[designfreak114]

I am a graphic design student seeking to buy a laptop. My eye has been hooked on the 14" ibook because of its price and its design. My question is...is it good for moderate photoshop or quarkxpress work? It is not gonna mine main computer but it would be great to have it since my desktop is old and a laptop would be really pratical for me. I know that the 12 and 14 inch have the same resolution, but the added size would let me handle my projects, especially my palettes better since it would be larger and easier to see. Ideally I would want a powerbook, (though i really like the white design of the ibook and its more resistant case) but the powerbook is really expensive and the 15 inch prices start up at 1999, which is really out of the question for me right now.

But bottom line...can this nice machine handle photoshop, quarkzpress or illustrator? Anyone have any advice or use those programs in ibook? Please help! I'm planning to buy it soon.

[idyll]

The iBook can handle Photoshop, but it'll run very slow. I'd suggest at least the 12" PowerBook. I'm also a design student and I had the 12" PowerBook for 6 months until I had to sell it and buy something more powerful (A Power Mac G5 ) because it couldn't keep up with me. Avoid the iBook line if possible.

[jokell82]

Just an FYI, since you're a studen the 15" Powerbook is only $1799, not $1999 (and the 12" is $1399).

However, I think the iBook would be fine for Photoshop, I use it quite frequently for minor web projects. I've never run Quark, though, so I can't comment on that one...

[milhouse]

I've owned and used both Powerbooks and iBooks for photo work. I'd definitely go for a powerbook if at all possible.

there is a significant difference for that kind of work.

good luck

[kenikov]

The iBook can handle Photoshop, but it'll run very slow. I'd suggest at least the 12" PowerBook. I'm also a design student and I had the 12" PowerBook for 6 months until I had to sell it and buy something more powerful (A Power Mac G5 ) because it couldn't keep up with me. Avoid the iBook line if possible.

Whatever you do, do not get the 12-inch Powerbook. Doing the work you named on one of those would not fare much better than an iBook and the smaller screen would be a disadvantage.

[idyll]

Don't worry, I connected my 21" CRT to it . The main problem was speed. Although it wouldn't crash or anything, it could barely keep up with me and my 300 DPI A3 files.

[Hi I'm Ben]

Just photoshop?

I'd buy a cheap PC laptop.

I'm not impressed with PS for OS X.

[kenikov]

I agree with Ben. Check EMachines new laptop, which has a pretty good AMD Athlon M and a 15.2inch screen.

It should be perfect for Photoshop:

https://store.emachines.com/emachine...142&action=new


The AMD should provide power equal to the 12-inch Powerbook.

[idyll]

As a student you can get the 12" PowerBook for $1,399. The 1.25GHz Power Mac G4 starts at $1,199.00. If that is still a little steep for you I'd try eBay - you can get pretty good machines there for a few hundred bucks off retail.

If portability isn't an issue I'd try to get a dual G4 Power Mac on eBay. They'll suit you much better than an iBook.

A cheap Windows laptop should also do you well but it seems like you really want to try and get used to the Mac OS. If that's all you want to do the iBook would suit you very well, however, as a graphic designer it is very hard for me to recommend it.

Good luck.

[Arkham_c]

The biggest issue with the iBooks and the 12" powerbook is screen resolution. For most tasks they're fine, by graphic artists generally need lots of screen real estate.

I run Photoshop on my old 600MHz iBook with no problems, so performance is not the biggest concern.

[WinsOBoogi]

I'm in a 12 inch iBook. 500 mhz.

Photoshop is slow, and I used it sparingly. I used to go graphics design for a while, and it was so-so at its prime.

I would absolutely reccomend using the Powerbook.

Remember, the iBook is the consumer line. The Powerbook is the professional line.

The iBook won't cut it, plain and simple. It barely cuts it and I use it every-so-often.

[kenikov]

I haven't seen a professional use a Powerbook.


I haven't seen a Computer Science student on campus use one either, nor have I seen one in the Med library or school library.

My father who works for a large, national company has never seen a worker use a Powerbook. He's seen Toshiba, IBM and even Dell roam the office.

Just because Apple states one is for professionals and the other for consumers doesn't mean it is true.

[Mastrap]

Don't mind Kenikow. He's a well known PC troll with no life, moving from board to board as he's getting banned. A bit like a case of the flu, just not as pleasant.


Anyway, if you're into graphic design and Photoshop neither the iBook nor the PB will be your best choice. The screen just isn't large enough and you will be frustrated. If you do do need the portability of a notebook then I would suggest that you'll buy an external screen to complement it. I run my business, I am a publisher, off my 12" PB. I love it because I can take it with me wherever I go. In my office I hook it up to an external Sony LCD screen. With screen spanning enabled I have all the real estate I'll ever need.

If I were you I'd get myself a dual G4 tower in good condition off ebay. With the G5s round the corner you are bound to get a bargain. Hook up a 21" CRT, which are dirt cheap now, max out the RAM and you're flying. Don't get a G3 for Photoshop. The G4 beats it hands down.

[delrossi]

I'm a professional photographer who uses a 12 " 800MHZ iBook.
No problems at all.
I recently shot from 6am to 1am tethered to a Fuji S2 digital camera for a well known soft drink company.
I couldn't have done the job without that setup.
As far as speed goes for photoshop that depends on how large the files are. I used to use a 7100Power Mac with 36 meg of ram to render Broadcast res video After Effects files for Showtime , so speed is relative.
As far as screen size goes get an external monitor and learn the key commands for hiding pallets ( that will keep you in good stead any way).
I find that the iBook is quite rugged( something that I need going on location).
max out the ram and enjoy .
best of luck .
mdr

[maxelson]

I'm a professional. I use a Powerbook. Timo. Ar-kee-tek. Professional. Uses one. I could go on, but this is a Mac forum. I would say I'd be making a list a mile long.

No students? Juan! Whaddya say about that! No self respecting Comp Sci student's using a Mac! Right, Juan?


I'm going to say this now because I know it will just KILL li'l kenny that he can't reply.

My pops is retired. He does not work for a major or minor national company. My daddy does not work for a major university. He does not work for any type of institution of science. He knows nothing about laptops.
:::turns nose skyward to sound as snotty and condescending as possible:::
I, however, do.
The institution I work for is the premier institution for scientific research in the world. Yes, the world. And I can say that fairly definitively. It is an internationally recognized and respected institution for higher learning.
At my small part of that institution (about 6000 folks), I see scientists with powerbooks. I see professors, graphics professionals and administrators with PowerBooks. In fact, I see about as many powerbooks as I see wintel laptops.
I moonlight for another major university in the area. One that is FULL of smart folks. In fact, it is known for housing some of the most smarted Gomers on the planet. I do some contract work for them. And guess what. Academics, Graphics pros, students, researchers (REAL ones- not that you'd truly know anything about that), Administrators. Never seen a professional with a PowerBook? Saw several- SEVERAL on the T just yesterday.
You've never seen it kenny? Well, by the looks of your posts, that's not surprising. It seems you don't see much.
Come to Boston, Kenny. Visit. See the sights. We'll bemoan the state of rapping today. We'll piss and moan about the teenagers who don't understand Tupac. And we'll look at folks with their powerbooks. I'll say, "hey! look!" and you'll deny they exist and tell me how much smarter than me you are. And I'll smile and say, "I have no cavities and my dog can get into dentistry school. Look! Another powerbook!".
So. If stupid people use powerbooks, well, then there are one HELL of a lot of stupid people in the world. And then... then I'll think... DAMN. This kid must be REALLY lonely and pathetic if he REALLY spends actual time roaming Mac forums to tell fokls how smart/ rich/ well accessorized/ anti powerbook he is.

[designfreak114]

Thanks you guys for all your input...well most of you...LOL...Idyll was sort of right in that I'm planning to buy a mac laptop really for the reason that I want to get used to using it and knowing how to troubleshoot and all that good stuff. I basically want to get my feet wet in it. The reason for the laptop is, one obviously its portability, and two, since I have a desktop pc at home, I decided to pursue a mac laptop so that right now it can work for me in two levels: having both a mac and a pc, as well as a desktop and a laptop. So it would be kind of a twofer.

Anyways, thanks for your input. Its really tough deciding but hearing from all you guys helps me get a "real world" sense for both of them somewhat. So thanx!

[rytc]

My sister is a graphic design student and makes do with a 500Mhz iBook, its not the fastest machine but runs inDesign, Photoshop, Illustrator, Dreamweaver, FontLab etc. reasonably well. A powerbook would of course be preferable but money's hardly flowing out of her ears at the moment. I think an iBook would would be fine for what you want just don't expect desktop performance.

Cheer Ry

[DumbassCash]

Don't mind Kenikow. He's a well known PC troll with no life, moving from board to board as he's getting banned. A bit like a case of the flu, just not as pleasant.

I have never been to a Mac site, where the moderators could manage to ban me.

Idiot.

[designfreak114]

Whatever!!

[James L]

I used PS 7 on a G3 iBook for 2 years... it was definitely a bit slow on larger projects, but it was a G3 processor with no Altivec engine. I just bought one of the new 1.5Ghz PB's and am very happy with the performance! Just make sure, as with all things OSX, to max your ram. I would say 1 GB of ram is a minimum.

As far as Macs not being any good for PS like that dumbass said, he has obviously spent very little time in professional design shops.

The only thing about a 1.2Ghz iBook that will really bug you about using PS is the restricted screen space when you have many pallettes open.

Cheers!

[iREZ]

I have a PB Rev B 12" and I'm also a graphic design student and it works just fine for me. It's tuff to use it on the road with limited space but with hiding palletes and expose, its very very dooable. The new 12" iBooks are the same specs if not better then my PB, so I'm sure that the 14" top of the line will suit you just fine, especially being a student and all. Processor speed isn't that big a deal on PS then RAM. If you could get 1gig then by all means do so, other then that I suggest you get 768MB as minimum and you'll be fine. Good luck and check out your school for discounted prices, I know UCLA sells Mac's for much less then the standard 10% off the site. Also check the refurb's $1600 for a 15" PB is pretty much a steal if you ask me, better GPU, more real estate, DVI, FW 800, PCI slot and so on.

[AleroLeanne]

I'm a graphic designer and when I went through school all of my teachers flipped out because I wanted to buy an iMac (instead of a tower) to do work on. This was when the Bondi's first came out. I bought it any way (because of the price - I couldn't afford the tower) and it was great for school! It handled all of my heavy Photoshop projects very well. And it still works today.

Most people go 'yeah powerbook blah blah' and obviously a powerbook is better but it doesn't mean an iBook is bad. The iBook will still have plenty enough power for you to work on. Compared to most design shops which I find a lot run the old blue G3's still or the old G4 towers, your iBook will be faster because it's newer.

The only issue I'd worry about is your screen. I know Mac's have nice screens but being hooked up to an external monitor would be best for designing. A cheap CRT for home would be best. And you can take the iBook with you back and forth to school...it'd be great to show your prof's comps and such without printing and wasting paper. And you could make changes immediately. I would've loved that when I was in school!

[hldan]

The person that started this thread wants a Macintosh. Where do some of you guys get off recommending a PC for Photoshop? The Mac was always the best computer for Photoshop and graphics design. It "is" best to buy a Powerbook for power apps but what can a common PC do with Photoshop that a Macintosh Powerbook can't do?
Please don't mention the speed thing again. It doesn't matter how much faster any computer is if you can't get your work done because nasty virus's are bogging down your system. I run Photoshop on a Powerbook 1.33Ghz and it runs circles around every PC I have owned in the past.
I don't understand why some users here entertain this forum if they are going to recommend PC's to do a job that Macs have been legendary for. I read an article today on Tech TV's websight about PC's and security.
It mentioned that most computer users don't continually maintain their computer like some geeks will do so that's why so many bugs mess up their
Windows PC.
If it weren't for Apple's auto software update built into OSX I wouldn't know when security updates were available.Macs are virtually self maintained. Keep a PC for web surfing and games but for real work like graphic design and Photoshop use a Powerbook.
The iBook is better suited for educational purposes.

[Randman]

A G4 iBook with max ram will suit your purposes just fine. I'm a designer and use my iBook with Adobe Creative Suite, Quark and even digital-movie editing.

[Monde]

While the iBook is a little slower, it should be fine for design and graphics work in the CS suite, Macromedia suite and Quark. I would not recomend the iBook for anything like 3D work.

It would be important to configure your model with as much ram as you can afford.

I have a G3 iBook 800 and have been able to work on these programs with little to no difficulty. As it turns out, I instruct graphic design at a University on the east coast and the design students with iBooks have little to no trouble keeping up with the curriculum. If you can swing it, the 15inch Power Book would likely be best. This is really a budget vs. need kind of issue.

Just say no to those PC recomendations. Twice a term those kids are struck by the virus-of-the-day and miss assignments. Seventy percent of the design firms still use Apple. If you intend on fitting in post graduation-a Mac makes sense.

Good luck with your choice.

[gunnar]

Go for the 15" powerbook. Speed isn't nearly the factor that screen real estate is. 1028 resolution is useless for design apps because there are so many palettes. Your productivity on a larger screen will increase immensely. Don't be fooled by the "big" 14" ibook screen either. It still doesn't have the resolution you need. If skimp and go for an ibook you'll have to get an external monitor. If this is already your plan go for the 12" powerbook because it has a DVI connector.

[bauhaus]

Originally posted by maxelson:
I'm a professional. I use a Powerbook. Timo. Ar-kee-tek. Professional. Uses one. I could go on, but this is a Mac forum. I would say I'd be making a list a mile long.

No students? Juan! Whaddya say about that! No self respecting Comp Sci student's using a Mac! Right, Juan?


I'm going to say this now because I know it will just KILL li'l kenny that he can't reply.

My pops is retired. He does not work for a major or minor national company. My daddy does not work for a major university. He does not work for any type of institution of science. He knows nothing about laptops.
:::turns nose skyward to sound as snotty and condescending as possible:::
I, however, do.
The institution I work for is the premier institution for scientific research in the world. Yes, the world. And I can say that fairly definitively. It is an internationally recognized and respected institution for higher learning.
At my small part of that institution (about 6000 folks), I see scientists with powerbooks. I see professors, graphics professionals and administrators with PowerBooks. In fact, I see about as many powerbooks as I see wintel laptops.
I moonlight for another major university in the area. One that is FULL of smart folks. In fact, it is known for housing some of the most smarted Gomers on the planet. I do some contract work for them. And guess what. Academics, Graphics pros, students, researchers (REAL ones- not that you'd truly know anything about that), Administrators. Never seen a professional with a PowerBook? Saw several- SEVERAL on the T just yesterday.
You've never seen it kenny? Well, by the looks of your posts, that's not surprising. It seems you don't see much.
Come to Boston, Kenny. Visit. See the sights. We'll bemoan the state of rapping today. We'll piss and moan about the teenagers who don't understand Tupac. And we'll look at folks with their powerbooks. I'll say, "hey! look!" and you'll deny they exist and tell me how much smarter than me you are. And I'll smile and say, "I have no cavities and my dog can get into dentistry school. Look! Another powerbook!".
So. If stupid people use powerbooks, well, then there are one HELL of a lot of stupid people in the world. And then... then I'll think... DAMN. This kid must be REALLY lonely and pathetic if he REALLY spends actual time roaming Mac forums to tell fokls how smart/ rich/ well accessorized/ anti powerbook he is.

I would have guessed MIT, but 6000? That's not right for any dept at MIT. Plus you contradict yourself... you're a professional that works for MIT but are part of an educational branch (which would make you NOT a professional, but a student) Can't have it both ways. The craziest thing is if you are implying that you are from MIT (the T reference and Boston) then you are insulting my alma mater by even being associated. If you are an MIT student, name the freshmen course load. Name the language taught in CS for beginning CS majors.

I guess this may be a case of an outsiders looking in... If you think you're smart for being the "janitor" to a well-known institution, you're not and get off of your high-horse. It's bad enough to run into an arrogant alumni without having arrogant contracted employees making assumptions about the students and staff.

[9to5ian]

I've noticed that most of the advice you are getting is very anti-ibook. As a graphic design student, I use a 1.25 ghz 15" powerbook. I really love it and reccomend it if you can afford one. However, the ibook is a much better value and, contrary to what most people are saying, will be able to handle graphic design apps. My advice is to get the fastest 14" model and add ram to maximize performance. I think the ibook will work fine, plus you'll have better battery life and a more durable case. Sure, the powerbook can handle a lot more applications at once, but you could manage with an ibook.

Ian
http://www.ninetofivedesign.com

[gregorj]

ibook g3 (800 or 900 MHZ) or the new g4 models are perfect for what you want. you'll want at least 512 Mb of sdram, but Photoshop, Quark, Illustrator, etc will run much better as you add sdram.

I've been using a combination of powerbooks and ibooks for years and the ibooks are a great computer at a great price.
The issue I have had with each and every ibook is logic board flaws where the video freezes, blacks out or turns into a lovely array of colors. This is a known issue by apple and is covered under a special warranty for certain serial numbers.

The advantages of a powerbook are a better display, the ability to dual monitor (not just mirror) with an external monitor (decent monitors can be had for cheap such as the viewsonic graphics monitors if an apple display is unaffordable) and durability.

The choice between a 14 inch ibook with the sdram you need and a 12 inch powerbook is fairly negligable and if you can afford it, go with the powerbook. Otherwise the ibook is a swell computer!

Gregor
http://www.homepage.mac.com/gjamroski

[tycheung]

I have my iBook 800 hooked up to a nice 17" LCD monitor by way of the spanning hack. the 12" pb i think can dual head with a DVI connector. so...screen real estate is expandable if you really want it.

My only beef with it is that it seems to be paging out a lot to the HD, i suspect I should just reformat the HD and reinstall everything. Safari slows to a crawl with multiple deviantart.com pages open at once (like 20 of em or so...), which may just be some weird tendency of the rendering/javascript engine.

However - photoshop and macromedia freehand run just fine. granted, never had to use photoshop for massive projects, but simple filters and adjustements to 4MP digicam images go without a hitch.


even so, tempted to get the PMG5 just for speed. have a homebuilt athlon 2100+ box that just sees games and playing around with linux, and while the software is much inferior to that of the mac, speedwise, it feels much snappier... (except, i wish apple spend half the effort they put into the iPod into redesigning the finder - lots of good things about the MacOS X interface, but there are some elements of Gnome and KDE i wish were in the finder...)

[jchen]

Haven't any of you noticed that the original post was created in August of 2003? Why is this back?

[Randman]

Because the G4 line is more than worthy of handling graphic design these days.

[BkueKanoodle]

Originally posted by WinsOBoogi:
I'm in a 12 inch iBook. 500 mhz.

Photoshop is slow, and I used it sparingly. I used to go graphics design for a while, and it was so-so at its prime.

I would absolutely reccomend using the Powerbook.

Remember, the iBook is the consumer line. The Powerbook is the professional line.

The iBook won't cut it, plain and simple. It barely cuts it and I use it every-so-often.

I call BS. The G4 ibook is simply last years powerbook. Is that a bad thing? Hell no. I seem to remember people drooling all over themselves when the 12 inch powerbook came out a little over a year ago. Did anyone mention that it couldn't cut it for photoshop then?

In the last 2 years, I have owned a 700 mhz ibook, and 800 mhz ibook, a 1ghz tibook, an 867 mhz 12 pb and a 1.25 15 inch pb (Corporate budget be damned! ) and Everyone of them has been more then capable of handling anything I throw at it.


Hell I've got a designer who's still doing photoshop on a 450 mhz sawtooth because he refuses to move off of OS9. Sure it lags, but its more then capable of doing anything he ask.

[greenamp]

Originally posted by designfreak114:
I am a graphic design student seeking to buy a laptop. My eye has been hooked on the 14" ibook because of its price and its design. My question is...is it good for moderate photoshop or quarkxpress work? It is not gonna mine main computer but it would be great to have it since my desktop is old and a laptop would be really pratical for me. I know that the 12 and 14 inch have the same resolution, but the added size would let me handle my projects, especially my palettes better since it would be larger and easier to see. Ideally I would want a powerbook, (though i really like the white design of the ibook and its more resistant case) but the powerbook is really expensive and the 15 inch prices start up at 1999, which is really out of the question for me right now.

But bottom line...can this nice machine handle photoshop, quarkzpress or illustrator? Anyone have any advice or use those programs in ibook? Please help! I'm planning to buy it soon.

Im a graphic design student aswell. I use my powermac primarily, and my ibook for on the go. The ibook works well for me this way. If I had to go with only a laptop, id try and spring for the 17" PB and max out it's memory. With just a 12" ibook or PB you'd be kinda hampered by it's lack of resolution and sceen real estate.

ps: you definatley wont pick up any chics in your graphic design classes with a pc laptop