Thinking of making the switch from Mac to PC. Any opinions based on personal experience?

[Greg Janza]

[Simon Ubsdell] “I think the one thing I will miss though is all the little ancillary utilities that I use everyday without thinking I’m even using them, and which are not always easy to replicate outside of the Mac world.”

that was one of my concerns initially as well. But since windows is by far the dominant platform worldwide there’s a large number of alternative apps and utilities. Even pro res can be created on windows but I’ve found that the need for anything quicktime related has evaporated due to there being equal if not superior alternative delivery options (i.e., DNxHD).

I Hate Television. I Hate It As Much As Peanuts. But I Can’t Stop Eating Peanuts.
– Orson Welles

[Simon Ubsdell]

[greg janza] “Even pro res can be created on windows but I’ve found that the need for anything quicktime related has evaporated due to there being equal if not superior alternative delivery options (i.e., DNxHD).”

An interesting development of course is that Blackmagic have fully licensed ProRes for Fusion 9 which opens up options for Windows users as never before.

As you say, there’s really nothing to choose between ProRes and DNxHD (which of course was on the scene quite a bit of time before ProRes ever appeared) – other than that a lot more clients still seem to want ProRes as a deliverable.

Simon Ubsdell
tokyo productions
hawaiki

[Eric Santiago]

To his/her own in regards to platforms.
I tend to lean on both at the same time.
However, I can tell you so many instances where a fast/cheap PC doesn’t always relate to a good workflow.
And then I ran into a beast of a system HP Z840 with a K5000 all great when it’s running but once something goes wrong, it’s not easy to deal with.
PC/Mac user since 1994 here so a lot of experience.
If you cant have both then good luck.

[Olivier Prudhomme]

Unfortunately I can’t afford to rely on both

And what you say about the complexity of solving issues is one of my worries….
I can already see myself on delivery day at 2am sitting in in front of my crashed PC and wondering what is going on?
Hmm…. food for thoughts. Thx

Los Angeles – TV Promo Editor – FCP – AVID

[Greg Janza]

FWIW- I too shared that fear when I made the move from Mac to pc and that’s why initially I had both systems running simultaneously. I kept my mac in the loop with the thought that if things go haywire with the pc and I can’t figure it out I can fall back on what I Know and know well.

It’s now been over a year and I’ve never had to go back to the mac. I’ve had a few troubleshooting issues along the way with the pc but just with a mac it’s a simple matter of doing your homework to solve them.

I’m sure there’s endless pc horror stories out there but I don’t think it should be a factor in deciding to make the switch.

I Hate Television. I Hate It As Much As Peanuts. But I Can’t Stop Eating Peanuts.
– Orson Welles

[Olivier Prudhomme]

Actually I still have a Mac Back up with my laptop in case things go wild at the last minute
Maybe that’s the peace of mind I need….

Los Angeles – TV Promo Editor – FCP – AVID