Advice on New Computer
I purchased the Acer 8400 Desktop computer (AMD Triple Core processor, 4GB memory, 320GB hard drive) bundle that included a 19"monitor & printer from Best Buy on Wed. Got it home and kept getting message "Disk Boot Failure". Took it back to Best Buy yesterday and I was told there was a problem with the hard drives in the entire batch and they were recalled Wed night. BB was no help with any replacement so I left very unhappy with them and have been searching for a computer since. I have narrowed it down to the Acer Aspire AX1200-B1581A (AMD Double Core processor, 4GB memory, 500GB hard drive) desktop with a 22" monitor from another electronic store or a Dell Inspiron 518 (Intel Double Core processor, 4GB memory, 320GB hard drive) with a 19" monitor. The Acer is about $100 cheaper but other than my initial experience with Acer (which was not good), I do not know much about them. Their system is cheaper and comes with a larger hard drive and larger monitor, plus CC has it in stock and the Dell will take 2-3 weeks for delivery. Any advice?
Okay...here's the scoop. I usually build my own desktops but buy Acer laptops. The reason is that I am sold completely on AMD processors. I have owned 3 Acers over the last few years, and yes, you will inevitably have a problem somewhere down the line. But not as many as say, Dell or Gateway. I would recommend Intrex Computers for all of your techie stuff. You should be fine buying a laptop from CC, BUT...if you really want to save bucks, buy your laptop from T(iger) D(irect) or N(ew) E(gg). That is where I buy most of my stuff. However, I did have to get my last laptop in a hurry to fly out on Sunday and had to have it to work so, it came from Intrex. I paid about $100 more for it at Intrex than TD or NE. I am totally happy with it. And yes, I did format it and take it back to XP because my clients don't use Vista. The only caveat is that if I have to get service from Acer, I will have to put Vista back on. It is backed up and I have all of my important stuff on my server so...no biggie. Besides, there isn't much that Acer can do for me that I cannot do for myself. TD would likely have a computer on your doorstep within three days. Good stuff! Hope this helps.
Similar Messages
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Advice on New Computer for Aperture
I was hoping to get some advice...I have been using Aperture for a few years. Now using v3. I currently have a MBpro and an Imac-both 3 years old. I use 3 managed Aperture libraries - one that has all my travel, one for local work and one for an organization I work with. I just do better with 3 than one large. Right now I am at about 700GB and all 3 reside on a Rugged 1T drive. I backup to a 3T drive and another 1T. So 3 copies in all...(A 4th copy for the 2 personal libs) I am not using Vaults. I do use Time Machine.
I do a lot of casual work in the living room on the MBP and I also use it when I travel or go out in the city. I do more serious editing on the 21" iMac. I move the Rugged between the laptop and iMac but it is now making me nervous as it disconnects too easily. I happen to be looking to upgrade my computer and am thinking of going to a one computer set up. A Retina 13" (which would be great for travel) and a desktop setup with a 27" monitor and keyborad etc. I will not be able to keep all the libaries on the laptop-(even if I max out with the 700GM flash memory, which is an expensive option.) But with 500 I could keep 2 on there. So, I would need to buy another portable drive if I want to continue to work in two places with access to all 3. Likely a Thunderbolt 2T if that exisists. At least with one computer I would not have to keep mounting and umounting the external drive-which seems to be causing issues. I am often getting Aperture messages for inconsistanceis - directly related to the Rugged drive unmounting by accident. I understnad my issue may be directly related to this particular Rugged drive/and or cable. It never has issues on the iMac-only the MB pro.
Can anyone speak to working between two locations and having to keep libraries on a portable drive? Aside from being nearly impossible to upgrade, is the Retina setup with an external Thurderbolt monitor a smart one? Obviously I lose the glory of the R diplay when I do this.
If there are other considerations for a 2 location setup, I am all ears.
Thanks!
NJI use both managed and reference libraries.
When I am working on a project between different computers, I maintain those on portable drives and they are managed libraries. I just move the drives between different computers and open the library. I could make them referenced.
Once I am done with the project, I import the library into my master library (I maintain a master library for each year), and once imported, I relocated my masters to a folder based system with a separate folder for each project. I do this because it is easier to get to the master picture outside of the Aperture Library. My current master libraries for the years 2011, 2012 and 2013 reside on an internal 2TB drive and I keep their size small by storing my referenced images on a Thunderbolt drive. BUT, my libraries from 2001-2009 are stored on firewire drive with the images stored as referenced images on other firewire drives.
At the start of each year I create a folder structure on an external drive for storing my referenced images. The top folder is the year called for example 2013 Pictures. Inside this folder I create a series of folders, one for each month of the year plus Miscellaneous plus Misc Libraries. I also add folders for things like the pictures I upload to Facebook, Photo.net, or the place I have things printed. Inside each month of the year folder, as I complete projects, I create a folder with the project date (YYMMDD) and relocate the master files for the project to this folder. This project folder can have subfolders, but I make sure it contains all of the working files related to the project.
Does this make any sense to you? -
How do I transfer photoshop from one computer to another? I have CS5. Since CS5 was an upgrade I installed CS4 first, but now I cannot figure out how to install the CS5 upgrade. Any advice?
karen2179 wrote:
If you are able to use adobe products on two computer do I really need to deactivate or uninstall CS4?
No, but it may help the chances of a successful installation.
karen2179 wrote:
Just as an aside - I have been getting messages on here from Adobe Admin saying that CS5 cannot be reinstalled because everything is now in the cloud and that for $350 I can buy CS6 to install on my new computer. What? Am I getting spammed on Adobe's site here?
Where did you see that? -
I have a student license. I am trying to install my CS5 software onto my new computer, and I am getting "Invalid Coupon Code," but it is accurate. Advice?
Opendoors926 please see Redemption Code Help for information on how to retrieve your serial number. It may also be located under your account at http://www.adobe.com/. You can find more information on how to retrieve your serial number at Find your serial number quickly - http://helpx.adobe.com/x-productkb/global/find-serial-number.html.
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Advice for moving to, and updating Aperture on, new computer?
I am moving to a new MacBook Pro with Retina Display, from a 6-year-old MacBook Pro. I'm looking for tips to make the transition smoother.
I will be upgrading to the newest version of Aperture. I currently have Aperture 3.4.5. Everything is all on my laptop. The Aperture file is 938 MB, and is SLOW! It's barely usable as it is.
I will be using TimeCapsule to transfer files. My current OS is 10.7.5.
Should I update Aperture before I move it? Should I move it, and then update it? Should I (somehow!) "disconnect" the files from the program and then reconnect them after they are transferred?
I'd like to make this transition as painless as possible!
Thanks for any advice you can give me.1. You can't update Aperture past 3.4.5 from 10.8.5 or earlier. You need to move it and then perform the update.
2. See #1.
3. No. Just keep a backup of them.
4. If you got Aperture from a DVD and the new computer's running Yosemite, you'll probably need to contact Apple to perform the update.
(116295) -
Buying a new computer with Snow Leopard Thoughts/Advice/ Recommendations
Hey all, right now I'm on my old 2003 G4 1.07GHz white 12" iBook, 256 MB, using Safari 3.0.4
I am SERIOUSLY thinking about purchasing a new computer, and am thinking a brand new white Mac 13" I Book with:
2.13GHz / 250GB Serial ATA HardDrive
4GB 800MHz DDR2 SDRAM - 2x2GB
I have not EVER used Leopard, or Snow Leopard.I use my computer for a very wide variety of uses.Lots and lots of things.
Here are my questions that I prefer to be answered please by MAC people who seriously consider themselves knowledgeable experts.
1. Do you think I'm buying too much memory or "too much" hard drive ? Or not enough ? What do you think of the configuration ?
2. Would you tell me to wait until next year and see what Apple comes up with ? I hear talk of flash drives and other things.My current computer runs fine and is great, just seems a bit out of date nowadays and getting seriously older.I could wait if I thought the wait was worth it.I mean, we're nearing 2010.
3. Any advice and recommendations about Snow Leopard for me ? I do NOT wanna screw up a brand new computer within the first week or two.
Thanks in advance to all who answer.No iBook is 2.13 Ghz, nor are any 13". Apple replaced the iBook line with the MacBook and MacBook Pro lineup. The 13" white MacBook and the 13" Aluminum MacBook Pro are the current new models.
1. Do you think I'm buying too much memory or "too much" hard drive ? Or not enough ? What do you think of the configuration ?
You can never have too much memory, albeit after awhile some machines can only address so much.
2. Would you tell me to wait until next year and see what Apple comes up with ? I hear talk of flash drives and other things.My current computer runs fine and is great, just seems a bit out of date nowadays and getting seriously older.I could wait if I thought the wait was worth it.I mean, we're nearing 2010.
Flash drives are already optional in MacBooks and MacBook Pros.
Talk of other things, you should read this tip:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1502615&tstart=0
3. Any advice and recommendations about Snow Leopard for me ? I do NOT wanna screw up a brand new computer within the first week or two.
Migrating user data, be careful:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=435350&tstart=0
Intel Macs have no Classic.
Snow Leopard may have difficulty with old Carbon applications, though works fine with Appleworks. Read these links to make sure you are able to migrate to Snow Leopard:
http://snowleopard.wikidot.com/
http://www.macintouch.com/specialreports/snowleopard/slcompat.html
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3669
If you aren't, a used or refurbished Mac* might be best, or upgrading your existing iBook to 640MB of RAM, if nothing but slowness is plaguing it:
http://www.macmaps.com/usedrefurbished.html
Getting a larger capacity parallel ATA 2.5" 9.5mm hard drive may help too.
- * Links to my pages may give me compensation.
Message was edited by: a brody -
Need Photoshop advice before buying a new computer
Hi Folks ....
My computer is 6 years old. I'm starting to get the "blue screen of death" periodically so I am buying a new computer.
I currently own Photoshop CS2.
Here are my options.
I can buy a new computer and make sure I have Windows 7 Ultimate so I can use CS2 on it (in XP mode).
Or I can buy a new computer without Windows 7 Ultimate and upgrade to CS5.
My real question is, when I buy a new computer, is it okay for it to have integrated graphics?
Will Photoshop run okay on ingrated graphics, or should a buy a machine that comes with a graphics card installed?
Any help will be appreciated.
Regards and many thanks,
MarkThat's ggod news that I can run CS2 on Windows 7.
Yes, it will be a desktop PC so I will make sure I configure my new PC with a graphics card.
Thank you. -
Need help desperately. new computer, followed all advice in the previous threads and no flash player
dear all...
i just bought a new computer, just two days old...a sony vaio with windows 7 installed,McAfee installed and IE 32 bits and also firefox installed
everything is working fine except i am unable to get adobe flashplayer to work neither on IE nor on firefox
I downloaded flash, either once prompted or directly from adobe - manually, uninstalled everything, rebooted compu
but every time after installation (or that is at least what the system says) the video still request me to install adobe flash player - i do not get it :-(
I did check adds on, i did check other things mentioned in the threads and all seems to be fine
I hope someone of you can help me...
thanksHi, Using IE, go to Tools, Manage addons and look under "Show"(very light text) for Shockwave Flash Object and make sure it is listed and Enabled.
Then using FF, go to plugins and make sure Shockwave Flash is Enabled.
If you computer is a 64bit Operating System, be sure to use the 32bit browser.
Thanks,
eidnolb -
How to get my ipod music on to my iTunes on new computer please without deleting content.
I hope you get an answer on this. I am having similar problems. I have lots of music on my Nano and now have a new laptop. How do you move those songs into your new laptop from the Nano.
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Can anyone provide more specific info when transferring iTunes to new computer. i have completed all steps including the ones ive seen on the forums since others have had same issue. Uninstall iTunes. Reinstall iTunes. Check synch all music uncheck synch all music...When I try to sync with new computer it transfers music, some go into downloaded songs only, if i connect to old computer its better, and then there is the new cloud! I am regretting changing computers but it was time. any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I just want my iPhone 4S 64g to synch correctly and completely.
It is probably best to start over. These are two possible approaches that will normally work to move an existing library to a new computer.
Method 1
Backup the library with this User Tip.
Deauthorize the old computer if you no longer want to access protected content on it.
Restore the backup to your new computer using the same tool used to back it up.
Keep your backup up-to-date in future.
Method 2
Connect the two computers to the same network. Share your <User's Music> folder from the old computer and copy the entire iTunes library folder into the <User's Music> folder on the new one. Again, deauthorize the old computer if no longer required.
Both methods should give the new computer a working clone of the library that was on the old one. As far as iTunes is concerned this is still the "home" library for your devices so you shouldn't have any issues with iTunes wanting to erase and reload.
I'd recommend method 1 since it establishes an ongoing backup for your library.
If you have an iOS device that syncs with contact & calendar data on your computer you should migrate this information too. If that isn't possible create a dummy entry of each type in your new profile and iTunes should offer to merge the existing data from the device into the computer, otherwise the danger is that it will wipe the information from the device.
If your media folder has been split out from the main iTunes folder you may need to do some preparatory work to make it easier to move. See make a split library portable.
Should you be in the unfortunate position where you are no longer able to access your original library, or a backup of it, then see Recover your iTunes library from your iPod or iOS device for advice on how to set up your devices with a new library with the maximum preservation of data. If you don't have any Apple devices then see HT2519 - Downloading past purchases from the App Store, iBookstore, and iTunes Store.
tt2 -
How do I use a new computer with same old iPod?
Before I knew about the problem of switching computers I purchased some new songs from iTunes on my new computer, but using my old login. It allowed me to purchase and upload the songs to my new computer, but it won't let me put them onto the iPod.(?!#@) In retrospect, I suppose I should've created a new iTunes user account for the new computer, but since I didn't, does anyone know how I can get these songs onto my iPod? Or am I just out the 25 bucks?
Going forward, should I create a new user account for my new computer? If so, how do I do that? I just want to be able to purchase and upload songs and transfer them to the iPod. There must be a way. Thanks for any tips/advice.I figured it out. I just needed to "authorize" my new computer.
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How do I associate my iPhone (all my iDevices) with a new computer?
This question has been asked, but my situation is a bit different. I have a 4 year old MacBook Pro. My iPhone (4S), iPod Touch (4th gen), and iPad 3 are all associated with this computer. I just bought a new Mac Mini and want to associate these three devices with the Mini and "abandon" the MBP (even though I will still be using it for other things).
I have already transferred ALL the content (Music, Podcasts, iTunes U, Movies, etc.) in my MBP's iTunes library onto my Mac Mini's iTunes library. They are essentially mirror copies of each other. I also subscribe to iTunes Match. So ALL my music is accessible via the Cloud. I have already turned on iTunes Match with the Mini and downloaded all the songs in my library to the Mini except a small number that I hardly ever play. I left them in the Cloud.
Now, my semi-ignorant intuition says I should be able to create a backup of each iDevice "to my MBP" (not to iCloud) and then copy the backup and transfer it to my Mac Mini. (How I do this I am not sure. Transfer the backups to an external hard drive and then to my Mac Mini?) Where are these backups on my MBP anyway?
Then I thought I could connect my iDevices to my Mac Mini and "Restore from Backup" (The backup that I transfered from my MBP). This way my iDevice would come out of this whole process looking just like it was before...more or less. All my apps would be in the folders I created for them, e-mail accounts would be preserved, etc.
Or is there something even better...faster. I mean, the two libraries are exactly the same. It would be nice if I could just associate the iDevices with the new computer and not have to restore at all.
OK, I throw myself at the mercy of the court. I don't dare touch these devices until I am sure I won't totally jank them all up.I'm Back.
With Big Al's help and some trial and error I have succeeded in transferring "ownership" of my 3 iDevices over to my new Mac Mini. However, as I expected, some "Poop Happened." However, it was not because of bad advice from the Big Boy.
Here is a summary for those attempting this in the future.
1. I THOUGHT I did a complete recreation of my MBP's iTunes library on my Mac Mini. Really. I did. I used Home Sharing between my MBP and my Mac Mini to import "everything" from the MBP's iTunes library to the Mac Mini. In almost every respect, that method worked beautifully. Highly recommended. What I had forgot is there was one glitch. It was with a collection of podcasts of Steve Jobs being interviewed by the folks from All Things Digital. I believe there are 6 video podcasts and one .pdf in the series. For some reason, there was a problem when I tried to import that particular podcast collection to my Mac Mini. So, I just bagged the import and went to the iTunes store and download the podcasts and .pdf, fresh and new, from the store. So, strictly speaking, my Mac Mini Library wasn't EXACTLY the same as my MBP's.
2. I then connected my iPod Touch 4G to my Mac MIni to start the process of coverting ownership of that iDevice to the Mini. Unfortunately, when I was done, there was a problem. It was that podcast series. When I went to set up wireless syncing of the iPod Touch I noticed that BOTH my MBP and my Mac Mini were listed under Wireless syncing! The MBP had podcasts under its name. The Mini had all other types of iTunes media under its name. I didn't even know this was possible. But, I knew this was not good. In fact, my iPod Touch would still try to connect with my MBP when I open iTunes on the MBP. It would also connect to my Mac Mini. This is not suppose to happen!
3. So, after some head scratching and messing around, with no luck at resolving the situation, I decided to restore the iPod Touch FROM BACKUP (while my iPod Touch was connected to my Mac Mini...of course). I first made a full backup of the iPod Touch to my computer then fired away and let the process run its course.
4. SUCCESS! The iPod Touch no longer had and remnants of its former life with the MBP. Under Wireless Syncing only the Mac Mini now appeared. I performed the procedure with my iPhone 4S and iPad 3 connected to my Mac Mini. Totally successful also. By that point it was 2:00 AM and time to go to bed.
5. I don't know if Big Al's advice would have worked if I had not messed with the podcast section of my iTunes library. But, I suspect it probably would have. So, my advice is...if you are going to do this, try at all costs to not change a thing when you recreate your iTunes library on your new machine. Even if it's just a new copy of the same media.
BTW, the restoring wasn't a total waste of time. I had accumulated about 7 GB of "other" data on my iPad. For those of you who are up on this issue, it can be a real problem as it robs your iDevice of its precious, limited memory. After restoring from backup the "other" data on my iPad had dropped to about 1 GB. I actually wasn't surprised that this happened as this is one of several workarounds folks have developed to deal with what appears to be a problem iOS 6 has with the management of "other" data.
Bring on iOS 7!
Oh! I forgot. One more piece of feedback. Big Al's link also helped me get my iDevices to appear under "Devices" in the left column of the iTunes screen. In my case, the suggestion from his link that worked was to shut down and restart my computer. -
New video card or new computer?
I have a Mac Pro 3.1 (8-core) and I upgraded my video card to an Geforce GT 120 in order to run Final Cut Pro X. I have 10 GB of ram and am running 10.7.1. FCPX is somewhat annoying to work in that scrubbing seems to lag and the user interface generally seems to be slow. I just walked down to the Apple store and tried it on a 2010 Mac Pro (quad core with 3Gb ram) with an Radeon 5770 and it was MUCH more responsive.
So, my question is: would I get close to the kind of performance I saw in the store by upgrading my graphics card (again) to a 5770 or even a 5870 or will I be throwing good money after bad and should really be looking at getting a new computer or just living with the stuttering (the most likely option)?
Thanks very much!
BrianIn briefly looking at the specs of the two cards, it looks to me like the Radeon 5770 blows the GT 120 away. I also can't see why an 2008 8-core Mac Pro with 10GB would be a bottleneck for FCPX.
My advice would be to try upgrading your video card, especially since the 5770 is still pretty cheap relatively speaking (especially compared to a brand new computer).
If you buy the card from somewhere like Amazon, I think you can return it with just a restocking fee. (if it doesn't work out, that is)
Finally, one thing to check on -- do you have more than one video card installed at the moment? There've been reports of performance issues when you have more than one card installed. If that's the case, remove your other card and give things a try again. But my best guess is that upgrading to the 5770 will really improve things for you. -
New computer and new skype user, new norton user -...
new computer and new skype user, new norton user-Norton keeps asking me if I want to allow all these different computers-all I have is a list of numbers so I dont know who they are or what it is about. I let one in to experiement but there doesnt seem to be anyone trying to call me .Who are these people/computers? What happens if I allow/dont allow them.? Its happenning frequently and I'm worried it might be hackers. Its probably something obvious but I'd appreciate advice.
Hi Kevin,
You can download Acrobat from: Free Acrobat XI Pro | Download Adobe Acrobat XI Pro free trial
and use your Adobe ID (email address) to license the software.
Please use the same email that you used to purchase the subscription.
Regards,
Rave -
I'm using a new computer. All my music is on an external hard drive and I want it to stay there. Before installing iTunes on the new computer, I followed turingtest2's instructions as to the layout of all the iTunes folders (Itunes folder, Itunes Media, Music, etc...). I also followed his instructions as to get all my music in iTunes on the new computer (but keeping all the media on the external drive). Now my songs are all duplicated in my library (I normally have about 15,000 of them). They all play when I click onto them. Also, I've lost all my playlists, and all the songs in the library are now ticked. I've already spent hours trying to sort this out, but can't seem to find a solution. Help please!
Hi turingtest2,
Thank you for replying. I've been looking at your posts about setting up iTunes using an external drive. A bit of background info. My old computer broke down, so I got a new one from work. I've always kept my music files on my external drive (I have around 170GB of music). I didn't follow the suggestions in the "migrate iTunes library" post because my old computer died on me. However, I've looked at your posts about lay out of the iTunes folders. Before connecting to iTunes on the new computer, I had reorganized my iTunes folder on my E: external drive, and created an iTunes folder which contains an iTunes Media subfolder. The music files are in a Music folder, which is in the iTunes Media folder. I've also put the following files in my iTunes folder: iTunes Library.itl, iTunes Library Extras.itdb, iTunes Library Genius.itdb, iTunes Music Library.xml, as well as sentinel. I then followed the advice you gave bmw99 on 2 Nov 2013 at 9.58 (sorry, can't copy the exact answer).
Just to clarify: I'd like to keep all my music media on the E: external hard drive (the computer hard drive is too small), and I'm aware i might never have my playlists back, and that all the songs in my library might be ticked. However, I don't want my library to be duplicated.
I'm at work at the moment, but will be back home in about 10 hours, so I can be more specific about folders / files names.
I'm glad you picked up my message and greatly appreciate your help.
Patrice
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