Multimedia
Aug 21, 05:43 AM
I stopped by the Apple store tonight to play with a Macpro. I'm getting ready to buy and thought I'd get some hands on experience to see how it performed with Finalcut Pro. I was especially interested in how it handles playback of uncompressed footage.
The store had a 2.6 hooked up to a 30"ACD. Everything on the machine was stock. I launched FCP and it appeared with a project already loaded (about 5 seconds). The project was a simple 20-30 second 720x480 NTSC clip of hockey game footage. I selected the clip and copied it to a new layer and threw a blend mode on it AND changed the speed to 85%. Next I copied and made another layer and changed the speed and offset it and changed the transparency to 80%. 3 layers total with the top two manipulated. I hit the render and it finished in about 30 seconds. :)
I know, not very scientific, but I just wanted to get a feel for how fast the Macpro would render manipulated footage. Anyhow, next I changed the output in project settings to "uncompressed" and hit render again. Again, it took less than a minute to render and the CPU usage in console was maxing out at only 42% per core.
Once the render completed, I hit the play button to see how the stock Macpro would handle playback of the uncompressed footage. It played for about 4 seconds then threw an error saying that frames were being dropped during playback. Not good. I was hoping that the Macpro would be able to play uncompressed footage from the timeline without 3rd party acceleration or setting up a raid. The error message suggested turning off RT effects (of which I did, but still had dropped frames) or get a faster drive. There was a couple other things the error suggested, but I can't remember at the moment. I wonder if having the ATI card would have made a difference? Not sure if FCP uses the GPU for playback, but I would think that should make a difference. Ram would probably help too. Anyone know what might be going on? Am I expecting too much out of this machine?
Sorry for sort of getting off topic. I thought this might be an appropriate area to post this; I wasn't feeling up to starting a new thread.That's great info. Would you please tell us:
1. How fast that is compared to what Mac model-speed you are currently using?
2. IE Were you impressed or not so impressed with how fast-slow it rendered?
3. What kind of speed were you expecting?
I'm no expert, but my guess is that the lack of RAM may have been the culprit. Need more independent tests like this from other FCP users. Thanks a lot. :)
The store had a 2.6 hooked up to a 30"ACD. Everything on the machine was stock. I launched FCP and it appeared with a project already loaded (about 5 seconds). The project was a simple 20-30 second 720x480 NTSC clip of hockey game footage. I selected the clip and copied it to a new layer and threw a blend mode on it AND changed the speed to 85%. Next I copied and made another layer and changed the speed and offset it and changed the transparency to 80%. 3 layers total with the top two manipulated. I hit the render and it finished in about 30 seconds. :)
I know, not very scientific, but I just wanted to get a feel for how fast the Macpro would render manipulated footage. Anyhow, next I changed the output in project settings to "uncompressed" and hit render again. Again, it took less than a minute to render and the CPU usage in console was maxing out at only 42% per core.
Once the render completed, I hit the play button to see how the stock Macpro would handle playback of the uncompressed footage. It played for about 4 seconds then threw an error saying that frames were being dropped during playback. Not good. I was hoping that the Macpro would be able to play uncompressed footage from the timeline without 3rd party acceleration or setting up a raid. The error message suggested turning off RT effects (of which I did, but still had dropped frames) or get a faster drive. There was a couple other things the error suggested, but I can't remember at the moment. I wonder if having the ATI card would have made a difference? Not sure if FCP uses the GPU for playback, but I would think that should make a difference. Ram would probably help too. Anyone know what might be going on? Am I expecting too much out of this machine?
Sorry for sort of getting off topic. I thought this might be an appropriate area to post this; I wasn't feeling up to starting a new thread.That's great info. Would you please tell us:
1. How fast that is compared to what Mac model-speed you are currently using?
2. IE Were you impressed or not so impressed with how fast-slow it rendered?
3. What kind of speed were you expecting?
I'm no expert, but my guess is that the lack of RAM may have been the culprit. Need more independent tests like this from other FCP users. Thanks a lot. :)
BillyShears
Aug 7, 09:32 PM
all the pictures i've seen of leopard show a unified interface :D
Safari appears to be brushed metal. Go here (http://www.apple.com/macosx/leopard/dashboard.html) and go to about 1/6 of the way through.
Safari appears to be brushed metal. Go here (http://www.apple.com/macosx/leopard/dashboard.html) and go to about 1/6 of the way through.
andrewm
Aug 23, 11:07 AM
I did...:D
DIE POWER PC...DIE!!!
Most agreed. I'm using an iBook G4 right now, but I'd practically sell my kidneys (both of 'em!) to convert it to a MacBook Pro.
Let us continue to pray for a speedy death to the Macintosh PowerPC computer.
DIE POWER PC...DIE!!!
Most agreed. I'm using an iBook G4 right now, but I'd practically sell my kidneys (both of 'em!) to convert it to a MacBook Pro.
Let us continue to pray for a speedy death to the Macintosh PowerPC computer.
pale9
Nov 28, 08:10 PM
lets face it. at this point MS can't get anything right, except, maybe the xbox. vista is a joke, the tablet pc a failure, zune a real loser, on and on and on...
but now some of their insane actions will cause harm to others, like simply handing money to universal for every zune sold (which will turn out to be close to nothing anyway), as all labels will now expect to be paid off in this manner. i hope jobs will tell them to shove it if it gets to this point.
but now some of their insane actions will cause harm to others, like simply handing money to universal for every zune sold (which will turn out to be close to nothing anyway), as all labels will now expect to be paid off in this manner. i hope jobs will tell them to shove it if it gets to this point.
littleman23408
Dec 2, 03:03 PM
They kind of cant do more detailed damage to standard cars. Premium cars are modeled exactly right their real counterpart. Each body part is completely separate from the rest and can be torn off in a collision. Standard cars are one big mesh that can be dented, but not broken apart. In order to give the same level of damage to a standard car they'd have to update it to a premium model.
I've heard/read chatter that some patches will update some standard cars to premium, but i dont think i've seen anything official yet. Kaz is way too ambitious and had to cut a lot out of the game already. I expect he'll add it in as time goes on, as patches and not paid DLC.
Ah! I didn't realize that. Good to know!
I've heard/read chatter that some patches will update some standard cars to premium, but i dont think i've seen anything official yet. Kaz is way too ambitious and had to cut a lot out of the game already. I expect he'll add it in as time goes on, as patches and not paid DLC.
Ah! I didn't realize that. Good to know!
4God
Jul 14, 11:00 PM
Power supplies produce a lot of heat. It makes great sense according to simply the most basic laws of thermodynamics.
Could you please explain this basic law of thermodynamics and I mean more extensively than "heat rises."
I always thought that the power supply was on top because of the heat generated by it. Since heat rises, it wouldn't pass over the rest of the computer on its way out. I still agree with you about the weight part though.
Bill the TaxMan
Well since the current G5's have a seperate chamber for the power supply, I guess that wouldn't matter. Also, isn't the air cooler at the bottom than at the already warm top? Go figure....
Could you please explain this basic law of thermodynamics and I mean more extensively than "heat rises."
I always thought that the power supply was on top because of the heat generated by it. Since heat rises, it wouldn't pass over the rest of the computer on its way out. I still agree with you about the weight part though.
Bill the TaxMan
Well since the current G5's have a seperate chamber for the power supply, I guess that wouldn't matter. Also, isn't the air cooler at the bottom than at the already warm top? Go figure....
Brandon4692
Jun 21, 09:55 PM
I've been reading this whole post and I'm finally gonna chime in. I went into my local radioshack the day of pre orders/request and they took down my info and tried getting me a pin... They called me back the next day saying they couldn't get any. But their website says they will have the iPhone 4 "coming soon" so I'm nervous about if they will have some at launch so I went to the same store and the idiot behind the counter had no clue about what he was talking about (different guy than before) he said to try on Thursday cause they won't know till actually Thursday if/when they will get them. I may be an idiot for trusting radioshack but I want to trade in my 3GS so... I'll be waiting outside of my radioshack atleast an hour before they open on Thursday. Wish me luck!
Al Coholic
Apr 27, 08:43 AM
They also note that findings that the database continues to grow despite Location services being off as a bug that will soon be addressed.
???
The MRbot needs some lessons in basic sentence structure.
Apple is planning on releasing a free iOS update in the next few weeks that performs the following:
- ceases backing up this cache, and
- deletes this cache entirely when Location Services is turned off.
Oh joy. Now AT&T's lightening-fast EDGE network will seek mindlessly for hours trying to find that lone cell tower as I drive across rural-ass USA. It'll probably take me days to dial out as well.
Thanks Al Franken! Glad you got your useless staff to address this useless matter because there's nothing else you should be doing right now. (Enjoy your short senate term).
???
The MRbot needs some lessons in basic sentence structure.
Apple is planning on releasing a free iOS update in the next few weeks that performs the following:
- ceases backing up this cache, and
- deletes this cache entirely when Location Services is turned off.
Oh joy. Now AT&T's lightening-fast EDGE network will seek mindlessly for hours trying to find that lone cell tower as I drive across rural-ass USA. It'll probably take me days to dial out as well.
Thanks Al Franken! Glad you got your useless staff to address this useless matter because there's nothing else you should be doing right now. (Enjoy your short senate term).
addicted44
Mar 26, 01:16 AM
I don't know that #2 matters that much. A vast majority of the people buying the OS couldn't care less about the server tools. In fact of all the Mac users I know personally, I'd be the only one that would care about their inclusion.
Also, we don't know that the price point will be $129.00 yet. The price point is something I am VERY interested in seeing though. Will it be that high? Or will it be as cheap as Snow Leopard? Or somewhere in the middle? I'm personally guessing it'll be the latter. The AppStore is changing the general population's idea of what software should cost (which is, in my opinion, one of the best things about it). So we'll see.
Right on both counts. Still, I think its amazing that we might be getting a server class OS for what will most likely be less than $129.
Also, we don't know that the price point will be $129.00 yet. The price point is something I am VERY interested in seeing though. Will it be that high? Or will it be as cheap as Snow Leopard? Or somewhere in the middle? I'm personally guessing it'll be the latter. The AppStore is changing the general population's idea of what software should cost (which is, in my opinion, one of the best things about it). So we'll see.
Right on both counts. Still, I think its amazing that we might be getting a server class OS for what will most likely be less than $129.
Bill McEnaney
Mar 3, 11:06 AM
Don't compare them either. There is a huge difference between what homosexuals do and what pedophiles do. You're the one getting on people for not comprehending language. I suggest you take your own advice.
I goofed. I misinterpreted what Lee said about sodomy. He said that not all homosexuals engage in sodomy. I thought he thought homosexual sex was not sodomy. Unfortunately, too often, when I'm impulsive, I misinterpret what others write.
I don't look down on anyone here. I didn't look down on anyone here. I'm sorry I gave the impression that I did that. I'm sorry I've written insultingly, too. I didn't mean to do that.
Sadly, I sometimes do react emotionally when I should react rationally instead. And I do need to try harder to comprehend what others say.
I goofed. I misinterpreted what Lee said about sodomy. He said that not all homosexuals engage in sodomy. I thought he thought homosexual sex was not sodomy. Unfortunately, too often, when I'm impulsive, I misinterpret what others write.
I don't look down on anyone here. I didn't look down on anyone here. I'm sorry I gave the impression that I did that. I'm sorry I've written insultingly, too. I didn't mean to do that.
Sadly, I sometimes do react emotionally when I should react rationally instead. And I do need to try harder to comprehend what others say.
bryanc
Aug 11, 10:52 AM
I'm stuck in a contract for another year, so I'll be watching to see how this pans out. Hopefully, I'll be able to jump on a Rev B without reservations.
Given Apple's patent on the click-wheel interface, what do you think the likelihood of a virtual rotary phone interface? There are plenty of people who are now adults who've never 'dialled' a phone. It would be really slick if Apple could find a way for all of us old-farts to re-activiate our kinaesthetic memories and dial up and old friend using the click wheel on our new iPhones.
Cheers
Given Apple's patent on the click-wheel interface, what do you think the likelihood of a virtual rotary phone interface? There are plenty of people who are now adults who've never 'dialled' a phone. It would be really slick if Apple could find a way for all of us old-farts to re-activiate our kinaesthetic memories and dial up and old friend using the click wheel on our new iPhones.
Cheers
cyberdogl2
Aug 27, 05:20 PM
I see where you're coming from.
So does this mean there will be no Powerbook G5s next tuesday?
So does this mean there will be no Powerbook G5s next tuesday?
ssk2
Apr 14, 04:20 PM
But the iPhone 4 is still the best smartphone on the market and will continue to be so well past June.
If you want to choose to get an inferior phone because you want to chase after a spec sheet that is on you. That does not change reality.
LOL. Right.
Opinion is not fact. This works on both sides of the argument, I concede.
Still, you cannot say the iPhone is the best smartphone on the market, just as someone else can't say the Atrix is the best. Different strokes for different folks!
If you want to choose to get an inferior phone because you want to chase after a spec sheet that is on you. That does not change reality.
LOL. Right.
Opinion is not fact. This works on both sides of the argument, I concede.
Still, you cannot say the iPhone is the best smartphone on the market, just as someone else can't say the Atrix is the best. Different strokes for different folks!
-SD-
Aug 18, 05:14 AM
So Japan is getting GT5 on November 3rd too, but at least they get a nifty Titanium Blue console and Ltd Edition game bundle. (http://www.engadget.com/2010/08/18/ps3-gets-titanium-blue-makeover-for-gran-turismo-5-launch-bundle/)
http://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2010/08/10x08189ub234tewfja.jpg
:apple:
http://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2010/08/10x08189ub234tewfja.jpg
:apple:
deconai
Aug 11, 03:47 PM
Yes. EVERYONE. If you dont believe me, maybe you believe the economist:
http://www.economist.com/printedition/displayStory.cfm?Story_ID=4351974
Please note that the graph is about three years old. Nowadays a lot more of the countries are over 100%.
That is insane! It's interesting to note the number of people with multiple phones...
http://www.economist.com/printedition/displayStory.cfm?Story_ID=4351974
Please note that the graph is about three years old. Nowadays a lot more of the countries are over 100%.
That is insane! It's interesting to note the number of people with multiple phones...
ferguldy
Jul 27, 09:49 AM
So are we really going to get ALL of these new toys come WWDC? Leopard preview, Merom laptops, Core2/Woodcrest Mac Pros, Core2 Imacs (oh, and maybe a movie download add to iTunes) That sounds like an awful lot of stuff to cover in such a short period of time. What do people think about timelines for introduction here?
nostaws
Apr 10, 12:59 AM
Hey. But there is something to be said for familiarity. We all know how to use it. But I agree an update would be nice.
Hoping for some better multi-core support(although probably going to have to wait for Lion for the newer QuickTime engine) and a UI that isn't from the 90's:
http://www.candlerblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/03_ambit_fullscreen-300x232.jpg
^ Final Cut on Mac OS 9
Final Cut on Tiger/Leopard/Snow Leopard:
http://adobe-discount.com/product_images/o/apple_final_cut_express_hd_4__90390.jpg
Only thing that's changed is the scroll bars.
Hoping for some better multi-core support(although probably going to have to wait for Lion for the newer QuickTime engine) and a UI that isn't from the 90's:
http://www.candlerblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/03_ambit_fullscreen-300x232.jpg
^ Final Cut on Mac OS 9
Final Cut on Tiger/Leopard/Snow Leopard:
http://adobe-discount.com/product_images/o/apple_final_cut_express_hd_4__90390.jpg
Only thing that's changed is the scroll bars.
iMrNiceGuy0023
Jun 9, 01:21 AM
I think this will be great for AT&T and Apple....Radio Shack is the closest store out of AT&T and Apple Store
Radio Shack and Best Buy use the same AT&T POS system to upgrade and activate phones
I got my 3G and 3GS from Best Buy.....but i'll go to Radio Shack for my iPhone 4
Looks like AT&T and Apple are looking to do big numbers with this release
Radio Shack and Best Buy use the same AT&T POS system to upgrade and activate phones
I got my 3G and 3GS from Best Buy.....but i'll go to Radio Shack for my iPhone 4
Looks like AT&T and Apple are looking to do big numbers with this release
a.gomez
Apr 6, 02:37 PM
It'll be 100,001 when it comes out in the UK when mine gets delivered..... Roll on Saturday!:D
100,002
my cousin got his from Costco last night - he was waiting for the Wi-Fi only one
100,002
my cousin got his from Costco last night - he was waiting for the Wi-Fi only one
adamfilip
Sep 13, 12:57 PM
A bit pointless given that no software utilises the extra cores yet. But nice to know, I guess.
I'm still getting used to having two cores in my laptop!
No software such as, Cinema 4D, Motion, Aperture, Final Cut Pro etc
I'm still getting used to having two cores in my laptop!
No software such as, Cinema 4D, Motion, Aperture, Final Cut Pro etc
Tommyg117
Aug 11, 10:44 AM
My phone plan runs out next month, hopefully it comes out soon.
SevenInchScrew
Aug 19, 04:19 PM
Based on what, old gameplay footage?
Do you consider official images and video from E3 of this year, a mere 2 months ago, to be "old" footage? If so, then yes, I'm basing it on old gameplay footage. Look at the model and texture in this pic, and tell me that isn't straight out of GT4, just higher res....
{Click to huge-size}
http://i.imgur.com/KCOCw.jpg
http://us.gran-turismo.com/us/gallery/d5258.html
Look at this pic:
{pic}
That rx-7 looks tons better than anything GT4 ever had, but its still not as nice as the "premium" cars.
The pic you provided, with the RX7, Supra, etc, as with all the images shown recently from GC10, is of Premium� cars. Can you see in the windows? If so, then it is a Premium� car with a fully modeled interior. If not, they are a Standard� car, and have the dark tinted windows.
Time will tell, of course, but i'm certain they didnt just import models from GT4. What the hell would they have been doing for the past 5 years?
Oh, I don't know, maybe it was the....
Do you consider official images and video from E3 of this year, a mere 2 months ago, to be "old" footage? If so, then yes, I'm basing it on old gameplay footage. Look at the model and texture in this pic, and tell me that isn't straight out of GT4, just higher res....
{Click to huge-size}
http://i.imgur.com/KCOCw.jpg
http://us.gran-turismo.com/us/gallery/d5258.html
Look at this pic:
{pic}
That rx-7 looks tons better than anything GT4 ever had, but its still not as nice as the "premium" cars.
The pic you provided, with the RX7, Supra, etc, as with all the images shown recently from GC10, is of Premium� cars. Can you see in the windows? If so, then it is a Premium� car with a fully modeled interior. If not, they are a Standard� car, and have the dark tinted windows.
Time will tell, of course, but i'm certain they didnt just import models from GT4. What the hell would they have been doing for the past 5 years?
Oh, I don't know, maybe it was the....
k2k koos
Nov 28, 07:11 PM
What on earth are these people at music studio's thinking!!! Did they get royalties for every stereo sold? NO, so neither should they get anything for iPod or any hardware sales. Only for the products THEY supply, should they get money, being the music and movies/ video's, in other words the content.
This is typical behaviour of music studio's and I sincerely hope that Apple will not budge, nor should any other company. Of course MS is eager to pay as they need their Zune to succeed, and Universal is riding along for a slice of the pie, but who will loose out in the end is the consumer, as these royalties are eventually going to get calculated such that we will pay them......
We should all start protesting all record companies to clean up their act, in the mean time, the general consumer should to, copying of music is stealing, the prices on iTunes are fair and reasonable, so lets be nice and buy them properly, and the record companies can then make sure there is more for us to buy (some real refreshing new music would be nice, instead of all this "X factor, American idol, etc etc manufactured stuff....) , and not just fill their pockets as they are trying to do all the time
This is typical behaviour of music studio's and I sincerely hope that Apple will not budge, nor should any other company. Of course MS is eager to pay as they need their Zune to succeed, and Universal is riding along for a slice of the pie, but who will loose out in the end is the consumer, as these royalties are eventually going to get calculated such that we will pay them......
We should all start protesting all record companies to clean up their act, in the mean time, the general consumer should to, copying of music is stealing, the prices on iTunes are fair and reasonable, so lets be nice and buy them properly, and the record companies can then make sure there is more for us to buy (some real refreshing new music would be nice, instead of all this "X factor, American idol, etc etc manufactured stuff....) , and not just fill their pockets as they are trying to do all the time
mrwombat
Sep 19, 08:43 AM
As a fomer Mac user, who had Macs from 1987 through about 1997, and did most of my graduate school work on a Quadra in that period, I am looking forward to returning to the fold. For a variety of personal and professional reasons I need and will continue to need a high-end gaming rig, meaning a Windows box, but for my academic work I really want to switch to a Mac Book Pro to replace my aging Compaq laptop that I use as my primary office machine. I want a machine I can carry about, that is easy to use, and that will be more useful for me in doing classroom presentations, working with some video and audio stuff (again for presentations). So a MBP seems ideal.
But I'm also a computer fan, reasonably knowledgeable, and reasonably savvy. I've built machines before, routinely do hardware and software tweaking and upgrading, and have had multiple computers of various sorts since my first back in early 1983. That's the main reason the delay in getting the new MBPs out is frustrating. I don't need a 64bit processor right now. I don't need the extra 20% or whatever it is performance boost. But I also don't want to drop $2500 on a notebook that is neither leading-edge nor a price-performance leader within it's own market segment.
In buying PCs, I usually buy a step below the best, because the price performance ratio is very good. Until Apple upgrades the MBPs, I can't do that, as there is only, um, one choice really. I also can't get the latest and greatest, C2D, either. So while the current Yonah MBP is 100% fine for my needs, I'm reluctant to drop a wad of cash on it when I know that is will either be 1) superceded by a newer model I'd buy for the same price, or 2) reduced in price to help clear out the old stock. Either of those options would work for me at this time, but neither is available.
Part of buying something like a Mac is the satisfaction one gets from buying a well-engineered piece of gear that works and looks and feels like a sophisticated work of technology. The current MBPs lose a lot of that when you know you're buying something that is in the last days of its product life cycle, even if you also know it doesn't make any difference in day to day usability.
Luckily, my old machine is working fine, so I can wait, but still, bah....
But I'm also a computer fan, reasonably knowledgeable, and reasonably savvy. I've built machines before, routinely do hardware and software tweaking and upgrading, and have had multiple computers of various sorts since my first back in early 1983. That's the main reason the delay in getting the new MBPs out is frustrating. I don't need a 64bit processor right now. I don't need the extra 20% or whatever it is performance boost. But I also don't want to drop $2500 on a notebook that is neither leading-edge nor a price-performance leader within it's own market segment.
In buying PCs, I usually buy a step below the best, because the price performance ratio is very good. Until Apple upgrades the MBPs, I can't do that, as there is only, um, one choice really. I also can't get the latest and greatest, C2D, either. So while the current Yonah MBP is 100% fine for my needs, I'm reluctant to drop a wad of cash on it when I know that is will either be 1) superceded by a newer model I'd buy for the same price, or 2) reduced in price to help clear out the old stock. Either of those options would work for me at this time, but neither is available.
Part of buying something like a Mac is the satisfaction one gets from buying a well-engineered piece of gear that works and looks and feels like a sophisticated work of technology. The current MBPs lose a lot of that when you know you're buying something that is in the last days of its product life cycle, even if you also know it doesn't make any difference in day to day usability.
Luckily, my old machine is working fine, so I can wait, but still, bah....