Which Mac to Buy?!? iMac 20 + MacBook? or MacBook Pro 17?

Hello folks,
I'm going to buy a new apple computer and I'm a bit uncertain about
doing it. I'm a software developer, these days just doing web programming. I do travel a bit, but mostly I'm at my company doing my daily jobs.
I never exprienced a high-res monitor (1440x900 is highest res I've ever seen!!!), but I think it may help me to become more productive. I need a laptop too (for showing our works to our customers)
So, which of the following plans seems better in your opinions (for
productivity, speed, any other goods...):
1. Buying a 13 inch MacBook and a 20 inch iMac
or
2. Buying a 17 inch MacBook Pro
or
3. Buying a new 15 inch MacBook Pro (mine is Core Dual) and a 20 inch monitor?
or
4. any other plan you suggest...
Thank you all,
- Dunnil
PS. I can't pay more than 3K USD at the moment.

Hello hdunnil
Apparently you own a 15 inch MBP. To me this seems like a nice computer for your work. I'd suggest you buy a HUGE monitor and an external FWHD to make sure your work is with a good backup (there is plenty of information concerning backup in this forum).
For a long time I used my PB 12" as the only computer and attached a monitor as well as an externel keyboard and mouse to it. This way you don't have two systems to synchronise which saves a lot of time. Just be sure to backup your ONLY system...
Hope that helps
senex

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Mac Mini vs. iMac vs Macbook Pro

We are trying to replace our MacBook Pro that was recently stolen, and I am having trouble deciding what the best option would be for us between the following:
purchase a new Macbook Pro to replace the one that was stolen
purchase a Mac Mini to use with an external monitor AND a macbook air for portable use
purchase an iMac and a macbook air for portable use
I am a writer, and I use our computer for writing, editing, photo editing, etc (using photoshop)
We also use our computer frequently for watching movies and video.
I like the idea of getting the Mac Mini and the Macbook Air but am worried about the processing speed in the Air being able to keep up with lots of video watching... any thoughts?

Every one of these models will be fine for watching video, the MB Air included.
If you consistently use Photoshop, then I'd lean toward an iMac, MBP or Mac Mini, in every case with at least 8GB RAM, preferably 16GB.

First time Mac buyer: Buying a 2011 macbook pro or waiting till 2012?

Hey all,
I'm currently a student but I'm graduating in December and my parents said they would help me get a macbook (no time limit on when necessarily). I have been a lifetime Windows user and I still like Windows, but my Toshiba is getting old and really needs to be replaced. Now I know that the new MBP's should be coming out in Feb or something like that. my question is do you think that I should wait to buy it when the new ones come out or should I get one before graduation when I can get my student pricing (only 100 bucks off at most). Also should I go ahead and buy software and other things that I would get the student discount on (MS office, stuff like that)? I'm looking into the 13 MBP, I really want a 15 MBP but its really expensive. My Toshiba from 2007, is a 17in. I love the big screen and full keyboard but it has insanely crappy battery life making it basically a portable desktop.
I definitely will use my MBP for your standard web surfing, word processing, stuff like that. I also will probably start using recording equipment for my MBP, possibly using Logic b/c my school has a nice discount on it. Another side note is I wouldn't mind it being capable of gaming, I haven't had a gaming capable PC in 5-6 years but its definitely not a necessity.
I also want to know what everybody's opinion is on AppleCare, I've heard many different things.
thanks

steve359 wrote:
EXTERNAL DISKS
External disks connect to the MBP through either the Firewire 800 or USB 2.0 conector. Self-powered ones also have a wall plug. The general appearance is a "brick" sitting on the desk next to the computer.
These are bonafide HD disks kept in external enclosures instead of being packed inside the computer.
They are overwhemingly the preferred solution to making backups of your computer. You will find few opinions in this forum to the contrary.
One advantage to using these for backup is that thera are not hard-wired to the main system, so if a power surge takes out the main system, your "backups" are safe because they are usually disconnected when the surge hits.
Another advantage is that you have *yet another* copy of the contents of your startup disk.
Another advantage is that typically the HD inside the enclosure typically dies, not the cable connectors or HD interface in the box. So when the HD in the enclosure dies (all HD die eventually), you can sometimes re-use the enclosure by placing a new HD.
macsales.com is a website that has tested parts and peieces for "Mac compatibility". Prices are nice too.
If you ask for recommenations of EHD (external hard disks), please state your budget becuse they can be as cheap as $60 or more expensive than $250. USB 2.0 is the slowest external interface. Firewire 800 is twice as fast as USB .
DISPLAY ADAPTERS
Yes, Thunderbolt port, using mini-display-to-? (you fill in ? with VGA or DVI or HDMI). MiniDVI is for oldermodels, but looks deceptively like MiniDisplay -- be careful.
guess i'm behind on the tech lingo, I already have 3 different external HDD's totallying almost 3 gigs so I'm doing fine in that field (just got to change them to FAT32. And as for the external display I'm not sure what I'm going to do that field...

IMac or Macbook Pro? Help

Okay, so I need a new mac. I run Logic Pro 8 on my 1.33gHz Powerbook G4 w/ 1.25GB RAM, and basically My computer is soo slow its affecting my creative juices. I Know I knwo... I should have upgraded a long time ago.
I am Debating Whether to get a new (24") iMac 3.06gHz w/4GB RAM to run Logic Pro, or a (15") Macbook Pro 2.8gHz w/4GB RAM?????????? I Use Logic mainly as a sequencer. Average: 30 Track Sequences, roughly 10 tracks playing simultaneously. I need to be able to record vocals with 4-6 effects (especially Pitch Corrections) in addition to the multi track sequences. It would also be nice to add new track sequences thru a MIDI keyboard with minimal latency on top of that.
So, Please Let me know which would you prefer. iMac or Macbook Pro, Pros and Cons. Incorporating Snow Leopard in the Answer is also very much appreciated.
Thanks in Advance!

disagree - I own a macbook pro and a iMac. And the macbook pro's runs logic like ****. My iMac is over 2.5 years old and is much faster and more stable than the MBP. I never had system overload errors on my iMac. I get them every 5 min on my macbook, even on projects with 2 tracks sometimes. My mbp is the version before the unibody.
(Turn off the I/O Safety Buffer on the MBP)
Also the biuld in audio card of my mbp is noisy and create radom noise signal when nothing is played back. (maybe they changed it with unibody).
But the problems with the mbp are also happening when i use my duet.
The mbp are good notebooks and can run logic 8, but are far not as optimal as an iMac.
I couldn't disagree more. It's interesting to me how many people assume that if their setup behaves a certain way, then EVERY computer will behave that way. This is the wrong way to think about it and often not other peoples experience.
I have a MBP 2.33, 2 generations before unibody, and it smokes Logic. I have a test project with 16 automated space designers and 4 Sculptures, and they all can run simultaneously on a 64 buffer with absolutely no pops or drops. I know MANY people who run Logic 8 on laptops with awesome performance. If your MBP has a faster processor and as much or more Ram as your iMac, then there is something wrong with your MBP. In fact, I'm pretty sure that the iMacs and laptops share many of the same components.
I have a 24 inch cinema display, and when I'm home I plug my MBP into it, and have an awesome desktop with a big screen. Then I simply unplug and go. It's awesome.
To the OP: if you need portability, get a MBP! If you set it up correctly, you'll have awesome performance from Logic.
And yes, I have owned Powerbooks, iMacs, and Macbook Pros, and run Logic on all of them.

Files disappearing iMac and MacBook Pro with iCloud

Just converted to Apple one month ago buying iMac and MacBook Pro.
iMac at office, MacBook at home.
My documents are mostly texts with Microsoft Word and numbers with Microsoft Excel.
I am using the new beta preview Word and Excel.
I copied everything (15 Go) to iCloud.
Not only the files don't synchronize between computers, they disappear.

You'll have to give yourself permission to the files. Do a +Get Info+ via the Finder, click the padlock at the lower right, and enter your Admin password.
Then click the plus sign at the bottom, and select your user account. That will give you Read rights. Click the arrows in front of +Read Only+ and select +Read & Write.+
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I'm a new potential FCP X user. Can I buy software to load onto my imac and macbook pro or is FCP X only available as a download? I'd like to be able to edit on the road.

I'm a new potential FCP X user. Can I buy software to load onto my imac and macbook pro or is FCP X only available as a download? I'd like to be able to edit on the road as well as at home.

Here's a short tutorial video about how to move back and forth between your base computer and the on-the-go machine. Very important info about which things can be copied within Finder and which things MUST be copied from within FCP X. Best wishes.
stephen
http://library.creativecow.net/mcauliffe_kevin/FCPX-media-on-the-go/1

Which Mac to Buy for Use with Logic?

I'm currently looking to buy a new Mac and am torn between the iMac and Macbook Pro. iMac is definitely in my price range more than the Macbook.
I'm looking to do basic video editing and audio recording (15 tracks at most) most likely using an Apogee Duet as an audio in - mostly recording 1 or 2 tracks and adding more. I would be buying Logic.
Do you think the iMac would do the trick?

i would be you and if you can afford go for the macpro (2008 the 2009 seems to have some incompatilities cf. other thread). By experience allow yourself to have some margin, i mean more cpu power (one day you will maybe use heavy plugins or synth instruments from 3th party software) and this is killing the cpu. So more is always better. It takes me more than 6 months (start last year) to setup my macpro to a stable stage and now i am so happy it can runs without any big problem everything i want. (ex i use superior 2 as an internal synth instrument in Logic (not as standalone, to have the maximum control within logic, and i load it as multitrack instrument, it taxes 40 % of a single core - and because of synth instrument, only one core will function, and i can record without problem 2 guitarists (using GTR3.5), the drummer on a e-drum superior 2.0, a bassist with gtr3.5 and a vocal with buss reverb, in low latency mode - buffer 128- the cpu core reach about 80 %, without soft instrument than you have almost no limit cause all your core will be actifs, i mean recording just audio.).
Hope you understand what i mean here..

I am going to buy a new macbook pro..but i am new to mac..so i have one question...does mac os supports "java,mainframe,dot net...and etc developer programs..."....??? thanx in advance....:)

thanx

mohan2see wrote:
oh thanx for the reply....actually i was worked in information technology sector company...i worked on java and mainframe platform....so if i buy an apple macbook pro and if it doesn't supports those developer programs i need to buy an pc......so i need to be confirmed....if u know abt this please explain me detailed...thanx again...:)
Are you being serious?
If you've done any programming in Java then I'd really have hoped you already realised it is a platform independent programming language, that was Sun's original intention when they created it , to be able to run compiled code on any Java Virtual Machine regardless of the platform:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Java_%28programming_language%29
And as for "dot net" - do you not realise that this is purely a MS Windows development framework?!!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/.NET_Framework
Just to be clear, (and I realise I'm being picky here, given that English isn't likely to be your first language), they are not "developer programs", they are programming languages or frameworks.
And for further clarification, the Mac operating system does support Java development, and does not support .Net (unless you install Windows on it!)
I can't comment on the 'mainframe' bit you're referring to without more detail.

After buying a new Macbook pro and opening an iTunes Match account most of my music is grayed out on my Mac and iPhone. I have not turned on iTunes match on my iPad and all my music is fine. How do I get my music back????

After buying a new Macbook pro and opening an iTunes Match account most of my music is grayed out on my Mac and iPhone. I have not turned on iTunes match on my iPad and all my music is fine. How do I get my music back????

The most efficacious way to get your music and other personal data onto your new Mac is to restore it from the backup you made of your old computer. Once that is done you can re-enable iTM on the new Mac and your iPhone.

I kept a dual boot of windows 7 and mac os x lion in macbook pro. so, should i keep antivirus for windows 7? which is prescribable between bit defender(bd) and microsoft security essentials(mse)?does bd and mse un-installs easily?

i kept a dual boot of windows 7 and mac os x lion in macbook pro. so, should i keep antivirus for windows 7? which is prescribable between bit defender(bd) and microsoft security essentials(mse)?does bd and mse un-installs easily?

lower your font size unless you have difficulty
MS Security Essentials is excellent
Then again maybe time to investigate Windows 8 RP (which uses Defender)

Is it possible to mirror the display on the Macbook pro which is two years old to my iMac which is four years old? Macbook pro is running OS X Lion 10.7.5 and the iMac is running OS X 10.6.8 (10K549). Neither of them have Thunderbolt ports.

Is it possible to mirror the display on the Macbook pro which is two years old to my iMac which is four years old? Macbook pro is running OS X Lion 10.7.5 and the iMac is running OS X 10.6.8 (10K549). Neither of them have Thunderbolt ports.

OK, well I would go with what Apple says in writing but if you want to take a trip to visit the Genius Bar that won't hurt.
Good luck, I'm 99% certain you will find I was correct but please let us know.
BTW when posting please click the Reply link in the post you are replying to, otherwise we can't tell who y our comunication is directed to.

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I am buying a new MacBook Pro and have a license for my office for Mac 2008. Can I re-install into the new computer or do i need to buy a new license? Also, how do i move all my itunes, photos, and files from one to the other!

Use TDM for transferring files, drag libraries into folders (iTunes Library into iTunes Folder for example). The Firewire cable will need to be a 6 to 9 pin, or an adapter.
If you're giving up the pB, De-authorize it for iTunes.
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If you want to transfer files between your PowerBook and another FireWire-equipped
Macintosh computer, or you have a problem that prevents your computer from starting
up, you can use FireWire Target Disk Mode to connect to another computer. When you
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Note: When using FireWire Target Disk Mode, it’s a good idea to connect your power
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2 Use a FireWire cable to connect your PowerBook to another FireWire-equipped
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3 Start up your PowerBook and immediately hold down the T key.
Your PowerBook display shows the FireWire logo. The other computer’s display shows
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Hello, I am interested in buying a new Macbook Pro but want to run Adobe CS package. Which computer do you recommend?

Hello, I am interested in buying a new Macbook Pro but want to run the latest Adobe CS package. Which computer do you recommend for best speed and perfromance?

Depending on the software you'll use - I doubt you'll be an expert on After Effects and use Photoshop, Illustrator and Dreamweaver like a pro (you may be an exception) - I have a 13" Macbook Pro simply because the 15" lacks the portability of the smaller size - the Retina 15" is alot lighter and if you can afford it - go for it!
I bought the Macbook Pro and replaced the 4GB of RAM with 8GB of RAM and replaced the HDD with an m4 SSD from Crucial. The SSD really makes a difference in app start up speeds, loading times and bootup speeds. The RAM ensures apps operate smoothly and everything is snappy. Since getting an SSD, I would say the performance of Photoshop and Illustrator is vastly improved. I can have both open whilst surfing the web, checking my email and even using Dreamweaver every once in a while. Multitasking is great.
To conclude, depedning on your price range, buying a £999 Macbook Pro and swapping the HDD for an SSD and the 4GB of RAm to 8GB, will ensure better performance than both 15" Models. However, buying a 15" Model and maxing out the specs, would beat the performance of a maxed out 13".
I have a 13" and it runs faster than it was when I first purchased it last year. Photoshop opens in 2/3 seconds and performance is great.
Hope this helps.
P.S. If you have the money, get the 15" Retina. If not, max out the 13" if you still want portability. Otherwise, get the 15" and max that out if you feel performance is poor.
The reason I say Retina, is because the maxed ram and SSD is already installed and saves alot of hassle aswell as the slimmer design and lighter weight.

I want to buy a new Macbook pro 15 2.3Ghz which is currently on OS mountain lion. Can I upgrade it to OS Maverciks when it is released?

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I realized I still had this as an open question, so I thought I would follow up. By calling around, I was able to locate a Macbook Pro that still had ILife 09, so I bought that.
But then I found out I could actually continue on with Ilife 08, but just wiping the new computer and reinstalling the first disc (system) but not the second one (ilife). So then when I used a Time Machine backup from my old computer to migrate to the new one, it simply continued on with O8. This made me even happier as I really was trying to avoid Faces in iPhoto 09.
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I have the latest Mac OS. I also have stored in iPhoto many old photos which were saved in Photoshop 3.0, which won't open on my MacBook Pro. What do I do?

I have the latest Mac OS.
I also have stored in iPhoto many old photos which were saved in Photoshop 3.0, which won't open on my MacBook Pro.
What do I do?

Il giorno 16/lug/2014, alle ore 21:48, Apple Support Communities Updates <[email protected]> ha scritto:
New discussion activity
KiltedTim has posted in the OS X Mountain Lion community.
I have the latest Mac OS. I also have stored in iPhoto many old photos which were saved in Photoshop 3.0, which won't open on my MacBook Pro. What do I do?
What won't open? Photoshop, or the photos that you "stored in iPhoto"?
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Can i use my imac g5 just as a monitor if i buy a 13" macbook pro? The G5 monitor is larger. Thanks for any help!

can i use my imac g5 just as a display monitor if i buy a 13" macbook pro? the g5 screen is larger. can it hook up to the laptop? thanks for any help!

You need to use a product such as ScreenRecycler to do that. All of those products work over a network connection; direct video in isn't available on an iMac G5.
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Which Mac to Buy?!? iMac 20 + MacBook? or MacBook Pro 17?

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