Web Design/Graphic Arts Student needs help choosing a Macbook.

First post on board so greetings!
I have went back through all the archives and read every post I could on purchasing a Macbook for Web Design/Graphics but would like more info.
Being a first time Mac user I am a little overwelmed by the all the guru talk. I will be going back to college next month for mainly Web Design/Development with Graphic Arts thrown into the program. The College has Mac Desktops to use but some of my classes will be online and I would like the portability of a Macbook to work from home with.
I will be having to use Adobe Creative Suite (all 10 programs within it) and Autodesk 3ds Max. Being that I will be dealing with graphics I am willing to pay for the 15" Retina Screen. I have read that the Quadcore I7 processor may be over kill since alot of programs will never use the extra cores but with technology changing all the time I don't want to have tot upgrade in 2 years.
So I'm looking for suggestions and will gladly add more info to help make my choice...
Thanks in advance!

lespaul75 wrote:
First post on board so greetings!
I will be having to use Adobe Creative Suite (all 10 programs within it) and Autodesk 3ds Max.
I don't want to have tot upgrade in 2 years.
welcome to the ASC-
I would buy quadcore, with RAM maxed out and the largest HD for your specified needs.
Web Design/Graphic Arts you will have many software packages running simultaneously to do your work.

Similar Messages

I need help choosing a Macbook

What macbook should I get? I am an online student. I will be using it for class obviously, web browsing, YouTube, also I have to run windows8 (I'm thinking ill use parallels 9) and Microsoft office. I have no idea how much RAM I need? What size hard drive? I have about 20GB of music and photos. Want to be able to run windows and IOS together and computer not freeze up. Help me out?

For your top 3 things, I'd recommend the Air. It does everything really fast, and as long as you're not doing processor- or graphics-heavy things you will find it extremely speedy. Which brings me to games. If you're a heavy gamer you'll want a MacBook Pro with a discreet graphics card. This means you should get a 15-inch model (both retina and non-retina have discreet graphics). But avoid retina if you're a gamer for now, because using retina resolution really strains your graphics card, and not using retina graphics on a retina screen makes the graphics usually look worse.
So - Air for your main applications
And if gaming's important - a 15" non-retina MBP

Need help choosing a Macbook Pro

Hi,
I want to buy a Macbook Pro, I just don't know which of the configurations is the best. I want to go for either the 13" 2.53 Ghz, or the 15" 2.53 Ghz. The only difference I see is the screen size, so is that alone worth it? I was also looking at the 2.66 15" with both GPUs...
I will be using the mac for some gaming (but not much -maybe 1 or 2 games), and mostly everyday use and college and work.
So what is the better configuration?
Thanks

is it even a factor if you don't play any games?
Currently, the major two areas that stand to benefit from the "enhanced graphics" on the 2.66Ghz 15" model are 3D design and 3D games. Other computing tasks currently do not use the GPU as much as these two, and so do not stand to benefit as much.
However, with the release of Snow Leopard, the GPU will become more similar to a CPU, which will enable it to process general tasks. This will speed up the computer in general, depending on how fast a GPU the computer contains. What we don't know now is how much of a speed-up we can expect. When Snow Leopard is released in September we will know more for sure.
In general, it is usually advisable to buy as much computer as you can afford. The higher-spec you buy, the longer it should last you.
One more thing: There is no reason to wait to purchase until Snow Leopard comes out. Anyone who purchases a Mac between now and September (when it is released) will get a Snow Leopard upgrade for $10. The general upgrade price for any Leopard user is only $29 as well. Dirt cheap and well worth the extra couple months of computing you'd get out of a new machine as well.
--Travis

I need help choosing a new MBP (previous one was stolen)

Hello everyone, I need help choosing my next macbook pro because my previous one (15" Core i7 high res anitglare screen) was stolen . As you probably tell I spent a lot of money on my previous one and now I am a broke college student that doesn't have $2,400 to drop on a replacement.
So this is where you come in... because of budget reasons I have been looking at the 13 inch macbook pro but I just cannot bring myself to spend $1200 on a laptop with old technology (Core 2 duo processor) not to mention it is only 2.4ghz. I am not really sure what to ask about it I think i just need some good stats or other convincing information to allow me to buy it.
I know about the student discount and the refurb. macs, are there any other reliable ways to get a less expensive MBP?
I am a converted PC user and I LOVE macs, please don't let my budget make me revert back to a PC...

Like you’ve already said refurb is a good option.
I know it’s a bit late now but let me point you in the direction of Prey Project.
Prey Project is an open source program I use on my MacBook Pro, it’s a program that can track your computer and phones if stolen using GPS / Google Maps etc to give you location of it.
It will also take pictures of who is in front of it, log what they are doing etc.
Check it out here http://preyproject.com/ this such an amazing program that is free to use, will work on Apple, Windows, Linux and Android phones.

Need help buying 15inch Macbook

I am an industrial design student and need help configuring a macbook pro. Should I go for the 2.3Ghz model or the 2.6 one? I prefer the 2.3 Ghz one as it is cheaper. Should I get an extra 4gb ram? I do not play games, will be mainly using sofware such as solidworks and indesign on it. I am not considering the retina display models. Also, should I pay $100 to get an antiglare screen? I do have poor eyesight and think this would be a good option.
Thanks

matthew --
You'll get a lot of advice here, but I feel the most important point when working with InDesign, is to get as much RAM as you can afford. I have the non-glare MBP, and I also have the regular screen iMac. I like them both. I think you should think about where you will be working the most, and how much light will be there.

Hello, I need help with my macbook pro. It looks like I cannot install anything anymore. Everytime I try to install a new software, use the migration assistant or click the lock to make changes, it simply does not react.

Hello, I need help with my macbook pro.
It looks like I cannot install anything anymore. Everytime I try to install a new software, I simply get stuck during the installation type process. I put in my password, it does accept it, but it does not go any further.
I tried to reset the password, put no password, repair the permissions, the disk but nothing will do. I nearly got stuck with the log in screen but finally succeeded in disabling it.
So I thought I might try to create a new account but I cannot click the lock to make changes. It simply refuses to react.
I am now thinking about using the migration assistant to save all my settings, data and so fourth, but again I get stuck when I have to type in my password. It accepts it but nothing happens...
I guess it has something to do with the authorization process, but can't find anything on the internet about it... Can you help me out?
I am running Lion 10.7.3.
Regards,
Nicolas.
(I apologize if any grammatical/structural mistakes were to be found, english is not my mother-tongue. )

You probably won't like this suggestion, but I suggest you reinstall Lion.
First, backup your system. Next, reboot your system, press/hold the COMMAND-R keys to boot into the Recovery HD. Select 'Reinstall Mac OS X'. If you purchased Lion as an upgrade to Snow Leopard, the reinstall process will install Lion 10.7.3. If your system came preinstalled with Lion, you might still get Lion 10.7.2. Both installs are a total install of the OS. None of your apps or data will be impacted. Just the OS.

I have printers at home and work. i need help programing my macbook print utility so computer knows which printer to use depending on where i am. thanks

i have printers at home and work. i need help programing my macbook print utility so computer knows which printer to use depending on where i am. thanks

Look for cloud solutions such as DropBox, OneDrive, SugarSync or others. They are all cloud based services that sync documents between computers via the cloud. Of course another solution is simply a flash drive formatted in exFat so that Macs and Windows computers can read it.

Need help choosing optimal hardware for a laptop that will run AE CS5

BACKGROUND INFO (Questions listed below)
I need some help figuring out the best hardware configuration for a new laptop. I’m a student at a design school and I will be using the laptop to mainly run After Effects and to a lesser extent Photoshop and Illustrator. I don’t need to worry about 3D rendering software or Premier Pro. I am primarily interested in getting the best performance during editing. I am not looking for the best performance for final output. I would prefer to sacrifice final output times for better editing/interface performance.
I will be working with standard definition content and perhaps HD up to 720p on occasion. I do not need to operate in resolutions higher than 720p. My projects are generally animation and use many sources and many layers.
I’ve been reading up on optimal hardware configurations for CS5 but my understanding is still a little foggy and I would like to use this thread to figure out how to build the best machine for my budget. The budget is about $1400 to $1600 CANADIAN after tax.
I DON’T need help finding the laptop. I will search for it on my own. I just need to understand the best hardware to purchase within my budget.
I realize that it is probably impossible to buy the laptop I want with the hardware configuration I need “off the shelf”. Instead I will be looking for a good base model (~$900-$1100) and I will purchase the necessary hardware upgrades separately. I will not be purchasing a Mac.
Right now I’m thinking of a machine built something like this:
- 15”-16” screen (17” models are too big/heavy)
- Mid to high end i5 processor OR entry level i7 quad core
- 8GB RAM (I would go to 12GB, but it’s hard to find a 15”-16” laptop with 3 memory slots)
- SSD to replace HDD (However, if possible, I would like a laptop with dual HDD support or swap the optical drive for another HDD. If I had access to 2 drives, I would have and HDD/SSD combo).
- Medium/high end NVIDIA GPU to take advantage of OpenGL while editing.
QUESTIONS
1) Does the “Render Multiple Frames Simultaneously” option enhance general editing performance (applying filters, scrubbing through the timeline, reverting history states)? Or does it ONLY help speed up RAM previews and final output? Does it reduce the length of RAM previews?
1b) Is this option even necessary to enable on 64bit systems? (As far as I understand it was used to solve a problem where 32bit systems/software would only recognize 4GB of RAM per instance of AE).
1c) If I turn this option on to help with RAM previews, would I be hindering general editing performance in any way? Or does this option have basically zero drawbacks?
2) How come “Actual CPUs that will be used” will read 0 even if the sum total of RAM assigned to the CPUs plus the RAM reserved for other applications is less than the total available system RAM (on a 64bit system)? For example, I currently have 4GB RAM and 2 installed CPUs. I have 1.5GB reserved for other programs and when I set 0.75GB per CPU both CPUs are used. However when I set 1GB per CPU then 0 CPUs are used, even though the total RAM adds up to only 3.5GB.
CPU
3.) Considering the fact that I am more concerned with smooth performance while editing rather than final output speeds, would it be better to get a dual core i5 clocked around 2.5 or a quad core i7 clocked around 1.8?
4.) What is the difference between an i3 and an i5 processor even if they are clocked at the same speed? How does an i5 460M compare on the grand scheme of things?
RAM
6.) Should the quantity of RAM that I get (8GB vs 12GB) be based on the number of cores in my CPU? If so, how should I be calculating optimal RAM based on # of cores. Should I also be counting threads, or just actual physical cores?
STORAGE/SWAP
7.) Should I replace the HDD with an SSD? I'm looking for snappy interface performance while editing. I would think that if the RAM fills up it would be best to have the SSD for scratch/cache.
8.) What performance benchmarks are most important when considering an SSD for After Effects? (4k writes? IOs per second? Max read/write?)
9.) I can afford the OCZ Vertex2 120GB SSD. Would this be a good choice if an SSD is recommended?
10.) Would it be better to have 8GB of RAM and an SSD, or 12GB of RAM and an HDD? Explain why.
GPU
10.) After Effects utilizes OpenGL to enhance editing performance. I will not really be using Premier Pro, so catering to the CUDA Mercury Engine is not a concern. Do high end gaming cards provide significant gains in OpenGL performance? Or do OpenGL performance gains taper off around the mid-range GPUs? (i.e. can you justify buying a high end GTX 260M graphics card for enhanced editing performance versus an "entry level" dedicated card like the 310M?)
11.) What hardware specs are most important when considering a GPU for editing performance in AE? (Memory size? # of Pixel shaders? Core speed? Shader speed?)
Thanks so much for any answers you can offer to these questions.

Please make sure that you've read through this page and what it points to.
> 1) Does the “Render Multiple Frames Simultaneously” option
enhance general editing performance (applying filters, scrubbing through
the timeline, reverting history states)? Or does it ONLY help speed up
RAM previews and final output? Does it reduce the length of RAM
previews?
It only increases rendering speed for RAM previews and rendering for final output. In After Effects CS5, it doesn't decrease the length of RAM previews. (In CS4, it does.)
1b) Is this option even necessary to enable on 64bit
systems? (As far as I understand it was used to solve a problem where
32bit systems/software would only recognize 4GB of RAM per instance of
AE).
You misunderstood. Yes, it's still relevant on 64-bit computers. Moreso, in a way. (I'd rather not spend my entire Sunday writing out detailed answers to satisfy idle curiosity, so I'm not going to give all the technical detail to that answer.)
> 1c) If I turn this option on to help with RAM previews,
would I be hindering general editing performance in any way? Or does
this option have basically zero drawbacks?
It takes a small but nonzero time for the background processes to start up when they need to be used and shut down when they're done. And as they sit waiting, they take up a little bit of memory. So, it's not exactly correct to say that there are no downsides to leaving it on. But it's close. I leave it on.
> 2) How come “Actual CPUs that will be used” will read 0 even
if the sum total of RAM assigned to the CPUs plus the RAM reserved for
other applications is less than the total available system RAM (on a
64bit system)? For example, I currently have 4GB RAM and 2 installed
CPUs. I have 1.5GB reserved for other programs and when I set 0.75GB per
CPU both CPUs are used. However when I set 1GB per CPU then 0 CPUs are
used, even though the total RAM adds up to only 3.5GB.
4GB - 1.5GB for other software leaves 2.5 GB for After Effects.
If you have 1GB assigned per background CPU, then the foreground takes 1.2x that = 1.2GB. That leaves 1.3GB for background processes, which is enough for one background process. There's no point in starting only one background process to do rendering, so it doesn't bother. (Note: When background processes are rendering, the foreground process isn't rendering.)
> 3.) Considering the fact that I am more concerned with
smooth performance while editing rather than final output speeds, would
it be better to get a dual core i5 clocked around 2.5 or a quad core i7
clocked around 1.8?
Get the quad-core. That gives you a greater total number of cycles. And After Effects works very well with mutliple processors, even beyond Render Multiple Frames Simultaneously multiprocessing. An entirely unrelated sort of multiprocessing (multithreading) spreads work out to multiple processors.
> 6.) Should the quantity of RAM that I get (8GB vs 12GB) be based on the number of cores in my CPU? If
so, how should I be calculating optimal RAM based on # of cores. Should
I also be counting threads, or just actual physical cores?
The optimum amount is the amount that you can cram into the computer. I'm not kidding. Spend your budget on RAM until you have 4GB installed per processor (and I'm counting the virtual processors due to hyperthreading). If you have a quad-core, that's 8 CPUs with hyperthreading, so the optimum amount of RAM installed is 32GB. You can work with less, but you did ask about optimum. For HD work (i.e., 1920 pixels across), you're OK with more like 3GB installed per CPU. That's what I have at home: 24GB in a quad-core. You're going to assign 2/3 or so of the RAM to After Effects, so 3GB installed per CPU is 2GB per core for HD work in After Effects.
> 10.) Would it be better to have 8GB of RAM and an SSD, or 12GB of RAM and an HDD? Explain why.
12GB of RAM. Because After Effects likes RAM. (If you're thinking of deliberatly using virtual memory to swap memory to the hard disk, don't. That's a performance killer.)
> 10.) After Effects utilizes OpenGL to enhance editing performance.
Not really. If you're on a limited budget, don't even think about the GPU until you've already got the most RAM, the fastest CPUs, the largest number of CPUs, two fast hard disks, and a couple of good monitors. Then, and only then, should you even consider getting soemthing beyond a non-stock graphics card. Yes, OpenGL can be used to accelerate some things, but that's only for the low-fidelity preview renderer. (Pardon the bluntness, but I want to make sure that you heed this.)

Google Fonts, DIVS, student needs help

For a class project I am trying to replicate this magazine page I selected. The idea of the project is to use things such as google web fonts.
So far, I have done this - the font's don't have to match. It just needs to have the same sort of look:
OK, so far so good. But I KNOW that this isn't semantic markup! The name "Andre Benjamin" should be the <h1>, but I cannot figure out how to do that using google web fonts since the heading used 3 different fonts and different sizes.
Additionally, though it looks great in firefox this is how it renders in IE - No google font showing up, the divs are not lining up right. The site is not "live", this is the view from previewing in IE. Maybe IE needs it loaded on a server for google font to show?:
So thanks for any help you can provide. I know that I need to clean up this code before I go much further.
The html is:
<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">
<head>
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" />
<title>Untitled Document</title>
<link href="typography.css" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" />
<link href='http://fonts.googleapis.com/css?family=Ewert' rel='stylesheet' type='text/css'>
<link href='http://fonts.googleapis.com/css?family=Asset' rel='stylesheet' type='text/css'>
<link href='http://fonts.googleapis.com/css?family=Chivo:900' rel='stylesheet' type='text/css'>
</head>
<body>
<div id="container">
<div id="largeH1">A</div>
<div id="medH1">NDR</div>
<div id="medH1_2">&eacute</div>
<div id="smallH1">BENJAMIN</div>
</div>
</body>
</html>
The CSS is:
@charset "utf-8";
body {
    background-color: #333;
#container {
    height: 1242px;
    width: 960px;
    margin-top: 20px;
    margin-right: auto;
    margin-bottom: 20px;
    margin-left: auto;
    background-image: url(images/bgNapkin.jpg);
    border: thin solid #ADC2A1;
#largeH1 {
    font-family: 'Ewert', cursive;
    font-size: 300px;
    color: #d94730;
    margin-left: 35px;
    height: 300px;
    width: 215px;
    float: left;
#medH1 {
    font-family: 'Asset', cursive;
    font-size: 75px;
    margin-left: 200px;
    color: #D94730;
    padding-top: 60px;
#medH1_2 {
    font-family: 'Chivo', sans-serif;
    color: #D94730;
    font-size: 110px;
    margin-left: 625px;
    margin-top: -120px;
#smallH1 {
    font-family: 'Chivo', sans-serif;
    color: #D94730;
    font-size: 36px;
    letter-spacing: 40px;
    margin-left: 255px;
    margin-top: -10px;

Read up on nth-child pseudo-selectors.
http://css-tricks.com/how-nth-child-works/
Below, a quick and dirty example with span tags.
CSS:
span:nth-child(1)
{font-size:250%}
span:nth-child(2)
{font-size:150%}
span:nth-child(3)
{font-size:100%}
span:nth-child(4)
{font-size:75%}
span:nth-child(5)
{font-size:50%}
HTML:
<h1><span>This</span> <span>is</span> <span>a</span> <span>spanned</span> <span>heading</span></h1>
The result:
Nancy O.
Alt-Web Design & Publishing
Web | Graphics | Print | Media Specialists
http://alt-web.com/
http://twitter.com/altweb

Need help choosing P.Book 12" or 15" or 17"?

Hi,
I am having the exactly same issue asa many other people on this forum. I was waiting for the MacBook and now its out and I can't buy it because there is no software and won't be for a while.
Well anyways, I need a comp and like a sucker will buy a G4 (paying the same price for a G4 as the Dual Core Intel Powerbook).
But I can't decide which size to buy!?!
I study multimedia in university. I will be using this powerbook for intense Video Editing using Final Cut HD(Max length of films edited would be max 10mins), Audio Production using Pro Tools HD, Cubase SX 3.0 with ALL Plugins, After Effects 6.5, Web Design - Dreamweaver - Flash, Photoshop - Colour Correction and Hi Res Scanning and Re Touching, Illustrator, 3D - Maya, MAX/Msp.
Basically I will be doing intense audio and video/graphic work on this machine.
I have gone over the specs of the 12" and the 15" many many times. At times I decide that I will get the 12" and then at times I change my mind decide on the 15".
Factor 1: Screen Size
How is the 12" in usability wise. Is the screen too small and does the screen size make you angry sometimes? Or once you get used to it doesn't really matter? I will mostly be using this machine in school, therefore, I will not have a dual monitor input (only if I am in the lab). At home I will plug it in a 21" monitor.
Factor 2: Hardware
The 12" has a 100gb 5400 RPM Harddrive, 64mb VideoRAM, 1.5 ghz processor, Max RAM 1.25GB. price: $2200 CAD
The 15" powerbook has better components than the 12". It has a 100gb 7200 RPM Harddrive, 128mb VideoRAM, 1.67 ghz, Max RAM 2GB. price: $3200 CAD
would the 12" be able to handle pro level graphic and audio work?
OR
I also have the option of a mint secondhand 17" powerbook with 1.67ghz, 1.5gb ram, 100gb 5400 rpm harddrive, 128mb video ram. price: $2500 CAD
The 17" is huge!! I think it will hinder my portabilty. I have never used a 17" p.book on the go so I cannot say for sure. Input from anyone who uses a 17" in and around the city would be greatly appreciated. But a 17" would increase work productivity due to the availabilty of space for palettes, etc? Or screen size doesn't really make a big deal, its only a matter of getting used to any screen size?
I need a machine badly, so which machine would you guys recommend me to buy. A 12" or a 15" or 17". Since I am going to be buying old technology I will have to upgrade in 2 years time. By buying a 12" I save $1000. But if a 12" is going to be a nuisance because of its small screen size and slower performance then I don't mind buying a 15".
Thanks in advance,
Rgrds,
usman

"PPC machines will be outdated come 2007. At that point software will start appearing Intel only and the PPC will slowly whither away."
The PPC will eventually start to disappear, yet I highly doubt it's going to be useless in 2007. Technically, every computer is outdated as soon as a new one is released. That doesn't mean, it won't be supported though. Apple announced, they'll be supporting Power PC for a long time and Universal binaries will certainly help. You don't know what Adobe et al. are up to, but they couldn't afford loosing the existing PPC base by introducing Intel-only versions in 2007. Imagine buying a Quad G5 workstation today, you'd certainly want it to last longer than 10 months.
Buying a 12" PB seems reasonable to me (as I've just done so), especially when you need:
"Audio Production using Pro Tools HD, Cubase SX 3.0 with ALL Plugins, After Effects 6.5, Web Design - Dreamweaver - Flash, Photoshop - Colour Correction and Hi Res Scanning and Re Touching, Illustrator, 3D - Maya, MAX/Msp."
I think horrorgram has taken a very good approach, considering the availability of Intel Pro apps today and within the next few months.
" I have decided to get the 12" (max upgrades) instead of the 15" (max upgrades). Portability is priority at the momement and I save 1K. Plan on draggin it for 2 years then acquiring a dual-core. "

If ANYONE needs help choosing mba 13 vs mbp 13 look here

most helpful review ever (i got mba) from cnet
Hope this helps
oh and what will you be getting
copied from http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-20082192-1/macbook-air-vs-macbook-pro-which- apple-13-incher-should-you-buy/
That glut's been lessened a little now that the white MacBook has been discontinued. The MacBook Air and the MacBook Pro are the only two MacBook product lines left, and they represent two different solutions to same problem. The unibody aluminum Pro used to be considered thin, but it's--relatively--thick at 1 inch, and weighs over 4 pounds. The Pro offers better specs, while the Air, which has just been recently updated, leans toward light weight and quick booting as its advantages.
There's more to consider, though: the 2011 13-inch MacBook Pro and new 13-inch MacBook Air have become more similar than they've ever been before, for several reasons--performance, battery life, and a Thunderbolt port.
Two 13-inch MacBooks: which do you choose?
Let's put them side by side and compare. (Note: For additional price-based consideration, we're throwing the higher-end 11-inch Air into the chart comparison, since its $1,199 price matches the entry-level 13-inch MacBook Pro.)
11-inch MacBook Air (2011)
13-inch MacBook Air (2011)
13-inch MacBook Pro (2011)
CPU
1.6GHz Intel Core i5
1.7GHz Intel Core i5
2.3GHz Intel Core i5
RAM
4GB
4GB
4GB
Storage
128GB SSD
128GB SSD
320GB HDD
Weight
2.38 lbs
2.96 lbs
4.5 lbs
Screen resolution
1,366x768
1,440x900
1,280x800
Battery life
276 minutes
406 minutes
402 minutes
Price
$1,199
$1,299
$1,199
Size: How quickly things change: in March, the 2011 MacBook Pro was the newest laptop in Apple's stable. Now, it's the oldest. It's obviously far heavier than the 13-inch Air, by over a pound and a half. Edge: Air.
Performance: Last time, we recommended the entry-level 13-inch MacBook Pro as the best all-around Apple 13-incher in terms of price, design, and performance. The MacBook Air has caught up fast. Its price and base RAM/storage specs are still the same, but the new Air has a dramatically faster second-gen Core i5 CPU that makes for a far better computer. Benchmark results are so close they're practically indistinguishable: despite the Air having a lower-speed CPU, it performs nearly identically to the Pro. The 11-inch Air's no slouch either, and it's nearly as good, its performance lag likely being due to having less RAM and a .1GHz slower processor. Edge: Tie.
Battery life: Again, nearly the same. The MacBook Air lost the battle in the spring, but the new, more power-efficient second-gen Intel Core i5 CPU has evened the comparison. Both 13-inchers netted around 6 hours and 40 minutes. Edge: Tie.
Extras: The 13-inch Pro wins on features, but it's a narrower win than you'd expect. A larger hard drive and a DVD-burning optical drive are the larger Pro's advantages, along with an HD Webcam. Port-wise, the Pro adds a FireWire port and an Ethernet jack, and that's it. However, the Air has a higher-resolution 1,440x900-pixel display, while the Pro, oddly enough, has a 1,280x800-pixel screen. Edge: Pro.
And now, case by case:
Best value for the money: Pro. Unless you truly value size and weight above all else, the 13-inch Pro offers more features, ports, and hard-drive space, along with an optical drive. The advantage is narrow, though; narrower than it's ever been.
For the coffee-shopper and frequent traveler: Air. Obviously, size is key. The Air's tiny, and now it also has improved battery life. Some people, though, might prefer the even smaller 11-inch Air, although it doesn't last as long on a charge.
Student who wants to save money: Pro. Last time, we said to get the white MacBook, the king of value. You're out of luck on deals this time. The $999 11-inch Air is the cheapest, but sacrifices valuable storage space. The $1,199 Pro's technically a good value, but more expensive. Educational discounts currently have the entry-level Pro at $1,099 and the entry-level Air at $1,249. Does a difference of $150 affect your purchasing decision? Alternatively, perhaps consider the $499iPad, or a Windows laptop.
Money is no object, best computer: Air. We would have said the 13-inch Pro a year ago, but you might as well consider splurging on a 256GB 13-inch Air with an upgraded 1.8GHz Core i7 processor, and get a Thunderbolt-connected storage array along with a Thunderbolt Display to dock with. It'll cost a fortune, but you said you were rich, right?
Executive with expense account: Air. See above. The MacBook Air is finally as fast as the 13-inch Pro, so there's less of a sacrifice between size and speed.
Conclusion: Very tough call. Now it's a split. We give it to the 13-inch Pro on a technicality, for now, for the average person looking to replace an everyday laptop. The 13-inch Pro still a bit more of a value, even though the Air is arguably a better pure portableMac. The Air did earn an Editors' Choice Award on CNET, while the 13-inch Pro didn't, but that's also a matter of accomplishment for its size class: the 13-inch Air is the best thin MacBook, while the 15-inch Pro is technically the better larger-form MacBook. Even though Apple's Web site suggests that new users start with the MacBook Air, technically, if you're considering a 13-incher, you should start with the $100-cheaper 13-inch Pro.
Are an optical drive and extra hard-drive space worth the added weight? With networked hard drives, external peripherals, and cloud-based storage, is the 13-inch Air more your style? Sound off below, let us know what you'd prefer.
Read more: http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-20082192-1/macbook-air-vs-macbook-pro-which- apple-13-incher-should-you-buy/#ixzz1THuDcaFP

Hmm, I'm much more interested in comparing performance benchmarks... your review seems to infer that there's not much difference between the Air Pro, but I'd want to see examples, comparing typical processor and disk R/W activities.

Need help choosing processor and display for X240 please

I'm about to purchase an X240 today or tomorrow and, after doing multiple forum searches and reading a 67-page X240 thread elsewhere, I would really appreciate some help choosing a processor and a display. If it makes a difference, I've decided on:
*Windows 7 Pro 64 bit
*8GB of RAM
*256GB SSD
I intend to use the laptop for viewing/editing Word documents and Powerpoint presentations, streaming movies, and streaming recorded lectures. I'm not sure what lecture viewer/player my school uses yet, but I do know that it has options to play the lectures at accelerated speeds (1.5x, 2x, etc.) and that I will definitely need to use this feature. I'm not computer literate enough to discern whether the processor type has any effect on this. I will use an external drive if I need to download and save any lectures. I also plan to do some infrequent and basic photo editing with Windows Photo Gallery and MS Paint. I'm willing to pay extra for a smoother/faster experience, but I don't want to go with the i7 processor if it's overkill for my purposes or if there are other significant trade-offs besides price.
As for display, I'm torn between the regular HD (1366x768) IPS Non-touch, regular HD IPS Touch, and FHD IPS Touch. Re: HD vs FHD, I've been using a 1280x800 13.3" non-IPS display for the last 6 or 7 years, and I'm pretty happy with it except for the limited viewing angles. Wouldn't regular HD on a 12.5" screen be a step up in resolution? A lot of the reviews of the regular HD on the X240 express disappointment with the "low" resolution, but I don't know if it's really that bad, or if people just have much higher expectations/standards than I do. I'm leaning towards regular HD because my glasses are so strong that increasing the sharpness of what I see also has the side effect of making things appear smaller (minimization error), so I'd probably have to mess with text/DPI scaling if I went with FHD, which isn't a perfect solution from what I've read. I'd only consider getting a touch version if I need FHD (since it doesn't come in non-touch), or if it somehow makes the HD display sharper or more vibrant--I have no intention of actually using touch features.
Apologies for the length, and thanks in advance for any advice! :-)

Actually I have been doing further research and I personally would either go with the 2.6GHz NON RETINA MBP or cough up the cash and go all out on a 2.6GHz RETINA MBP and upgrade the RAM to 16GB and upgrade to 768GB Flash storage, I am a student as well so will get a discount which will help.
My fears are that if I get the Retina model I will not be able to upgrade it even further, I want to keep the computer for at least a good 5 years, during those 5 to 8 years will the current upgrades be enough to keep up with the top games and programs etc? Also I have read that repairing the Retina display model is very diffcult and it can malfunction commonly, so I am guessing I should get apple care on top of it just to be sure with this particular model?
I am assuming that they they will bring out the new models out next year and all the chinks and bugs of the current Retina model will be fixed so to speak, of which I have read there is a few... Would it be worth buying the NON RETINA MBP and then selling and upgrading to an improved RETINA MBP model next year?
Finally if i back up my files on a hardrive would I have to use the USP SUPER DRIVE to install files onto the RETINA MBP or can i directly do this without the USP SUPERDRIVE?
Thanks

What kind of job can I get being a Web Designer/Graphic Designer?

I run BlackReefDesigns.com, and am doing quite a bit of
business consider I don't really advertise too much. I've learned
how to do eCommerce, Flash, etc and things are progressing nicely.
I feel confident in my skills, and I realize that anything I
don't know how to do, I can learn rather quickly. The problem is I
feel I need to become more of a 'business man' if I want my company
to really move forward. I'm only 23 years old so I was thinking of
going and working for a Web/Graphic design firm so I can learn more
about the business aspect of running my own company. Im also
working towards a B.A. in Graphic Design at a larger University in
Southern California...
Just curious, with my skillset, how much money could I, or
should I be making if I went and worked for someone else? Do you
guys know anybody in Southern California that I could work for?
thanks in advance

eh, teachers don't always know what they're talking about. in
fact, i
think a lot of the posts made here are a direct result of
poor teaching.
i know that's how i got a lot of my bad habits (not from a
teacher,
per se, but my first boss who taught me some basics) a lot of
people
think they know the dos and don'ts but really don't (plus,
they tend to
change). i thought i knew a lot of stuff until i started
coming here and
learned that a lot of what i thought was the right way to do
things
actually wasn't.
come here often. and listen to what these people say because
they know
their stuff (you'll quickly figure out who the ones are that
know what
they're talking about). i can't tell you how much i've
learned in the
relatively short time i've been a part of this forum. and i'm
still
learning!
teach yourself html. you don't have to be able to write an
entire site
by hand, but at least be able to look at the code and
understand what it
means. like others said, you seem to have a good grasp of
graphic
design, but websites have to be more than graphics.
to answer your money question, it really kind of depends on
the market
where you live. you might just want to look in the want ads
and see what
kind of salaries are being offered for this type of work in
your town.
there's also resources on the web where you can see average
salaries for
various jobs in different places. yahoo has one
http://hotjobs.yahoo.com/salary)
but there are lots of others if you
search for something like "compare my salary."
good luck! you seem willing to learn, which is great!
JSloanSDRE wrote:
> JoeyD -
>
> I really appreciate your input. I wish more people would
be critical of my
> work. I can't ever progress when people say 'good job,
looks great'.
>
> I've learned everything myself when it comes to web
design, and it sucks
> because I wish I could have had a teacher to teach me
the do's and don'ts as I
> think I would have progressed much farther over the last
couple of years.
>
> I have been busy working on client work and haven't
updated my personal
> website in awhile (which I realize is a big no-no if I
want future business)
> but there is really no excuse for the padding issue. I
actually just fixed it
> right now.
>
> Again, thanks for the input, and I realize I have a
loooong way to go in Web
> Design, and that is why I want to get a job somewhere so
I can learn and work
> at the same time. I think however I am proficient in
Graphic Design and am
> curious as to how much income I would have working for a
firm as oppose to
> freelancing (just in Graphic Designs)
>
> thanks again JoeyD, and any future advice would be great
>

Help ex student need help ASAP

Hello I'm in need of immediate help !!! I am a graduate of a design course visual communications and purchased the design suite under student ID. I am no longer a student and have currently had a computer crash and needed a new hard drive. As I needed to reinstall suite but I don't have a serial number anymore! Can someone help me I'm currently doing a job for someone with a few days remaining on trial so this is errant!!

https://www.adobe.com/account.html for your Adobe orders page
When you buy software via download you should ALWAYS write the download itself, and a text file with your serial number, to AT LEAST one "off your computer" backup... be that to a DVD or a USB hard drive
If you can't find your serial number on your orders page, nobody can help

Continue using Web & Design Premium CS6 and need new serial number

I have Web & Design Premium CS6 and i want to continue the use of this program, were can i find or buy a unlimited serialnumber?
Thanks,
Bas

When you buy CS6 and are given a serial number to install and activate, my understanding is that you already have an "unlimited" serial number
EXCEPT... I read a message recently about a "free" Education install that had a serial number that expired Adobe CS6 valid serial number downgraded to tryout
Why do you think that your serial number needs to be replaced?
Creative Suite 6

Web Design/Graphic Arts Student needs help choosing a Macbook.

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for