OSX 10.4 vs OSX 10.3.9 for InDesign CS

Question

OSX10.4 vs OSX 10.3.9
I want to buy either a 20" 2.1 GHz G5 or the new 20" Intel machine. For the next several months I'll be inhabiting Photoshop and InDesign CS almost exclusively, with a bit of Safari and Toast here and there. Apple are offering a refurbished G5 at a good price but it comes with OSX 10.3 for some reason.
Q1: Is there anything about OSX 10.4 – speed, reliability, printing – that is a significant improvement over 10.3.9 (with all the security updates) when running Photoshop and InDesign?
Q2: Is there anything about the Intel machine under OSX 10.4 that would make it more desirable than the G5 under OSX 10.3.9 when running Photoshop and Indesign.
Hassle-free, clean operation is my first concern. Speed comes second I'm upgrading from my 600 MHz iBook (OSX 10.3.9) so I suspect both machines will amaze me with their speed.
Thanks in advance for any comments.

Answer 1

Hi, Guy.
Adobe apps — Photoshop CS/CS2, InDesign CS/CS2, etc. — will run about 25-50% slower on the Intel-based Mac than they would on a G5 as they are not yet available as Universal Binaries. Adobe won't be releasing Universal Binaries for their Creative Suite until CS3, some time in Spring 2007. Adobe's Universal Binaries in CS3 will be a fee-based upgrade, just like upgrading from CS to CS2.
Accordingly, Adobe apps on an Intel-based Mac will run under Rosetta. Rosetta is a feature of the version of Mac OS X that ships on Intel-based Macs. It enables PPC-based apps to run on Intel-based Macs. It uses a technology called transcoding that essentially substitutes Intel-based instructions for PPC-based instructions when needed and in real time.
The upside of Rosetta is that one can use their PPC-based, Mac OS X applications on new Intel-based Macs.
The downsides of Rosetta are
1, Apps running under Rosetta generally perform slower on Intel-based Macs than PPC-based Macs. The performance hit is particularly severe with Adobe apps.
2. Some PPC-based apps cannot run under Rosetta. The specific requirements for a PPC-based application to run under Rosetta are detailed in "Appendix A: Rosetta" of the Universal Binary Programming Guidelines.
Applications that are Universal Binaries run natively on Intel-based Macs, i.e. they do not need help from Rosetta.
Note that Classic, aka Mac OS 9, applications will not run on Intel-based Macs.
If you're going to be using Adobe apps heavily in the next six-to-nine months, either get a G5 now or make do with your current Mac until Adobe ships CS3 with Universal Binaries in Spring 2007, then look for an Intel-based Mac and, in the mean time, also budget for an Adobe CS3 Upgrade.
Good luck!
Dr. Smoke
Author: Troubleshooting Mac® OS X