Brushes = Aperture crash

Question

Hey all,
I am currently running a trial version of A3 (updated to latest version) on an Imac 27" late 2010 edition (I5, 4GB). I really like the program and it's features, but the program seems very unstable to me. Using brushes will make A3 crash very frequently. When you reopen A3, all adjustments for the given picture is lost.
The only workaround I have found to this is to make dublicate versions very often, but this really shouldn't be the way to go.
I find this a real shame, as this will keep me from going from trial to buying. A3 is the only program where I have experienced crashes like this.
I am fairly new to Mac, but I really had higher expectations of the stability of apps coming directly from Apple itself.
/Hlynge

Answer 1

The app is stable. We need to troubleshoot your setup and workflow.
Aperture is a heavy pro graphics app that is very demanding of hardware. Your Mac's GPU, i/o and RAM are all limiting to Aperture so we need to do what we can to optimize.
Some generic advice I posted in another thread:
• Set Previews to only be built manually, and only tell Aperture to build Previews when you are not otherwise editing in Aperture.
• Keep the internal drive underfilled for speed, which sooner or later usually requires using a Referenced-Masters-Library with Masters on external drives. Back up originals before importing into Aperture or any other images app.
• The Aperture Library should be on an internal drive.
• Turn off Share Previews with iLife and iWork.
• Remember that HDs slow as they fill and keep the internal drive underfilled. Approx. 70% full maximum is a good guideline.
• If page outs increase significantly during operation try to run Aperture by itself. On my C2D MBP with its max of 3 GB RAM I always did a restart prior to a heavy Aperture session to clear any memory leaks and make sure no other apps were open. Browsers in particular will often suck RAM Aperture would otherwise be using.
IMO all Aperture users who can should routinely bump RAM to at least 8 GB.
• Some users have observed that it can take a new Aperture installation time (weeks) to stabilize. So do not panic; and allow Aperture to continue background work by not fully shutting down the computer. Personally I never fully shut down Macs except during electrical storms.
Activity Monitor's RAM reporting can be misleading. On Activity monitor check Page Outs before and after a work session. If the number of Page Outs increases significantly, you would benefit from more RAM.
HTH
-Allen