IPhoto '11 doesn't work. Should I switch to Aperture?

Question

I just upgraded to iPhoto '11 and it basically just doesn't work on my iMac. Anything I try to do, it freezes up my entire computer for minutes on end. It's completely unstable and unusable.
I have a photo library of over 27,000 photos. While this was no problem for iPhoto '08, iPhoto '11 completely chokes. Don't worry, Terrence, I've already sent feedback directly to Apple.
My question is, as I have a large photo library that is growing every day, should I buy Aperture? Does Aperture have the same problems iPhoto '11 has, or is it fast and more stable, even on my older iMac?
Also, where can I find instructions on how to revert back to iPhoto '08? I have a backup of my photo library just prior to upgrading to '11. I'd also love to get a refund for the $14.99 I paid for this useless software, but, there seems to be no way to request that like one can do in iTunes.
Thanks!

Answer 1

If you have a back up of the earlier library then it's easy to revert:
To re-install iPhoto
1. Put the iPhoto.app in the trash (Drag it from your Applications Folder to the trash)
2a: On 10.5: Go to HD/Library/Receipts and remove any pkg file there with iPhoto in the name.
2b: On 10.6: Those receipts may be found as follows: In the Finder use the Go menu and select Go To Folder. In the resulting window type
/var/db/receipts/
A Finder Window will open at that location and you can remove the iPhoto pkg files.
3. Re-install the earlier version.
If you purchased an iLife Disk, then iPhoto is on it.
If iPhoto was installed on your Mac when you go it then it’s on the System Restore disks that came with your Mac. Insert the first one and opt to ‘Install Bundled Applications Only.
If you purchased it on the App Store you can find it in your Purchases List.
I have a Library of 30k+ and it doesn;t choke, no spinning beachball etc. We do see reports of this on here and there are various troubleshooting techniques. What have you tried?
Neither your Library nor mine is large. We've seen reports on here from people with Libraries in excess of 180k.
As to whether Aperture will do better, it's impossible to know. Certainly there are people with older Macs who complain that Aperture is a resource hog and runs slow. Some folks with newer Macs make the same complaints. FWIW this question comes up from time to time. Here's how I answered it the last time:
I use Aperture all the time and I have no issues with it. It's a much more powerful app. But wander over to the Aperture forum and you'll see a share of those "Aperture is a Disaster, the sky is falling and Apple is turning into Microsoft" posts there too
When Aperture was $199 I used to say that unless you shoot large volumes of Jpeg or are shooting Raw there wasn't much value in it. But with the price down at $80 you may feel differently.
It's tempting to think of Aperture as iPhoto Pro, or iPhoto's big brother, but it's not. It's a very different app. Iphoto is designed with the home shooter, a guy with a point and shoot camera who wants to manage his snaps, make a book or handy slideshow and make it easy for him to send the kid's birthday pics to GrandMa. Those are the features front and centre in the app.
Aperture is designed for the Pro user. It can do these things too, but they are not front and centre. Front and centre is managing very high volumes of images and processing the outturn from a shoot. If iPhoto is about importing, fixing and sharing 30 pics from the kid's birthday, Aperture is about importing processing and finishing 2,500 from the Wedding you shot today, and you need to get it done today because you'll shoot another 2,500 at one tomorrow.
There is an Aperture trial available at http://www.apple.com/aperture/ (see at bottom right) and that's the best way to tell.
Regards
TD