Should I upgrade or buy new?

I currently use a G4 running OS 9.0 (400MHz, 128 MB, 20GB) for QuarkXPress and Photoshop/Illustrator. I also have access to my partner's Windows machine which I use for web browsing, email etc. I would like to be able to update/upgrade so I only have to use my Mac but am confused as to how to go about it. I also have a very limited budget.
Can I install newer OS on such an old Mac (is it capable of handling it, is it compatible) and can I do so without having to reinstall other apps (I have lost the installation disks for some of them). Also all my files are on the internal disk.
Would it be better just to buy a newer one (perhaps a reconditioned iMac) and new software? The cost of this (even an older new model) is scaring me slightly...

Hi! You are in a fix! Your best bet would be to start new but that won't be cheap as all your apps as well as your machine need a makeover. If you use Quark and PS for work you are wasting a lot of time. Frankly I didn't think PS would run on 128mb. You can buy a Mac mini used for 300-400 bucks that would be a step up and you could "probably" run your OS9 apps in "classic" mode under Tiger 10.4.You could upgrade your existing machine but a new processor and ram will run 350-500 bucks. A new iMac with new apps is the best approach but you talking serious bucks. I would probably advise you to buy a good used mac mini that came with the original Tiger install discs but you will need a higher version 9 os that is higher than 9.0 which you will have to buy. There are no real easy and cheap fixes in your situation. Tom

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    boo radley 2013 wrote:
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  • To upgrade or buy new mac.

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    Message was edited by: tricitytrackstar
    Message was edited by: tricitytrackstar

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    I have a 3.5 year old PC - Pentium 2.4, 1GB RAM, integrated onboard graphics, 2 internal HDDs, 2 external back up drives (1 offsite) and a (brand new) 22" Philips 'professional' CRT that I picked up six months ago. This has been a satisfactory set-up for my PS use, but with Lightroom it struggles. On my PC LR is borderline too sluggish to be useful, and I have never managed to get the slideshow module to work (perhaps my on-board graphics can't cope with a 1600x1200 resolution?)
    In any event the HDs are all at close to capacity, so I have to buy some new drives soon at a minimum. So is it, as I suspect it is, time to start from scratch? Or if I bought some more RAM and a graphics card could I expect a noticeable jump in performance?
    If I do upgrade do the same rules as spec'ing a PS machine apply (priority on lots of RAM; low-end graphics card and processor fine if on a budget)? Or are the demands LR make on a system quite different?
    If going new my budget would probably be around US$700 for a box (keep existing monitor, keyboard, tablet, OS, etc)
    TIA

    A dedicated graphics card is of little to no added value in image editing apps, which are CPU and memory limited. Any modern integrated video adapter has enough acceleration to move windows around like paper, even at 1600x1200; you're only going to get the added advantage generally in 3D apps. A 3.5 year old one might have a little problem at that resolution, but I suspect the problem is more indicative that Lightroom is probably using DirectX calls for the slideshow that your video displays painfully slowly or doesn't support.
    For $700 you can get a brand new pre-built Core 2 Duo or AMD 64x2 system with 2GB RAM (make sure you can expand to 4GB in the future) and 250+ GB HD without a monitor (use the one you got for now) which will make for a very snappy Lightroom and Photoshop experience. Pull one of the internals out of the old PC and buy an external USB/Firewire combo enclosure for it, for photo backups.
    If you build it yourself, you can squeak out a little more performance for the same budget, but since you're asking this question in the first place I'm guessing you're not the type of personality inclined to that ;) For pre-builts I recommend HP, I think they beat out the competition in quality, and you can march down to Best Buy and take one home the same day for the same price as mail order (especially if you watch for deals). As much as some people complain about the big box stores, at least you have a physical place nearby you can bring the PC back if you have a problem vs. dealing with shipping.
    IMO expanding the HD, RAM and video will cost 2/3 of the cost of a new PC and be useful at most for a year, whereas a PC will be good for 3-4 years and can be strung out to 5 with the right upgrades.
    On a side note, I budget to buy 1-2 new external hard drives every year to handle storage demands, so it's a factor in the cost of a new PC, which includes a new HD in the price, but only a small one.
    As a personal reference, I bought a $700 HP last year with 2.0 GHz AMD 64 x2 processor. I've probably doubled that price in expanding it from 1GB to 3GB RAM, separate video card (to play 3D games), new power supply to support the video card, and a 74GB Raptor 10k rpm drive (which was a huge disappointment). None of that you'd need for Lightroom/Photoshop, assuming it came with 2GB RAM in the first place.
    EDIT: PS. I don't know if you're still running XP or the like and considering upgrading to Vista, but keep in mind a new PC will come with Vista pre-installed, saving you the cost of upgrading. Just another factor to consider...

  • When to stop upgrading and buy new... thoughts

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    At this point, I see no reason not to continue upgrading your computer. I have a late-2007 MacBook(which was purchased in March of 2008) that I have no intention of replacing until at least 2013(unless a major hardware issue shows up).
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  • License Question: Selling previous upgrade to buy new FCS upgrade.

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    http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=10680183&#10680183
    Hi Tom,
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    http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=10680183&#10680183
    Any thoughts on above thread. Anywhere I can get official word from Apple on this?
    Message was edited by: harperjm

  • Little off-topic: Should I wait with buying new MacBook?

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