Good luck.
cornelius
Message was edited by: cornelius

Studio Monitors - what to look for...

I'm going to say this right now - I'm NOT asking "hey, whats the best studio monitors I can get for x dollars." That's not what I'm interested in.
What I AM interested in is what TO look for, and what NOT to look for in buying a new set of stereo monitors.
I've decided I'd like to upgrade my studio monitors. I'm mixing on a pair of Event TR8 XL monitors - they're great, but i know there's better out there. I spent about $600 on the pair.
At this point, my limited knowledge of monitors only allow me to assume that more expensive means better, but I don't understand WHY, or what to look for. So, my question is this. What is more money buying me? Are there brands that are more or less reputable than others?
I'm really looking for general, or specific, advice on shopping for new monitors. Help me make an educated decision, there are too **** many monitors out there to choose from.
For what it's worth, I'd like to keep it under 1k. I'm interested in active near-fields, good for mixing, with decent clarity and few gimiks. Granted, nothing beats getting into a GC and listening to a few (which I intend to do in the next day or two), but I need a little more to go on when I take a look at these in person and listen to some of my mixes on them.
Thanks!
Chris

To add to the previous poster, I have a pair of old NS10's and I use them because I'm used to how they sound and how their sound translates to several other of my references, i.e. my SET/Bottlehead listening system, my car CD player, my table radio. One reason a studio owner would buy say Genelecs or Mackie HR 824's is because they have become somewhat of a standard and like the NS10's of 15 years ago, people know what they're getting once you're used the way mixes translate from them to other systems. That being said, get the Mackies, or Dynaudio BM5A's. Both those seem to be widely accepted and studio proven. That's a good place to start.

Raid Card, what to look for in a card?

Hi guys,
Im looking for help on what to look for in a Raid card. Im new to Raid, but i have read the tweakers pages and it seems like the way forward.
Im a full time editor working with AVC-Intra footage doing fast cuts. Im about to ditch my 2008 mac pro and build a up to date PC around the i7 4930k. Im planning on running 8x3-4tb drives for footage; raid 5, 3x3tb raid 3 for exports, maybe 2x256 ssd raid 0 for boot, 2x3tb drive for page file and media cache, and maybe 3x3tb for stock footage raid 0.
Im totally lost in what to look for in a Raid card?
Cheers Ryan

For 13 drives is there a cheaper option?
Yes, Areca 1882ix-16, 1264IL-16, Intel RS2WG160, LSI 9260-16i - or for that matter, any RAID controller with 13+ internal connections. There are much cheaper controllers from Highpoint and others, as well.
If your next question is, is it worth it going cheaper? ...Usually not for me personally - at least certainly not with Highpoint or other entry level controllers with subpar support and all kinds of performance and reliability problems. Even Tier 1 controllers aren't exempt from them.
That said, I am curious about Intel and LSI controllers I listed above. The LSI one especially so given the availability of SSD caching and other neat features.
Hope this helps.

Buying Used iMac - What to look for?

Hello,
I'm a devoted mac user. I currently own a late 2008 unibody Macbook, and have been looking for an upgrade. I came across a used iMac posting on a craigslist-like website. The configuration is a low-end mid-2011 21" iMac (quad core i5, 4gb, 500gb).
I asked the seller for the serial number and checked it out the support site. The warranty is due to run out on Thursday, just enough time for me to buy extended AppleCare. The price seems reasonable (approx $730 whereas a new iMac is $1200), and I've asked to see the iMac in person tomorrow. I wanted to know what to look for when making the final decision.
Also do you think I should hold out for an Ivy Bridge iMac (rumoured to be coming soon??) or will it not make a difference for normal coding/browsing (no photo/video editing/gaming)? One factor discouraging me is that Apple has hitched up the prices for the newly released Macbooks here in India (the base 13" pro used to be $1250, now $1530!!!).
Thanks a lot!
Meghana

RRFS wrote:
Then you have to make sure the original owner releases their account at Apple or purchases and upgrades will be impossible.
Oh! Had no idea about this... how does one release the account? I mean, is there a way i can check it on the machine itself? The applecare site doesn't show any registration info.
Thanks!!

Any suggestions for what to look for in a good production monitor?

I'm in the market for a production monitor and I'm looking at B&H's online catalogue now. Any tips on what to look for and if anyone has any recommendations or favorites? Thanks.

it would help if you could determine a budget and then shop for models within or slightly above that budget.
basically, some necessary items are switchable aspect ratio, underscan/overscan and then some sort of blue check for proper chroma and phase calibration. some monitors have a gray scale blue check which i think completely blows. it's better to have a monitor with viewable red, blue and green guns as the blue gun is more accurate for calibration than a grayscale blue check feature. also, there are other diagnostic functions that are viewable by using the red or green guns to view color bars.
some other nice features to have are horizontal/vertical delay, sdi inputs, hd-sdi inputs.
it's been mentioned in the last larry jordan newsletter than the crt monitor is going the way of the dinosaur and now sony and panasonic are marketing lcd products only. i think this is a very sad trend. as a freelance video operator/camera shader, i am of the opinion that lcd monitors are horrible; they hurt my eyes and the color rendition isn't as accurate as a crt. leitch is now manufacturing an lcd scope which is just terrible to behold. the black area of the vectorscope is a huge, amorphous blob of white light that shows no signal detail whatsoever.
i don't know what to make of larry's statement as a quick check of the sony business website reveals only bvm crt's in their product lineup, no more pvm series. i haven't looked at the panasonic product catalog yet.
although the sony pvm L5 that shane mentioned is a quality product, to my eyes, i would get an ikegami monitor but you'll find that the superior imaging of the ikegami also has a superior price point.
one last point, don't buy an used monitor from ebay, you don't know where it's been or how it's been treated. give jvc monitors a fair shake as well, not a bad product for the price, no matter what their reputation is.
good luck.

I use Djay for my Apple and I would like to use TC as an external hd to access from Djay, however when I look for my external T1 drive I cannot find it in iTunes so I can load onto Djay? Any help?

I use Djay for my Apple and I would like to use TC as an external hd to access from Djay, however when I look for my external T1 drive I cannot find it in iTunes so I can load onto Djay? Any help?

Initially, you asked if you can hardwire your MBA to the TC. The answer is yes, by using the optional USB Ethernet adapter that Apple provides. However, in order for your MBA to access the TC's internal or USB-attached HDD, it would need to establish a network connection to it. This would be true of any NAS device on an Ethernet network. Therein, lies the problem. Your MBA cannot connect to two networks simultaneously.
One option then, would be to have two separate iTunes Media folders; one on the MBA & the other on the TC. This way, you can download the music to your MBA when connected to the Internet at the AirPort lounge, and then use iTunes Consolidate Library feature to transfer the audio files to the TC's iTunes Media Folder location. A great program to help maintain multiple iTunes Librarys and/or Media Folders, that you may want to consider, is PowerTunes.

Color issue with pdf from Indesign. I have a special cmyk mix for a bcard in Indesign. When I export the pdf the cmyk mix has changed Just started today 1.13.15 Running Yosemite 10.10.1 Any help on what to look for would be greatly appreciated.

I have a special cmyk mix for a bcard in Indesign. When I export the pdf the cmyk mix has changed Just started today 1.13.15 Running Yosemite 10.10.1 Any help on what to look for would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you Peter. Someone else must have been on my computer because I do not change the settings. You pointed me in the right direction.
Thanks again.
Patrick

I am looking for an external wifi card capable on injection, compatible with OS X 10.9 does any one know of a brand or specific model?

I am looking for an external wifi card capable on injection, compatible with OS X 10.9 does any one know of a brand or specific model?

Have you tried resetting the SMC ? > Resetting the System Management Controller (SMC)

What to look for when purchasing iPhone external battery?

Next month I’ll be taking a 5 day trip to NYC and I’ll be using my built-in iPhone 4 Google Maps GPS a lot, so I’m in the market to buy an external battery. So with that said, what should I look for when purchasing one? I’ve noticed a lot of these advertise the mAh (milliampere-hour), and then some will also advertise the amperes themselves (i.e. 5200 mAh (2 amps)). What’s the difference when they advertise both?

DVI support is a must and most LCDs in the size that you are looking for are going to have it.
Your MB can drive a display with a resolution of up to 1920 x 1200 which just happens to be the resolution of the 23" Apple Cinema HD Display. I didn't want to pay Apple prices for a display, so I went looking at Dell. I picked up a 20" 2007WFP display from them for about $360 shipped and it works like a charm with the Apple Mini-DVI to DVI adapter.
I prefer displays that use a S-IPS panel over the more common and cheaper TN panels. S-IPS is much better for color reproduction and that is why Apple uses them in their Cinema Displays. Dell uses the same panel is some of their 20" models - I got one - but some buyers are very upset that they got a TN panel instead of the S-IPS panel. I was lucky I guess.

What to look for in an external monitor

I am in the process of changing my editing system to handle hd. I am using a 24" imac 2.4 Intel Core 2 Duo. With my sd set up I used a Sony dv/dvcam deck and a JVC professional 13" Monitor. I am purchasing the new JVC gy-hm100u camcorder when it is released in April. I am somewhat confused about having an external monitor hooked up to my system for viewing my FCP projects. (1) What should I look for in the external monitor. Do I want a computer monitor or an HD TV? Once I purchase the external monitor/tv can I get rid of my SD JVC monitor all together. I don't want to spend a lot but I want to make sure I get a monitor with the right specs. (2) What happens if I want to use past dv footage in a new project shot in hd. I do a lot of corporate projects which require the use of old interviews as part of the new productions. Am I going to have an issue doing this? Thanks in advance for any help.
Message was edited by: Erik Seel

To view HD variants, you'll need a 3rd party card.
You are severely limited with an iMac. Your only real choice is a Matrox MXO driving a 24" Dell or older 23" Apple Cinema Display.
While you can use an AJA ioHD to drive a HDTV, you'll need to connect it via FW800. This is a problem as no other devices can be on the same bus and, since all firewire ports on an iMac are on the same bus, it won't work.
I would not dispose of the Standard Def monitor. If you work with SD material, you'll still need it. HDtvs are lousy devices for monitoring SD.
x

What to look for in external HD

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