Moving to imac

[walterm99]

I am seriously considering moving from my Windows XP Pro (3GHz, 4GB duo core) to a 27inch iMac

I have a few questions

1)I presume my current License for Aftershot allows me to move to iMac at no extra charge

2)What is the best method of transferring Raw and jpg files to the iMAc,
3)I seem to have some quite recursive data paths I am prepared to pull out individual file folders and import under a new structure (but what about the associated catalog)

4)Can I preseve the xmp files so I do not have to reprocess the images, I presume I can

5) I am quite a fan of Qiamge for printing is there a good apple printing programme

6) I have the imprssion that Apple is better atuned to Color Management than Win XP, any comments

Appreciate any feedback

Walter

[afx]

I am seriously considering moving from my Windows XP Pro (3GHz, 4GB duo core) to a 27inch iMac

Why spend lots of money on an overpriced system with a mediocre screen?

1)I presume my current License for Aftershot allows me to move to iMac at no extra charge

Yes

2)What is the best method of transferring Raw and jpg files to the iMAc,

Share the drive on the windows box, mount it on the Mac and copy.

3)I seem to have some quite recursive data paths I am prepared to pull out individual file folders and import under a new structure (but what about the associated catalog)

If you have XMPs for your files, then the catalog can be easily recreated, which is strongly suggested.

4)Can I preseve the xmp files so I do not have to reprocess the images, I presume I can

See above.

5) I am quite a fan of Qiamge for printing is there a good apple printing programme

Get Virtualbox (virtualbox.org) and run a Windows VM.
Yes, Qimage is one of the apps that is sorely mising on the Mac.

6) I have the imprssion that Apple is better atuned to Color Management than Win XP, any comments

Yes, but if you google a bit, you will see that Apple is messing up quite a bit in the CM area nowadays.

W7, as ugly as it is, is the saner choice in my eyes.

cheers
afx

[tundraquad]

Hi Walterm99,

I totally agree with afx. Why spending so much money?
Did you consider a Linux? So, you could keep your system and with the money you save, you could afford a very good quality monitor.
If you want a smooth transition from windows, you could have a look at something like Zorin OS. It's free, very stable, and uses the same packages as Ubuntu.
I personally use Zorin OS 6.4 (LTS). ASP runs great on it. Same *.xmp files, same plug-ins, same licence.
Add to this dispcalGUI to calibrate you monitor... And there you go!
If you run linux on a separate HD (or SSD is even better), the Grub allows you to keep your windows as dual boot. So, it gives you time to do the transition without any rush (linux can read your windows partition).
Moreover, if you have little windows applications that you want to keep, your Zorin OS comes with "Wine".
Anyway, think about everything before spending a lot of money. I think that a good quality monitor and calibration device is quite important.

Good luck,

[Dutchmm]

I agree with Tundraquad and AFX
If you decide to get an SSD, you need to read this article. Setting up your first linux system can be intimidating, especially all the stuff about partitioning the disks, and the article isn't written for newbies. All the Ubuntu derivatives I have seen (I use Mint, but I expect it is the same in Tundraquad's Zorin) have a graphical partitioning utility that starts itself during the install process. You will be able to divide up a new (perhaps 7200 rpm instead of 5400) hard disk to carry your swap partition (because SSDs become read-only after a finite number of write-erase cycles) and your "home" directory. The tweaks he suggests in the section "filesystem layer", "scheduler", and "applications" are refinements you can add after the installation has completed. I think that the partition alignment will happen correctly anyway if you start the install with a fresh disk.
As long as you have a different sized SDD from your HDD you should be able to figure out which is /dev/sda and which /dev/sdb ...
And you will be amazed at the speed of your machine
HTH

[walterm99]

AFX, tundraquad and Dutchmm
You have given me food for thought, as I have invested in xRite Color Munki for calibration, I do not plan to move to Linux, but moving to Win 7 (or maybe + new screen clearly has some points in its favour that I had not considered.

So back to the drawing board
Regards

[tundraquad]

..., as I have invested in xRite Color Munki for calibration, I do not plan to move to Linux, ...Regards

Hi walterm99,
I'm using an xRite device as well. dispcalGUI (with ArgyllCMS) under linux do an excellent job for calibrating you darkroom. You don't have to stick to iMatch (or else).
dispcalGUI is quite complete and updated frequently. As a matter of fact, I would have to calibrate my monitor under windows, I would use dispcalGUI for windows over iMatch.
They do support your device. Have a look at http://dispcalgui.hoech.net/#download.
You can ask afx what he thinks. He is very knowledgeable in this area.

Good luck!

[jknights]

For once I dont agree with afx.


If you want Windoze with buggy Tiles 8.0 or 8.1 then go buy a PC that uses this software.
If you want to use your computer and not have to worry about rebuilding it every year or less then go for OS X.
If you want to be really solid but like playing and tinkering with your computer then go for a Linux flavour of your choice.
AftershotPro work will work on all.

It is horses for courses.
As a Windows/Mac/Linux user I am happiest on my Mac but alos need to use Windows and Linux for other jobs.
I was one of the first DOS users in 1980s and used Windows until 2007 when I moved to Mac.
I wont move my main machine back to Windows as even though I used to be a Microsoft Business Partner I know the pain associated with the Windows rebuilds and managing the daily updates in a corporate environment.