why is mac best for graphic design?

Tasuki_Musashi · #1 September 14th, 2005, 04:52 PM

Not trying to start any debates or arguments here, but going into a graphic design career in a couple years, i'd really like to know why macs are better than pc for graphic design. I asked a girl in my class the other day who just purchased a g4 notebook why she got a mac, and she just said she bought it because they're better for what we're going to be doing. She couldn't explain any further than that, and no one else has been able to tell me anything either. Before i take the dive and actually buy one of these things, i'd like to know why.

step up to bat, maybe you'll get a convert.

RacerX · #2 September 14th, 2005, 05:12 PM

First of all... don't convert. You should use what works best for you. We don't need more Mac users just to have more more Mac users.

As for what makes a Mac different from a PC in the area of graphic design... it comes down to graphic designers being one of the few groups of users who truly need to multitask. I'm talking about user multitasking, not computer multitasking... there is a difference.

In Windows, most applications are designed to take over the interface of the system (rooted apps within full screen windows). When working on an image in Photoshop in Windows, you have the image window inside a root window which takes over the screen.

Now this is fine if the only app you use is Photoshop, but for most graphic designers, Photoshop is one of many tools being used, and when that root window takes over the screen, they are isolated from the other apps that they were working with.

On Macs, applications take up only what is actually needed by them. In this way you can see other apps in the background and even the desktop, which many people use for holding items that they will end up dropping into a piece of work. You can't drag-n-drop from the desktop (or any other app) if you can't even see the desktop. The ability to drag-n-drop is a major advantage in work flow for users who multitask.

Personally, I think Windows is a great platform for secretaries, gamers and the like. People who only do one thing and don't want to be distracted while doing that thing.

That having been said... you should use what you like. If you don't know what that is, I highly doubt anyone else can help you figure it out.

symphonix · #3 September 14th, 2005, 07:02 PM

I would say though that the Mac does have some distinct advantages to designers in a few critical areas. Font management is easier and better on a Mac, as Windows tends to suffer a real performance hit when you exceed 500-1000 fonts. Colour calibration is a lot easier to manage on the Mac, even with multiple profiles. Better support for PDF files in the operating system, anti-aliased screen fonts and the OpenGL based graphic system also give the Mac a bit more edge over Windows. AppleScript and Automator make for very powerful workflows that can convert images, without requiring a design house to hire a programmer (Yes Windows does have scripting, but have you ever tried to use it?).

nixgeek · #4 September 14th, 2005, 11:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RacerX

First of all... don't convert. You should use what works best for you. We don't need more Mac users just to have more more Mac users.

As for what makes a Mac different from a PC in the area of graphic design... it comes down to graphic designers being one of the few groups of users who truly need to multitask. I'm talking about user multitasking, not computer multitasking... there is a difference.

In Windows, most applications are designed to take over the interface of the system (rooted apps within full screen windows). When working on an image in Photoshop in Windows, you have the image window inside a root window which takes over the screen.

Now this is fine if the only app you use is Photoshop, but for most graphic designers, Photoshop is one of many tools being used, and when that root window takes over the screen, they are isolated from the other apps that they were working with.

On Macs, applications take up only what is actually needed by them. In this way you can see other apps in the background and even the desktop, which many people use for holding items that they will end up dropping into a piece of work. You can't drag-n-drop from the desktop (or any other app) if you can't even see the desktop. The ability to drag-n-drop is a major advantage in work flow for users who multitask.

Personally, I think Windows is a great platform for secretaries, gamers and the like. People who only do one thing and don't want to be distracted while doing that thing.

That having been said... you should use what you like. If you don't know what that is, I highly doubt anyone else can help you figure it out.

It's interesting that you say this RacerX, because I was experiencing that exact problem with my Windows workstation at work while trying to create an MSI package for deployment using ADS.

I had about 4 windows open at the time, and even though the taskbar was at the bottom, it made it very difficult to even work with all the apps I needed open at the time. I felt frazzled just getting the simplest task done.

Mind you, in Linux with Gnome or KDE I don't have this issue so much since I use the other workspaces as well, so it's a little more flexible. While there is an add-on available from MS to do this on Windows, it doesn't do it well and it's not built-in to the OS like Gnome and KDE have it.

However, neither desktop environments make it as easy as the Macintosh does with open windows. The beauty of it is exactly that: that it doesn't overtake your entire screen and the OS allows you to drag and drop where you need to. This is almost impossible in Windows without restoring windows to a size where the same can be done (and even then it doesn't do a good job of it).

The Mac definitely makes computing enjoyable and more productive in my opinion.

cyclyst1964 · #5 September 14th, 2005, 11:20 PM

What's up with that link? What is the point?
muhnuminum?

RGrphc2 · #6 September 15th, 2005, 12:51 AM

Multitasking projects, it's so much easier to switch between programs on a mac, because u never really close out of it, and it just runs in the background not takin up that much memory.

Try this on a PC and then on a Mac, have Photoshop Running (with nothing open, just the program) and then open Illustrator and try to utilize the 3D effects in it. On the PC side Illustrator will Fail and probably crash...do the same extact thing on the Mac side, it will be fine, as long as you have enough ram

I want a Mac Desktop!

adambyte · #7 September 15th, 2005, 12:56 AM

I would like to second all of the arguments made already. I work heavily with graphics and video files, and between Photoshop, Illustrator, Final Cut, and After Effects, I end up doing a lot of dragging and dropping. The Mac simply has better window-management. The dock, unlike the taskbar, is a very VISUAL place to minimize windows to. In addition, windows only take up as much space as they need/ you want them to, making drag and drop EXTREMELY useful. And lastly, but most CERTAINLY not least, is Expose, which, with the touch of a button, or a multi-button mouse click will either A) scale down all windows just enough so that you can see them all and pick which to see/drag things to, B) scale down all the windows in the currently active application, and C) shove all windows to the sides so you can see files on your desktop. Combine Expose's abilities with drag and drop, and you can put ANYthing ANYwhere quite easily.

Expose is the worth the price of a Mac, alone. http://www.apple.com/macosx/features/expose/

lol. Alright, I'm done.

RGrphc2 · #8 September 15th, 2005, 09:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by adambyte

Expose is the worth the price of a Mac, alone. http://www.apple.com/macosx/features/expose/

I second that, you wouldn't believe how many damn times i hit F9 to F11 on my PC when i'm doing mutliple things...and then i realize that expose isn't there and get frustrated.