MacBook Pro 17″ vs. Mac Pro

[Walter Soyka]

[Richard Herd] “What do you mean practical? Cash expense v. training and re-learning expense? Is it more cash to buy that stuff?”

Yes to both — and I’ll add compatibility and talent pool as other practical concerns.

On cost: a single license of Nuke costs $4900. I believe Smoke on Linux is only available in turnkey packages starting around $40,000. (I haven’t been paying enough attention to know if Lightworks is out for Linux yet, or if any of the other open source NLEs are viable now.)

On re-training: my general knowledge would be transferable, but I’d lose a lot of time getting up to speed on an entire set of new apps, and my output wouldn’t be at the same level until I had a solid understanding of all the apps I was using. Replacing a single component of my pipeline (like learning a new NLE) is doable; replacing my entire pipeline at once is daunting.

On compatibility: I must occasionally deliver project files (especially when doing agency work), so I don’t always have a choice of which tool I use for a specific job.

On talent pool: I can easily assemble (or take part in) a team with a workflow built around these common desktop tools; the talent pool for Linux tools is smaller and generally not familiar with my niche in the industry or the clients we serve.

Walter Soyka
Principal & Designer at Keen Live
Motion Graphics, Widescreen Events, Presentation Design, and Consulting
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