What do you think of new Cisco NSS 300 Smart Storage?

Did you see the press release of the new Cisco NSS 30 Smart Storage?
http://newsroom.cisco.com/dlls/2010/prod_060910.html
What did you think?
More informaion about the product can be found at http://www.cisco.com/go/smartstorage

I guess no one from Cisco is going to repond to your post Johnny.
I agree with your thoughts, and was excitedly looking forward to Cisco's entry in the small NAS market and rushed out to buy a NSS326 (Equiv to QNAP TS-659) Unit.  I already own a QNAP TS-639 older model for 1.5 years and loved it - and expected Cisco just to make this even a better unit.  Which in some ways they have (Syslog and Radius features) - although as you've already noticed, elimation of QPKG application support which numbers up to almost 2 dozen applications that are not available on Cisco's version
Unfortunately if you look on eBay, you'll see my NSS326 up for sale.
To address your points (from my point of view)
1) ROCK SOLID:  I've found the hardware to be just that (on both units).  Built well, and I'm sure will last for years.   As for software stability, - see next
2) FAST FIRMWARE UPDATES:  It's for this reason that the unit is up for sale.   V3.0 of the firmware was a major release.  And there have been issues - although many/most of them have been addressed with still a few (somewhat serious) issues still lingering.   QNAP seems to be attacking these fairly quickly.   Unfortunately there has been 2 releases from QNAP addressing issues since Cisco's adoption of this unit since v3.2.6.   As you'll see in these posts, Cisco is not following QNAPs releases, and will be releasing their own line of firmware.  For me, this is a serious issue - and I wish I knew this before purchasing.  I feel Cisco is already 2 releases behind which includes many fixes to their current platform. (Also see QPKG note above - many missing applications)
3) SUPPORT:  This is where Cisco excels and always has.   To start 5yr vs 1yr warranty, and of course Cisco TAC is one of the best in the world.  In contrast, QNAP's support quite frankly isn't great - although, it's support community for forums are excellent.   Unfortunately I can't speak specifically on NSS support since I haven't called them for this, so I'm speaking more generally.
So it really boils down to whats more important for your situation.
Cheers

Similar Messages

  • What do you think of new server?

    so far I think it's useless and am thinking of downgrading, anyone else having problems?

    Well I noticed that about 40% of the server features disappeared from Server Admin. In particular, the ability to manage the Web service and configure a forward proxy with caching.

  • New iPhone .... what do you think

    what do you think of the design, new features ........

    This is a technical support forum for users to ask questions about real Apple products.
    If you have suggestions on how you think Apple can improve its products, send them to Apple here:
    http://www.apple.com/feedback/iphone.html

  • What do you think of the new creative cloud cc that was just released?

    What do you think of the new creative cloud cc that was just released? I'm using it now and I think it's great. It's cs6 on stereroids lol More new features that people who fully paid for cs6 should of had.
    I do wish the cloud standard price changes to 29.99 a month for all users so everyone gets a chance to enjoy the cloud.

    I just downloaded CC, and still have all my CS6 apps as backup. Bridge CC (64-bit) is showing the same unacceptable performance I had with CS6 version. Can't believe that Adobe is so inept. I did fix the CS6 version but I forget how I did it.  CS6 version of Bridge is near instantaneous. And it's not a matter of building the cache. It takes the program forever just to respond to a simple mouse click in the menu bar.
    Photoshop CC crashed my machine, whereas CS6 version runs perfectly. Afraid to download any further apps. 
    Adobe 11 failed to install because it think's prior version of the that program is still on the computer. I never installed Acrobat 11 on this machine. Just Acrobat 10, which also got the stupid 30-day "refuse to start" bug, so I'm using Acrobat 9.5 which works flawlessly.  Funny how the newer the code from Adobe, the worse it gets for its customers.
    I'm using Win 7 Pro, 16GB mem, Nvidia 2800M video card on Thinkpad with i7-920XM chip.

  • What do you think of the new creative cloud cc?

    What do you think of the new creative cloud cc that was just released? I'm using it now and I think it's great. It's cs6 on stereroids lol More new features that people who fully paid for cs6 should of had.
    I do wish the cloud standard price changes to 29.99 a month for all users so everyone gets a chance to enjoy the cloud.

    This forum is only to discuss how the forums operate, not products
    If you go to the Forums Index http://forums.adobe.com/index.jspa
    You will be able to select a forum for the Adobe product you use
    Cloud Forum http://forums.adobe.com/community/creative_cloud

  • What do you think about the new and improved SiriusDecisions Waterfall?

    SiriusDecisions launched their new and improved Demand Waterfall this week at their Summit in Scottsdale, Arizona. For those of you who haven't seen it yet, I have attached the PDF for your viewing pleasure. What do you think? What's strong? What's weak? Do you agree with Tony Jaros that teleprospecting is a required step in the Marketing Qualification process?

    It makes a lot of sense from our perspective.  Our sales organization has always generated the bulk of our leads, so it makes sense to account for them and to build programs to support them.  It was a great conference - my first SiriusDecisions Summit.  I came away both energized and overwhelmed.
    Our Inside Sales team qualifies almost all inquiries via telephone, so it makes sense to me that "teleprospecting" is a required step.  The only exceptions are sales-generated leads, so the waterfall reflects that perfectly.
    What I like most about the new waterfall is that it creates a clear structure for us to focus more on developing lead nurturing and pipeline acceleration programs specifically for teleprospecting- and sales-generated leads.  I'll admit that we've neglected this (simply including those contacts in our marketing-generated lead nurtures).  Furthermore, it reinforces the need to tailor nurtures to the buyer's stage in the buying process.  We tend to move all of our contacts through the same campaign and nurture activities as if they're progressing together, which obviously isn't the case.
    I'd be interested in learning how other Eloqua users are getting data back from their CRM on a contact who has turned into a qualified lead.  How do you find this information out?  Do you then put them through an individual nurture that is focused on accelerating the deal?

  • What do you think of my Bash Script? What about the error checking?

    Well what do you think of this Bash script
    It works
    I gave it some problems (i.e. unpluged the ethernet, messed up the URL's, uninstaled some programs...) to see if would report errors and stop or just keep going... But it did
    I just kind of thought up a way to do some error checking with the commands that I know.....
    What is a better way to do error checking?
    What do you think I should add/Do to this script?
    #!/bin/bash
    # Shell script to make a USB Tumb Drive for Flashing BIOS on a Lenovo Ideapad Y510.
    # This script needs to be owned and run as ROOT with the "sudo command"
    # i.e. sudo usbbiosflasher
    # If you have anyideas send me a PM on ubuntufourms.org my user name is HunterThomson
    # Name/Rename this script usbbiosflasher and save it to the ~/home directory.
    # Then run the command- chown root:root usbbiosflasher
    # Then run the command- chmod 755 usbbiosflasher
    # Then copy the script to the directory /usr/bin.
    # Run this comand to do that- sudo cp ~/usbbiosflasher /usr/bin
    # You also must have the program "mbr" installed
    # You can install the mbr program by running this comand in the shell on Ubuntu
    # sudo apt-get install mbr
    # In Arch Linux you have to get it from Aur
    # First you will need to know a few things...
    # You will also need to know the Mount Point i.e. /media/disk and the /dev path i.e. /dev/sdb1.
    # You can find these by using the df -T comand.
    # Run df -T in the shell. Then plug in the USB Thumb Drive and run the df -T comand agin.
    # The new listing is the USB Thumb Dirve.
    # Also check to make sure the File System tipe is vFAT or FAT16 or FAT32.
    # If it is not use gparted to format it to FAT32.
    # I am farly certen that all USB Thumb drives come formated with FAT file system out of the BOX.
    # You may want to fromat it anyway just to make sure.
    echo "Interactive Shell Script to Make a USB Thumb Drive \for Flashing BIOS On a Lenovo Ideapad Y510"
    echo ""
    echo "You will need to have the program mbr installed"
    echo "If you are on Ubuntu Linux you can retreve it form the repositories"
    echo "If you are on Arch Linux you will need to get it from the Aur repository"
    echo "Open anuther shell and \do that now..."
    echo ""
    verify="n"
    while [ "$verify" != y ]
    do
    printf "Do you have mbr installed... yes or no?"
    read AN1
    echo ""
    printf "You answered... $AN1 I have installed mbr. Is this correct... y or n?"
    read verify
    done
    echo ""
    if [ "$AN1" == "no" ]
    then
    echo "Install mbr now. Then run this script agin"
    exit
    else
    echo "contunuing script"
    fi
    echo ""
    # The next comand will make a directory to put needed files into. Note this file and everything init will be owned by root.
    mkdir ~/usbbiosfiles && check1="yes"
    if [ "$check1" = "yes" ]
    then
    echo "Made directory usbbiosfiles... OK"
    else
    echo "Could not \make directory usbbiosfiles"
    echo "look above \for \info"
    echo "Fix the problem and run this scrip agin"
    exit
    fi
    # The next two comands will get the FreeDOS file and the .ROM file.
    cd ~/usbbiosfiles && checka="yes"
    if [ "$checka" = "yes" ]
    then
    echo "Changing to the usbbiosfiles directory... OK"
    else
    echo "Could not Change to the usbbiosfiles directory"
    echo "look above \for \info"
    echo "Fix the problem and run this scrip agin"
    echo ""
    echo "removeing directory usbbiosfiles..."
    echo ""
    rm -r ~/usbbiosfiles
    exit
    fi
    wget "http://www.fdos.org/bootdisks/autogen/FDOEM.144.gz" && check2="yes"
    if [ "$check2" = "yes" ]
    then
    echo "Download of FreeDOS... OK"
    else
    echo "Could not Download FreeDOS"
    echo "look above \for \info"
    echo "Fix the problem and run this scrip agin"
    echo ""
    echo "removeing directory usbbiosfiles..."
    echo ""
    rm -r ~/usbbiosfiles
    exit
    fi
    wget "http://ubuntuforums.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=78460&d=1216648756" && check3="yes"
    if [ "$check3" = "yes" ]
    then
    echo "Download of the BIOS.ROM \file... OK"
    else
    echo "Could not Downlad the BIOS.ROM \file"
    echo "look above \for \info"
    echo "Fix the problem and run this scrip agin"
    echo ""
    echo "removeing directory usbbiosfiles..."
    echo ""
    rm -r ~/usbbiosfiles
    exit
    fi
    # The next comand will name the .ROM file to the right name.
    mv ~/usbbiosfiles/attachment.php?attachmentid=78460\&d=1216648756 ~/usbbiosfiles/06CN29WW.bios.update.tar.bz2 && check4="yes"
    if [ "$check4" = "yes" ]
    then
    echo "Renameing of the BIOS.ROM \file... OK"
    else
    echo "Could not rename the BIOS.ROM \file"
    echo "look above \for \info"
    echo "Fix the problem and run this scrip agin"
    echo ""
    echo "removeing directory usbbiosfiles..."
    echo ""
    rm -r ~/usbbiosfiles
    exit
    fi
    echo ""
    # The next two comands set the variables. DEVX for the path i.e. /dev/xxx and MOUNTX for the mount point i.e. /media/xxx
    verify="n"
    while [ "$verify" != y ]
    do
    echo "You will need to know the Mount Point and the dev Path. You will also need to \make sure the File System \type is vFAT, FAT16 or FAT32."
    echo ""
    echo "With the USB Thumb Drive unpluged, Open another shell and run the comand df -T Then plug \in the USB Thumb Drive and run the comand df -T one \more time. The new device listed is the USB Thumb Drive. Note the Mount Point and The dev Path and the File system Type i.e. vFAT... If the File System \type is not vFAT, FAT16 or FAT32 you will need to fromat it with gparted. You may want to format the USB Thumb Drive anyway just to \make sure. In any \case delete all files and directorys on the USB drive before you go any ferther with this program."
    echo ""
    printf "Enter the dev path the USB Thumb Drive is at?"
    read DEVX
    echo ""
    echo "Are you sure $DEVX is the dev path of the USB Thumb Drive... y or n?"
    read verify
    done
    echo ""
    verify="n"
    while [ "$verify" != y ]
    do
    printf "What is the Mount Point of the USB Thumb Drive?"
    read MOUNTX
    echo ""
    echo "Are you sure $MOUNTX is the Mount Point of the USB Drive... y or n?"
    read verify
    done
    echo ""
    install-mbr --enable A1 --partition 1 --force --timeout 0 $DEVX && check5="yes"
    if [ "$check5" = "yes" ]
    then
    echo "Installing MBR on USB Thumb Dirve... OK"
    else
    echo "Could not install MBR on USB Thumb Drive"
    echo "look above \for \info"
    echo "Fix the problem and run this scrip agin"
    echo ""
    echo "removeing directory usbbiosfiles..."
    echo ""
    rm -r ~/usbbiosfiles
    exit
    fi
    tar xjf ~/usbbiosfiles/*.tar.bz2 && check7="yes"
    if [ "$check7" = "yes" ]
    then
    echo "Unpacking BIOS.ROM file... OK"
    else
    echo "Could not unpack BIOS.ROM file"
    echo "look above \for \info"
    echo ""
    echo "Reformat the USB Stick to FAT32 with gparted"
    echo "Fix the problem and run this scrip agin"
    echo ""
    echo "removeing directory usbbiosfiles..."
    echo ""
    rm -r ~/usbbiosfiles
    exit
    fi
    gunzip ~/usbbiosfiles/FDOEM.144.gz && check8="yes"
    if [ "$check8" = "yes" ]
    then
    echo "Unpacking FreeDOS files... OK"
    else
    echo "Could not unpack FreeDOS files"
    echo "look above \for \info"
    echo ""
    echo "Reformat the USB Stick to FAT32 with gparted"
    echo "Fix the problem and run this scrip agin"
    echo ""
    echo "removeing directory usbbiosfiles..."
    echo ""
    rm -r ~/usbbiosfiles
    exit
    fi
    mkdir ~/usbbiosfiles/fdoem144 && check9="yes"
    if [ "$check9" = "yes" ]
    then
    echo "Made directory fdoem144 in direcoty usbbiosfiles... OK"
    echo ""
    echo "Going to \sleep \for 5secs"
    else
    echo "Could not make directory fdoem144 in usbbiosfiles directory"
    echo "look above \for \info"
    echo ""
    echo "Reformat the USB Stick to FAT32 with gparted"
    echo "Fix the problem and run this scrip agin"
    echo ""
    echo "removeing directory usbbiosfiles..."
    echo ""
    rm -r ~/usbbiosfiles
    exit
    fi
    modprobe loop && sleep 5 && check0="yes"
    if [ "$check0" = "yes" ]
    then
    echo "Modprobeing loop... OK"
    else
    echo "Could not \modprobe loop"
    echo "look above \for \info"
    echo ""
    echo "Reformat the USB Stick to FAT32 with gparted"
    echo "Fix the problem and run this scrip agin"
    echo ""
    echo "removeing directory usbbiosfiles..."
    echo ""
    rm -r ~/usbbiosfiles
    exit
    fi
    mount -o loop ~/usbbiosfiles/FDOEM.144 ~/usbbiosfiles/fdoem144 && check10="yes"
    if [ "$check10" = "yes" ]
    then
    echo "Mounting FreeDOS on the fdoem144 directory... OK"
    else
    echo "Could not \mount FreeDOS on the fdoem144 directory"
    echo "look above \for \info"
    echo ""
    echo "Reformat the USB Stick to FAT32 with gparted"
    echo "Fix the problem and run this scrip agin"
    echo ""
    echo "removeing directory usbbiosfiles..."
    echo ""
    rm -r ~/usbbiosfiles
    exit
    fi
    cp ~/usbbiosfiles/fdoem144/* $MOUNTX && check11="yes"
    if [ "$check11" = "yes" ]
    then
    echo "Copying FreeDOS files to $MOUNTX... OK"
    else
    echo "Could not copy FreeDOS files to $MOUNTX"
    echo "look above \for \info"
    echo ""
    echo "Reformat the USB Stick to FAT32 with gparted"
    echo "Fix the problem and run this scrip agin"
    echo ""
    echo "removeing directory usbbiosfiles..."
    echo ""
    rm -r ~/usbbiosfiles
    exit
    fi
    cp ~/usbbiosfiles/*.ROM $MOUNTX && check12="yes"
    if [ "$check12" = "yes" ]
    then
    echo "Copying BIOS.ROM files to $MOUNTX... OK"
    else
    echo "Could not copy BIOS.ROM files to $MOUNTX"
    echo "look above \for \info"
    echo ""
    echo "Reformat the USB Stick to FAT32 with gparted"
    echo "Fix the problem and run this scrip agin"
    echo ""
    echo "removeing directory usbbiosfiles..."
    echo ""
    rm -r ~/usbbiosfiles
    exit
    fi
    sync && check13="yes"
    if [ "$check13" = "yes" ]
    then
    echo "Runing the syncing command... OK"
    else
    echo "Could not run the syncing command"
    echo "look above \for \info"
    echo ""
    echo "Reformat the USB Stick to FAT32 with gparted"
    echo "Fix the problem and run this scrip agin"
    echo ""
    echo "removeing directory usbbiosfiles..."
    echo ""
    rm -r ~/usbbiosfiles
    exit
    fi
    umount ~/usbbiosfiles/fdoem144 && check14="yes"
    if [ "$check14" = "yes" ]
    then
    echo "Unmounting of FreeDOS... OK"
    else
    echo "Could not unmount FreeDOS"
    echo "Look above for errors or problems reported and fix the problem"
    echo ""
    echo "removeing directory usbbiosfiles..."
    echo ""
    echo "Reformat the USB Stick to FAT32 with gparted"
    echo "Fix the problem and run this script agin"
    rm -r ~/usbbiosfiles
    exit
    fi
    verify="n"
    while [ "$verify" != y ]
    do
    printf "Do you see any errors... yes or no?"
    read AN2
    echo ""
    printf "You answered... $AN2 to errors. Is this correct... y or n?"
    read verify
    done
    echo ""
    if [ "$AN2" == "yes" ]
    then
    echo "User Repoted... Error"
    echo "Look above for errors or problems reported and fix the problem"
    echo ""
    echo "removeing directory usbbiosfiles..."
    echo ""
    echo "Reformat the USB Stick to FAT32 with gparted"
    echo "Fix the problem and run this script agin"
    rm -r ~/usbbiosfiles
    exit
    else
    echo "Success"
    echo "I did a lot of error checking too and didnt find anything"
    echo ""
    echo "Go get a pen and paper to write down these instructions"
    printf "Then hit the Enter to continue"
    read WAIT
    echo ""
    echo "Now leave the USB Thumb Drive pluged into your computer and Reboot. When the Lenovo Logo POST screen appears hit F2 to enter the CMOS setup utility. Go over to BOOT tab and go down to HardDrive \(Not Boot Order) \then \select the USB Thumb Drive as the 1st hard drve. Then F10 and yes to save changes. Your compter will reboot agin. Then when the Lenovo Logo POST Screen appers on reboot hit F4 to enter the BIOS FLASHING program. The USB Thumb Drive will be seen as the C drive \in the list on the Left, Select it. Then \select the .ROM \file \in the list on the Right and start the BIOS FLASH. \(NOTE Your hart may stop beating... This is normal) Pray to any God you know of and your computer should restart just like normal. Hit F2 and the BIOS will now stay it is 06CN29WW. You will need to \set the boot order to the way you like it and other things \if you need to because they have been changed to the default."
    fi
    echo ""
    echo "End of script"
    Last edited by hunterthomson (2008-08-10 11:17:47)

    Personally.....  (this is just how I would have written it - if it works, then it's good enough for me though )
    I would change this whole block:
    verify="n"
    while [ "$verify" != y ]
    do
    printf "Do you have mbr installed... yes or no?"
    read AN1
    echo ""
    printf "You answered... $AN1 I have installed mbr. Is this correct... y or n?"
    read verify
    done
    echo ""
    if [ "$AN1" == "no" ]
    then
    echo "Install mbr now. Then run this script agin"
    exit
    else
    echo "contunuing script"
    fi
    To this much shorter code:
    MBR='/usr/bin/install-mbr' # Or where ever you expect it to be
    if [ ! -x $MBR ] ; then
    echo "mbr doesn't appear to be installed."
    echo "If it is installed, check it's location, make sure it's executable and then make sure the MBR variable in this script is correct"
    exit 1
    fi
    I wouldn't have used the checkXX variables for each stage:
    mkdir ~/usbbiosfiles
    if [ $? != 0 ] ; then
    #failed
    echo "Could not \make directory usbbiosfiles"
    echo "look above \for \info"
    echo "Fix the problem and run this scrip agin"
    exit 1
    else
    echo "Made directory usbbiosfiles... OK"
    fi
    There is an issue with the way you do your verifications - the user can never get out unless they answer 'y' or hit CTRL+C. Something like this gives them options:
    verify="n"
    while [ "$verify" != "y" && "$verify" != "n" ]; do
    echo "You need to answer 'y'es or 'n'o"
    read verify
    echo $verify | tr "[:upper:]" "[:lower:]" # This converts the answer to lowercase so replies entered in upper case will still work
    done
    if [ $verify != 'y' ] ; then
    exit 1
    fi
    One last thing I try to do in scripts... Declare all your binaries as variables at the start of the program, then execute the binary program by using the variable. For example:
    # Binaries
    TAR='/bin/tar'
    CP='/bin/cp'
    CHMOD='/bin/chmod'
    # Execute tar and chmod the created file
    $TAR cvzf /tmp/tarfile.tar.gz /etc/*.conf
    $CHMOD 400 /etc/*.conf
    This way, it's easy to change the path in future without having to hunt through the script if the paths change, and it also ensures you're calling the programs using the full paths to make sure you're not executing some strange variant or alias that someone has setup. If I use `chmod` 30 times in a script, and the path changes in the future or on a different system (`chmod` is a bad example cause it's highly unlikely to change, but you know what I mean), then all you need to do is update the variable at the start of the script, and it all works again without having to script-hunt and change it 30 times.

  • Still in a quandary about hardware specs. What do you think?

    I need to build a new system as editing machine for CS4. Everything is more or less clear as to what I need, there are only two issues remaining:
    1. How much RAM to install, and
    2. Disk setup.
    As always there is the balance between performance and costs. Since this is not "an unlimited means available" type of machine, you will not see much esoteric components, like SSD raids or nVidia Quadro CX card. It is a dual E5472 Harpertown system (8 core), running Vista 64 Business.
    1. How much RAM would be a good balance in price/performance? 8 or 16 GB? We are talking about Kingston Value Ram DDR2-6400 ECC FBDIMM, either 4 x 2 GB ( 420) or 4 x 4 GB ( 650), with the possibility to double memory in the future. If you do not make a habit of continuously switching between PP, AE, EN, PS etc. and are mainly using only 1 application at the time, I wonder if there is a noticeable performance gain to justify the additional cost. The choice is obvious if the total cost of the machine would not be stretching available means. So what do you think?
    2. Main storage is 8 x WD Caviar Black 1 TB disks in raid50 for media, renders, scratch etc. But what about the boot disk? Either a 300 GB WD Velociraptor ( 240), or 4 x WD Scorpio (7200 RPM) 160 GB in raid10 ( 250), using on-board ESB2 chipset.
    While we are at it, does it make sense to add 4 x WD Scorpio 250 GB in Raid5 (on an Areca ARC controller with free ports) only for pagefile, projects and temporary export. Final export will be transferred over the network to a burning machine for DVD's. Backups of projects is to external USB disks and on a separate machine over VPN.
    The case has room for 8 hot swappable 3.5" disks and 8 hot swappable 2.5" laptop disks plus another disk and a DVD/BR burner internally. There are still 4 external eSATA ports available for future expansion. Foreseen video card is ATI 4870 512MB. Network is currently a 1 Gb connection, but can be enhanced to 2 Gb with 2 NIC's.
    Look forward to your reactions.

    Bill,
    The case is the
    Supermicro SC743TQ-865SQ
    and the storage bay for the 2.5" disks is the
    Addonics AE4RCS25NSA (2.5 Disk Array 4SA)
    Thanks for your remark about the difficulty of troubleshooting boot arrays. That might be an advantage for the Velociraptor.
    Dag, no. I don't make the mistake of visiting Amsterdam, unless it is absolutely necessary, like visiting the IBC, let alone visiting those bars. I came to realize that Vista has grown up a bit with SP1 and with full support for 64 it now makes a bit more sense than XP64. It does imply a couple of days tweaking Vista (= removing 'features') to make it work decently, but after that is accomplished I will make a slip streamed DVD version for future installs, so that is a one time investment. With recent enhancements in Nullsoft that is easily accomplished, including all intermediate patches and 'Patch Tuesday' versions.

  • So, what do you think I should do?

    So, I'm getting into computer graphics and 3D stuff. I have realized that the Radeon 9600 that is default in my Dual 2.3 G5 isn't the greatest for 3D design. I was @ the Apple store the other day and was trying out the different machines. I'm really impressed with the new iMacs that Apple just released. They had Final Cut Pro running with some content and it was really smooth. I was planning on eventually upgrading to a Mac Pro to replace my Dual G5 but I was wondering do you think the new iMacs are good enough for this kind of thing? I plan on using Cinema 4D from Maxon, and probably Blender.
    I guess these are my options:
    1. Sell my Dual G5 / 20" Cinema display and get one of the new iMacs.
    2. Keep my Dual G5 and upgrade the video card.
    3. Keep my Dual G5 and make do with it or use it along with my MacBook Pro until I can get a Mac Pro.
    4. Sell my Dual G5 and use my MacBook Pro with my Cinema display, Keyboard, and Mighty Mouse even though the resolution on the Cinema display will only be 1600 x 1000...and put the money I get from the G5 torward a Mac Pro.
    To be honest the performance I'm getting with my G5 is great with everything except for the 3D graphics. I tried the demo of Cinema 4D on my G5 and my MacBook Pro, and the MB Pro blew it away. With some of the animation demo content m G5 was running @ about 12 FPS. My MacBook Pro was running the same content @ full speed. The performance with Blender is actually pretty good on the G5. I'm not sure if it's the intel processor or if its just because the video card ***** in the G5. I don't want to go upgrading the video card if it's really because of the G5 processor. I have 1.5 GB RAM in my MB Pro and 2.5 GB in my G5. What is your advice?

    Congrats on the new Mac Pro, it was hard from reading your request if money was an option or not.
    I have a Guad G5 and love it, and I am running the NVidia Quadra card, and run Motion, Shake , Final Cut Pro, Color etc and it runs like melted butter.
    And I guess it helps that I have it maxed on ram..
    Cheers.

  • Idea of a product development for Apple (what do you think)

    This is a photoshopped picture I did of an Apple Macbook charger, were there is the ability to disconnect the cable with the magsafe unit.
    This gives Apple users the ability to change the broken electric cord for a new one without out having to change the whole charger unit
    as also it can be considered good for the environment
      I am not sure if this has come up before, but it would be very usefull to have this option.
    what do you think and is there a way to influence Apple to do this modification?

    Thank you Keith for your information.
      In this case I am not worried about the origin of the idea and some compensation to the creator. If this modification will lead to happier costumers of Apple and more efficient use of material and thus better for the environment (as Apple claim they are always improving ) then I am satisfied.
    It is good that Apple has this Policy and I agree that they can use any idea submission to them as their own. This Idea is so basic and easy to carry out that I believe that many others have thought of it.
    Sometimes it can be good to get a pair of extra eyes or brain to spot were you can improve.
    thanks again for your info

  • What did you think of iMovie '11?

    I am thinking about buying a new mac but I'm only really concerned about the movie making software. I have used iMovie a few years ago and I liked it for the most part but I want some personal feedback on it. What did you think of the new software? What has changed in the last few years? Anything important that I should know?

    Hi
    If You last used iMovie HD6 then the change is severe - it's a compleately new tool.
    If iMovie'08 or 09 the difference is not that great.
    Some I listed as
    *iMovie 09 (v8) 8.0.6 (jan 2009)*
    • Far better than iMovie 08 but still far from good.
    • Pic in pic, green screen but basic
    • Image stabilization - fairly good for amateur use
    • Speed-up/down and reverse
    • Bl/W, Old age etc
    • Still - No Continous TimeLine
    • NO - Possibilities to enhanze by use of thirdpart Plug-ins (all investments lost)
    • NO - Playback via Camera/FW - and this prevents 100% safteybackups and the use of an extra TV/Monitor as real-time Quality control (as in iM 1 to HD6)
    Aimed at - speed editing small video projects to be presented on the Internet - NOT DVDs
    *iMovie 11 (v9) 9.0.x*
    • Will be - Intel Only
    • Snow Leopard minimum Mac OS X.6.3
    YES
    • Advanced view including a true TimeLine ? Yes but rudimentary (very basic)
    • True Storyboard - where You even can write and prepare space for lacking material that needs to be obtained or re-shoot. YES
    • Better wave-form presentation of audio and audio tools - Rubberband - Yes
    • Trailer creating tool
    • ”Faces” as in iPhoto - NO - but this finds if there are people in some video-clips
    • Better audio tools. Equalizer and a background audio reducer
    • More Camera support eg 24fps
    NO
    • not 64-bit only
    • The Playback to Camera via FW - returns ? NO
    • Full Quality to iDVD - NO - still only half - every second line
    • Plug-in facility ? - NO
    • No free text tool
    • Tool to mask an identity eg band over face or unsharp area. - NO (could be obtained via Plug-ins in iM HD6 and earlier)
    • Animation tool - To point on interesting object/player - NO animations refere to a totally different
    thing connected to Storyboard and insert of ”dummy animations” while building a movie
    Yours Bengt W

  • Hair Generator? What do you think?

    Hi everyone, today I updated my CC to 14.2 and found a great new feature in the fill dialog - the tree fill!
    It is a wonderfull idea to generate a tree from scratch in PS, so I think if Adobe guys can do thing like that what if they implement another feature like this one - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QCgWMIYGbV8
    I think everyone will like the feature to have a hair generator plugin in PS, and it will make the hair edges problem more easy to deal with.
    What do you think???:)

    Yes, I'd like a feature that helped produce realistic hair. You can kind of fake it.  I did this with Render > Fibers with low variance and high contrast,, then som warp to bend it and a couple of highlights for depth.  The end was feathered using a Splater brush on a layer mask.  You could even make complex hair by layering lots of waves and curls, and careful use of shadows and highlights, but it would take a long time.
    It's also surprising what you can do with a one pixel brush - especially with the help of the Lazy Nezumi plugin (my drawing is not that smooth).   If anyone else has tips for doing hair, I'd be grateful to hear them.

  • What do you think of this workflow?

    I use FCP's 3-Way Color Corrector quite a bit in my editing workflow. When I send to Color I find the color-correction from FCP doesn't translate so I was thinking about exporting my video as a self-contained QuickTime and then reimporting it into FCP so my initial color-correction is "baked in." Then, make cuts at the mark of each edit and send the new timeline to Color to really treat the footage. What do you think?

    I've found myself in the same boat. It is too bad the 3-Way Color Corrector values don't translate exactly to Color -- even close would be nice . Your proposed workflow runs the risk of adding exponential time to the post production process. I'd just take some time to match the looks from FCP in Color, then make grades out of them. jkorosi has an excellent point that by "baking in" the look, you may be limiting yourself in Color. It's an incredibly powerful app, and IMHO, is more capable of properly handling original footage. For example, losing Color's nuisance and ability to manipulate depth and detail in tonality because you baked in contrast, seems like a mistake.

  • What do you think of this Design for Multiple Threads

    Hi Java Experts ;
    I'm curious to know what you think about this design for a multhreaded app i'm working on.
    I have a controller thread that (a.) creates threads and (b.) keeps a reference to threads that it creates (by sticking them in a hashtable along with the generated Id for that thread).
    When a created thread completes its job, it decrements the thread counter and removes its reference from the hashtable before it finishes its run method.
    Now here's the interesting part in my controller thread i'm creating new threads on the fly with this infinite loop
         public void run(){
              while(true){
                   try{
                        Thread.sleep(500);
                   }catch(InterruptedException e){
                   if(threadCounter<maxThreadCount && moreJobsToDo.size()>0){
                        createDomainThread();
              }//end while
    what do you think about this pattern ? My goal is to maintain about 200+ created threads running at all times with this pattern.

    jeff kesslerman's book says about threads
    "5.2.3 Threads
    The impact that threads have on RAM footprint isn't a problem for most programs, but running threads do need space to store their stack state, and the system- specific data structures do consume memory.
    Because runtime implementations vary widely in how threads are handled, you might encounter situations where the impact threads have on footprint is significant. For example, some ports of the JRE create a heavyweight OS process for each running thread. In an application that uses many threads, this means that thread costs, rather than class or object costs, can become the dominant factor in the program's memory consumption.
    You shouldn't avoid using threads-they're necessary in many cases, and generally don't have a large impact on footprint. However, you should be aware that the impact can be very different across runtimes. This is one of the reasons it's a good idea to measure performance characteristics under your program's different target environments. "
    Question #1: how does garbage collection go about clearing the stack state, and the system- specific data structures that consume memory.
    Question #2: in my situation, each worker thread's activity is not as brief as a simple server request. Each thread does a lot work and does a lot of network connections. on average I would say 100 http request - each of which can be easily blocked or delayed significantly. Therefore each worker thread may operate for between 2 - 10 minutes.
    Do you think thread pooling is useful in this situation ?
    stev

  • Hi! i have a macbook pro 3.1 with a 10.6.8 version. I want a 10.7 but i dont want any speed problems, what do you think?

    Hi! i have a macbook pro 3.1 with core 2 duo, 3gb ram and a 10.6.8 version. I want a 10.7 version but i dont want any speed problems, what do you think?

    Some MacBook Pro versions cannot be upgraded past 10.6.8; others are maxed out at 10.7.5. newer models can go all the way to 10.10. So it is important to know exactly what version you have--there may be close to 40 variants produced since the MB made its debut in 2006.
    You can safely give us a snapshot of your model and its current config that will allow us to deternmmine your model and its upgrade potential, plus show it you have any software that may impede any upgrades. Please download and install this free utility:
    http://www.etresoft.com/etrecheck
    It is secure and written by one of our most valued members to allow users to show details of their computer's configuration in Apple Support Communities without revealing any sensitive personal data.
    Run the program and click the "Copy report to clipboard" button when it displays the results. Then return here and paste the report into a response to your initial post. It can often show if any harmful files/programs are dragging down your performance.
    Remember that, on leaving OS10.6.8, you lose the ability to run older softare written for older PowerPC Macs (yours in Intel-based). Programs such as Office 2004 will no longer work (min of Office 2008 needed to work on newer OS versions), and AppleWorks will stop working completely

Maybe you are looking for