Computer Equipment

[NJPixRich]

Hi all - I'm an amateur photographer with a canon eos 40D. I've started to play around with photoshop. I'm looking into getting a laptop to use photoshop and premiere for video editing as well.

Does anyone have any recommendations as to what laptop they would use and works best with these programs?

Thanks!

[gldiana]

If you also plan to do video editing, get the most powerful you can find with at least 4GB of RAM and 64bit Operating System.

[NJPixRich]

Thanks. Do you recommend Apple versus Dell, HP?

[gldiana]

I don't do Apple. Way overpriced. I also have a strong dislike their predatory ways and how they ripoff people making them feel like they're getting a deal. Yes, they use quality components, but not the best in the market. An Apple computer is IDENTICAL to a PC with the same components and yet they charge $1000 more. The only difference is the O.S. and for as good as it may be, MacOS is not worth $1000. Software is also more expensive and you have less choice. I have been using Windows 7 on both my computer and it's fast, reliable and full of useful features with a much smaller footprint than Vista. Seems like Microsoft finally got it right. Of course it's a lot more customizable than MacOS (I have used MacOS for work for over 2 years, so it's not like I have no idea what it's like) which is designed for casual users who no not need to change any setting and accept things as Apple decided. Plus Apple aggravates me because they take somebody elses technology and renamed it making people believe they came up with that or that their is better (like Airport, which is nothing more than a standard IEEE 802.11 device. IEEE ) stands for Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers).
Apple has become what Microsoft used to be minus the dozens of millions of dollars that Microsoft has given to charities including AIDS research, regardless of how hard they used to criticize Microsoft for their practices. So, yeah, I have a strong dislike for Apple and their rip-off schemes (let's not get into the iPhone, which costs $170 to make and is sold for $600, that's the price AT&T pays for each one of them). I have been in the computer industry for years (I used to do communications consulting for a computer company) and used any system out there including Sun, Solaris, Onyx2, etc.)

I usually build my own computer with the best components available at the time.
A company that customizes computers is http://www.CyberPowerPC.com, they can customize pretty much everything down to the fan.

[NJPixRich]

Thanks for the input - I will definitely factor that in. Also, have you heard or experienced any issues of using windows vista with photoshop and premiere. I've had issues on my HP desktop but don't know if its a grander issue than just me. What's the best operating system to use besides vista?

[gldiana]

Windows 7 is Vista's replacement and will be out October 22nd. Right now I'm using a Beta Version and it's very stable, Photoshop and Lightroom are even faster than they were on XP, so I'm expecting the final version to be even better.
Manufacturers are offering a free upgrade to 7 for any computer purchased right now with Vista. As I said before I strongly recommend the 64bit version of the Operating System as it an address more memory and therefore faster. All processors out today, be it AMD or Intel, are 64bit.

[NJPixRich]

I'm currently working with an HP desktop. Its a good machine but I've had a continual problem with photoshop.

Everytime I put the flash card into the port and select from photoshop to read it I get hung up in photoshop and hav to ctr alt delete to get out.

HP tech support insists its photoshop as the drivers were correct but i've used two different versions of photoshop on the machine with the same problem.

Any thoughts? Thanks!

[gldiana]

HP and Compaq (same company) are the worst companies in the computer market. They use the cheapest and less reliable parts, have a bad customer service and will never admit fault of their own.

[Traumuh]

HP and Compaq (same company) are the worst companies in the computer market. They use the cheapest and less reliable parts, have a bad customer service and will never admit fault of their own.

My Acer is a pretty good doorstop, but otherwise a complete piece of s**t. The build quality is completely unacceptable. I want a MacBook Pro, but Windows 7 is very tempting.

[Edd]

I use a laptop Sony Vaio with Vista and Photoshop Elements 6 for editing.

The computer seems pretty good with everything apart from Elements 6 Orangiser. It hangs on a regular basis and gets really frustrating, mainly after importing images from the CF card. It starts to "Generate Thumbnails" and its best to just let it runs its course otherwise it bottoms out.

On some occassions it will show files as missing or corrupt/unreadable which really concerns me, restart the computer and go back in and all seems well again.

I've put it down to Vista as we run XP on another machine and we have none of these problems, but I have to admit I don't use it much for organising and editing though.

Maybe a better version of Photoshop wouldn't give any trouble either.

Ed

[gldiana]

I just received a great offer from NewEgg for a latpop. I buy most of my electronic stuff from them as they have a good reputation and excellent customer service. I was gonna post the link and just realized it's sold out. You might want to receive their newsletter as they often have really good deals (like a 1TB hard drive for $69).

[jk]

Along the same lines here - as far as laptops, I understand getting the most memory etc. What about software, can't afford a mega software program that you pros use nor would it be wise since I am a step beyond a Brownie Instamatic. For just breaking into the photo editing/storing world, what would you recommend. I would like to edit my images for shadow lighting, brighten colors, convert to B&W or sepia, general enhancements etc but be able to use the program as I progress in skill level and not be limited out too soon. I definately want to be able to do more than just store photos. Does that make sense? Any guidance is appreciated.
Thanks
jk

[gldiana]

I think the answer "Photoshop Elements" will be unanimous (and you'll find it for (much) less than $100).

[Edd]

JK I will second Luca's recommendation for Elements, but I can't comment on price as I live in the UK.

Its worthwhile getting a good book to go with it, I bought "Photoshop Elements 6 The Missing Manual" at the same time and it has been invaluable to me.

Elements doesn't come with a manual so learning it can be a long process but this book really speeded up the process.

Good Luck

Ed

[gldiana]

Elements doesn't come with a manual so learning it can be a long process but this book really speeded up the process.

Actually AFAIK it does, but it's in the disk in PDF format. In any case I prefer a paper book (it's hard to read a pdf manual on your couch, the 24" screen tend to be too heavy on you chest, lol). The "Missing Manual" series are indeed invaluable. I have the one for Adobe Dreamweaver and taught me so much.