Photoclubalpha

I guess we can add computers as being heavily linked to photography nowadays.

So what do you run OS wise?
Thoughts and ideas as per usual.
I'll put my hat into Windows XP (as I have to use it for some applications), but I like linux a lot too.

I'm limping along on a six-tear-old 2.8 GHz P4; 2GB ram running WinXP/SP2. Lightroom brings it to its knees.

Windows 7 is out next week...I'm starting to write the specs for my new machine.

Windows Vista; 4GB RAM just isn't enough to run the operating system, iTunes, and IDC all at once.

I recently put 4GB RAM in my XP SP2 (I think) machine, and now I can finally listen to music while I edit.... I would hate th think that with a Vista machine 4GB isn't enough. But, I won't be upgrading until mine dies... I hope that is a while from now!! Especially since I just ordered a Sigma 10-20mm!!! FINALLY!

When I bought a new laptop for my last job, it limped along with Vista and 2G RAM. Since the job required XP Pro, I put that on, too as a dual boot.

It runs 3X the speed of Vista, uses less memory and gives me no problems. I only boot into Vista when I need to support a Vista customer and can't remember where everything is. I can get no real work out of that OS.

Dusty

Never liked Vista, lots of candy for the eyes, but it's a bloated and unimpressive OS IMO. Granted I am not a MS fan, but XP did mature into something pretty good, it's their best OS to date I think anyway. Windows 7 is a fixed up vista, but that leaves me cold too.

I was working on a few school computers, and I found most had Windows 2000 on, so I'll just beef up the ram a bit and do some tweaking, that's a solid OS too, and runs ok without mega quantities of ram. I put linux on one, I rather like one:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linux_Mint

I am tempted to put Win 98 on a few, but the prospect of spending hours digging about looking for drivers is just too much to bear! The linux just installed on a PIII 500 with just over 256mb or ram, and runs pretty well, it also just has all the drivers sorted..everything just "works" sound, printer etc etc. Linux has come on a lot in the last few years.

I'm a big Linux fan, but it still lacks some needed apps to be mainstream. It is comming along fast enough to worry MS, though!

Dusty

I think Linux is good enough right now, for home use for the majority of folks (specific hardware users, maybe not)
Also good enough for business as well.

Where it runs into problems is installing software, this gets a lot of windows users (not install via software updates in linux, but just visiting sites with software for downloading) And again, some hardware will cause an issue, not printers etc..that's mostly well covered, my flatbed works just fine too, but my film scanner..well not found a way to get that going in linux.

As for windows 7, I'll let you know, as I am upgrading a few vista laptops to Win 7. My impressions so far are that it's better than vista, performance is improved (but it's still not as fast as XP for many apps, and booting up) Doing an upgrade from vista, no clean install...well it takes it's time, might as well find something else to do for a few hours!

XP looks pretty lean and small nowadays, and IMO that's the right way to do an OS, ditton for Linux far smaller footprint than Win 7 or Vista. I won't be upgrading to Win 7..it's not compelling enough to do so right now, but I would be less fearsome of buying a new pc with it on. Win 7 is still too big for an OS

I'm running on an inexpensive monster calculator:

Intel Q9550 Quad 2.8GHz +12MB of cache Overclcked at 3.4GHz with a Zalman Fan (45nm circuits are not very efficient with temperature, even at 3.4Ghz, the temp is not high than 45 C at 100% workload)
4 Gig DDR2 Memory (overclocked just a little bit to satisfy the CPU bus communication).
2 HD in RAID 0 for my Lightroom catalog and OS (with Raid on board controller)
4 HD in RAID 10 for my Pictures (and lightroom catalog backup).

I have been able to setup this pc for now much than 1200 $

OS : Windows Server 2008 64 bits (it was two years ago the best 64 bit OS to use with the PC).

I'm only doing Lightroom 64 bits on my PC, I have not other software installed instead of some Open source software : Gimp 64 bits for layer modification and Hugin for Stiching).

Less software on windows OS and better you have performance. (I'm not doing any game on my pc).

Probably Windows 7 will be the next step, but for now I no see reason to change from 2008 server. Windows 7 is base on the technology of Server 2008, they have rebuild the entire Kernel to satisfy the good management of processes (Inspired by a Unix or Linux, or let's say the good way of Mainframe computer of the old time). In the previous version of XP, and worst Vista, there was a very big problem to prioritizes the interrupt. On windows 7 or 2008, you can have access every time to the Process view and kill software stock on you PC draining the CPU. New kernel also manager better to share task to different CPU in multiple CPU architecture (DUAL or QUAD). XP was very stable at the SP2 and later release, but It's lack of good memory management and processes. The big problem of Microsuck was to tried putting to much compatibilities on media interface on a short period of time, forgetting to invest on performance, the worst experience was Vista. We have done some test at my Job, and you can recycle old PC only by installing Windows 7 on it on how it very good manage now the processing.

On my actual setup, with 24MP RAW file from the A900, everything is fluid and I don't wait when I'm playing with slider adjustment. I hate when there is lag on a pc and I'm trying to use it. With good threading management, I can start Very huge batch of processing picture and continue to edit on other without feeling that there is plenty of calculation to apply my layer of changes on other pictures.

Next step will be to get a I7 Intel CPU , but for now they are a little bit to expensive. (but those guys rock with direct access to the DDR3 memory bus for calculation, what we needs when we are doing graphics manipulation).

There is also the possibility now to buy Acceleration Video card for game and send some Thread to the CPU unit of them to make new version of Adobe to use it instead of your current main board CPU. This can be a way to get speed instead of having to invest in a new CPU architecture (motherboard and CPU).


Regards,

Frank

Commodore 64

CPU: MOS 6510, 1MHz
Sound: SID 6581, 3 channels of sound
RAM: 64K
Display: 25 X 40 text
320 X 200, 16 colors max
Ports: TV, RGB & composite video
2 joysticks, cartridge port
serial peripheral port
Peripherals: cassette recorder
printer, modem
external 170K floppy drive
OS: ROM BASIC

AJ Gressette wrote:Commodore 64

CPU: MOS 6510, 1MHz
Sound: SID 6581, 3 channels of sound
RAM: 64K
Display: 25 X 40 text
320 X 200, 16 colors max
Ports: TV, RGB & composite video
2 joysticks, cartridge port
serial peripheral port
Peripherals: cassette recorder
printer, modem
external 170K floppy drive
OS: ROM BASIC

I remember drawing on my grey TRS-80 with the joystick and having to wait for the cassette to load (beautiful sound like a modem 1200 baud communicating), this is in fact the reason why I had to change to a 8086 with a genious mouse system. 4 colors on this first PC (Comodore 64 was really better for graphic).

Transistor has multiplied since that time ... and the funny thing I remember again, I was thinking that in 2000 humans will never wait for a PC do do something . (sometime I saying to my self that Word Perfect 4.1 was faster than this huge Office 2007...).

I'm just thinking again ... probably people of this generation don't even know why we calling our actual storage system in the computer a Hard drive and probably it will be the same in few years for the Solid state drive...

Regards,

Frank

Problem for Win 7 is that it's still no faster than xp, not for most apps. It's a tidied up Vista.
Still a hog on resources (too many pointless services wasting memory)
I was offered a free Win 7 pro...I turned it down

For a new pc, sure I would not object, but I would not get any better performance over xp on my current 2Gb dual core AMD pc. I know, I tried! The problem with MS is they continue to keep the antique and slogging registry, over time a windows pc just slows down, like you say more installed software..it gets bloated out, and inefficient. You can clean things up, most just do another fresh install..

When MS dump this old style of doing things, I'll take another look.
Linux mint has just as much candy, but can do so booting up faster, and using less than 50% of the resources Win 7 does. No registry to slow down over time, no virus problems. I'll tick along with XP, but only for running my scanner and LR.

I think Win 7 is not bad, but it's far from the miracle we were once promised. MS were saying it's an ultra lean OS, it's not that. Over rated IMO..not bad, just nothing awesome.

AJ Gressette wrote:Commodore 64

I learned to program properly on the Commodore PET (the one with the better keyboard).

I'm using XP for photo stuff but also use Solaris and Linux variants, sometimes from VirtualBox.

Ever since I saw the early-access Nehalem from Intel I was impressed with the memory bandwidth and that will be my next upgrade at which point Windows 7 will probably be the only choice given the Audio, video and music software I have. I saw no reason to use Vista.

As for hard drive, I don't know when the "hard" was first used. Less obvious is the modern "floppy".

Harvey

I am still amazed at how far we have come since the days of the Commodore 64 and TRS. As of today, I use the Apple w/ Eizo for photography and use Windows XP.,VISTA 64 for business/accounting reasons.

I hope to soon update my Vinyl Records to 8_Track. LOL
AJ

That's funny. I use the Mac for business/payroll/accounting and have to keep a PC around to review imaging software! We once used Sage but it was a nightmare, dreadful program which extracts money from users by being dreadful and needing support and specialists it should not need. I now use AccountEdge Plus on Mac (Mamut) and it's not perfect but at least it's never once been damaged by any system issues or lost any of its very large data file integrity.

David