Brian

She better put that thing to use, otherwise I want you to adopt me!!

Nope, haven't bought one yet. I've been slacking. Well, I haven't really been shooting or editing photos due to COVID (Not traveling, etc. ) Honestly, I've been more focused on things like upgrading WiFi, running Cat 6a Ethernet in my house, due to my Wife now working from home and she needs speed. From what I can tell, the SpyderPro X works fine with the new iMacs and Catalina. Edit: This is what I've spent my money on doing:

You are looking for a Scanner such as this one: Epson Perfection V600 Photo Scanner

You have all sorts of problems. Especially this one: You have a Powerful Mac Pro from 2013...but it's completely crippled!! It would have been better AND cheaper to buy a tricked out 27" iMac than to get a Mac Pro with only a 256GB HD with 12GB of RAM. It's like you have a 1200HP Engine, but a Transmission that was meant for a 4 cyl Honda Civic. Your HD is NOT LARGE ENOUGH. That needs to be replaced / upgraded as well. Fortunately, in addition to RAM, OWC makes a HD replacement for your Mac: https://eshop.macsales.com/shop/ssd/owc/mac-pro/2013 I would get at least a 1TB m.2 SSD Drive. It seems they have a kit that allows you to transfer your main HD into the replacement drive. ($340). So larger HD and 64GB of RAM is what I'd recommend for you at the moment. Otherwise, you are looking at a new iMac computer.

It’s really not that different than what I recommend to edit photos on. i7 CPU 16GB RAM At least a 500GB main boot drive, preferably one with a 1TB main drive. In your son’s case, a lightweight model with a comfortable keyboard to type on takes priority. Since it’s not one to edit photos on, the Screen doesn’t need to be IPS based and the video card can be a basic one. What you really need to be on the lookout for is if components like the RAM are soldered you the Motherboard. These models can not be upgraded after the fact. So really pay attention to the tech specs. Sealed units are common these days, the trick is finding out if you need to upgrade something before clicking “Add to Cart.” Otherwise you are stuck with what you purchased.

I’m VERY GOOD at spending other people’s money. It’s a gift...

The alternative is a 27" tricked out iMac. The price will be the same, and she will get more performance for the money, but let's face it...she's 13 and all her friends have Laptops, so there's no winning that battle.

Remember, there is no upgrading after the fact. 32GB of RAM is a must. A 1TB HD is a must. Video, get the 5500M with 8GB. When you get to your price-point, 200 is chump-change. Just make sure you add AppleCare on top of everything. Here is what I configured, it came out to $3199, which is a more realistic price for a "Good" MBP:

The other thing that comes to mind, is if you recently upgraded your Camera Body which has a lot more Megapixels than the older one. I found this out the hard way when I bought my D850 with my 2017 fancy iMac. Basically the 100MB Raw files that my D850 generated made my "Superfast 27" iMac - complete with 'Go Faster' Racing Stripes" come to a complete crawl until I upgraded the RAM to 64GB. So if you are shooting with a 45MP - 60MP camera body, on a 2013 computer with only 12GB of RAM, that's why. It's amazing on just how far camera bodies have come, even basic models are 24MP, which requires more RAM to process.

You need a lot more RAM. These days I recommend a MINIMUM of 16GB and really want people to have 32GB. You only have 4GB to play with and 8GB is being taken up by the OS and other programs. At this point, I'd max out your computer to 64GB and be done with it. Mac Pros are really funny when it comes to RAM, and it doesn't like you mixing different types of RAM modules. So in reality, it's just easier and better in the long run to replace the existing RAM set and install a fresh matching set. You will remove the 3 currently installed sticks and replace them with these: OWC 64GB DDR3 1866 MHz RDIMM Memory Kit (4 x 16GB, 2013 Mac Pro). The current price is $199, which isn't that bad for 64GB total. That's only $50 a stick. Yes, you can upgrade the RAM yourself, here is a YouTube Video demonstrating the process. Now the other thing that I'm curious about is your hard drive capacity. How much is being taken up on the internal and externals? You do not want to go more than 75% - 80% full on ANY hard drive, Internal or External, when it comes to a Mac. In reality, I like keeping my Macintosh HD as clean as possible, currently I have about 737GB Free on my Macintosh HD. Also, as I just mentioned, a Full External HD will also kill performance because the MacOS really doesn't differentiate between an Internal HD or External one. Finally, your video card is getting a bit long in the tooth. In 2013, it was probably decent, but all of Adobe's current products utilitze the Video RAM and Video CPU for a performance boost. These days I usually recommend a 8GB Video Card, with a beefy Video CPU chip for PS CC 2020.

It’s due to our “Throw Away Society.” Why bother making something that will last? How about we make the stock holders happy and make people buy new phones / computers / cars / blenders / washing machines, etc. sooner rather than later? This is why I recommend The more expensive options. Not because I’m a snob, but I hate-hate-hate wasting money on this shit.

It's all a crap-shoot. Nothing is standard and it really depends. But with the current models that I've seen, they are all sealed units.

Do not upgrade! Ugh, You have a trifecta going here. 2011 iMac, way too slow by today's standards. If you think it's slow now, just wait...it will come to a crawl. 77.4GB of free space is EXTREMELY DANGEROUS. You are at the level where data corruption is a real possiblity. Start purging, like NOW. You do not need those 75 photos of your lunch from 7 years ago. Be ruthless. You want to shoot to get at least 30% free of your total storage capacity, or higher. On a 1TB HD, we are looking for 300GB - 400GB Free. This is tougher to accomplish on a small HD, like a 500GB or 250GB. As I mentioned in my article, if you upgrade to Catalina, your PS CS6 will cease to work PERMANENTLY! No, there isn't a work-around. No, there won't be any patches from Adobe. It will flat-out stop working FOREVER! If you were to upgrade, you more than likely would have nothing but problems. Combine that with the fact that upgrading to Catalina is a one-way proposition, there's no going back, you would have set yourself up for a lot of aggravation. My advice? Don't upgrade, stay where you are. Start saving for a new iMac, it's time for a new one. Even if it takes you a year or two, you are at the point of replacing your computer. Please read my pinned articles about what to buy when it comes to a Mac. And for all the love that is good-and green, DO NOT PURCHASE A 21.5" IMAC! They are to be avoided like the Plague!! A 27" iMac is in your future, with a price to match. Oh, you will need to budget for a new Calibration Tool as well, such as the SpyderPro X Series. That being said, the Spyder5 Elite does have an upgrade patch to get it to work with Catalina, but the new iMacs have even fancier screens and I'm not sure how accurate your Calibration would be. I think it's OK for now, but if you can't afford a Mac and have to wait a few years, that will probably make a difference and the Spyder5 Elite won't be able to handle say...a 2022 iMac (or whatever.) Make sense? One more thing, if you do get a new iMac, Adobe Photoshop CC 2019 or Adobe Photoshop CC 2020 will be in your future.

It really depends on your situation. What OS level are you at? Is it asking you to upgrade to Catalina? What version of PS? Do you own a calibration device? If so, what is the Make/Model. How much free HD space do you have? What type of Mac is it? How old? While you are getting me all of those details, feel free to give this a read:

Nope. That is an internal main boot HD. Remember, with today's Macbooks...both the Pros and the regular ones, you can not upgrade after the fact. You are forced to purchase things like extra RAM or bigger HDs and better Graphics Cards at the time of purchase. Everything is practically integrated or soldered to the motherboard. Gone are the days of you replacing your own batteries, adding a Stick of RAM or even having an access panel to replace / upgrade the HD. It's just not Apple that is doing this, but practically all laptop manufacturers, though Apple is the worst offender. Even so, laptops are made so cheaply these days, you really can break something quite easily taking one apart to upgrade something. In reality, if you get 3 years out of a laptop, you are ahead of the curve. They do not "...make them like they used to," now more than ever. It's more profitable to sell you a laptop every 24-36 months; yes, even if you spend $4000 on a fancy MBP, there are no guarantees that it will last longer than 3+ years just because your forked out $4000+ on a laptop. Again, spending that insane amount of money will not guarantee "better quality." Well, at least when it comes to laptops.

Well, that's good news. Honestly, if you can stretch your budget to around $2000, this is how I would configure the Dell XPS System I linked to: 10th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-10700K processor(8-Core, 16M Cache, 3.8GHz to 5.1GHz) 16GB, 1x16GB, DDR4, 2933MHz Dell Multimedia Keyboard-KB216 White (English) 1TB M.2 PCIe SSD + 1TB SATA 7200 RPM HDD Dell Wireless Card W1810/QCA9377 (1x1 AC,BT 4.1) NVIDIA® GeForce® RTX 2070 SUPER™ 8GB GDDR6 Wired Mouse Sapphire White MS116 I would put extra money towards a better video card and a i7 CPU. You really don't want a i5 these days if you are looking to keep your computer for around 7 years or so. As far as HDMI, honestly, I'd get a computer that has two Display Ports, and then get a DisplayPort to HDMI cable, or even an adapter. DisplayPort is the future and there is all sorts of adapters you can get for it, there is even a DisplayPort to VGA (which I do not recommend getting, just pointing it out.) The GeForce RTX 2020 Super 8GB GDDR6 option has three DisplayPorts on the back, perfect for a multiple monitor setup. Then all you would have to do is upgrade the RAM. Get a 32GB kit (two 16GB sticks) from Crucial.com and increase the RAM from 16GB to 40GB. Of course, if you are looking to save a little cash, get a 16GB kit and increase the RAM to 32GB.

Now, the only exception that you or I could make is if she has a friend that has a MacBook that is doing the same thing / using the same software. I'm curious on what the specs are with that Mac Laptop and we can use those specs against current models. That said, you still are paying at least $2600.

I agree. I'd start looking there first, before messing with anything on your computer.

THERE'S YOUR PROBLEM. Well, that and your CPU is very under-powered by today's standards. Yeah, it's time for a new computer. Well, good news and bad news...I was able to configure a system for you. Bad news is, that it's not 100% of what I recommend, but it should get you closer to a "Normal Experience" these days. Keep in mind, speed is relative. Your computer sounds like it's been struggling for awhile, so any improvements in terms of speed will be a bonus, because you don't know any better. It's just too bad that $1500 this year doesn't go as far as it did just 12 months ago, before COVID19. You really need to save up just a bit more and be closer to $2000. But I get it, I realize that this isn't always possible. So without further ado... Dell XPS Special Edition Tower -- $1579 Make sure you upgrade the Main HD to a 1TB m.2 SSD Drive!! A 256GB Main Drive is MICROSCOPIC BY TODAY'S STANDARDS AND SHOULD BE AVOIDED LIKE THE PLAGUE!!! This is really a short-term solution. When I recommend / configure things for the members here, I have a 7-8 year lifespan in mind. Anything less will require replacement sooner rather than later. So that configuration should get you about 3 years at most before it becomes "Too Slow" again.

Damien is correct. Don't ever save stuff to your desktop, whether your are Windows-based or a Mac. Stuff gets corrupted easily when they are on the desktop. Especially if something happens to your Windows profile. Usually at this point, I get the response, "Well...I've always saved on my Desktop and nothing bad has ever happened!" Yep. That is usually true. Until it does. It's like saying, "I've always driven 85MPH-90MPH on the Highway and have never gotten pulled over!" Until you do. Now for the Red X Problem. It could be a bunch of things. From your Cloud Storage being full and your computer has lost its connection to those files, to something like your Icon Cache File needs to be reset / purged / deleted. Have you done anything at this point? Run any commands or whatever? Also, how full is your HD? What are the specs of your PC? When is the last time you have run Windows Update? Please fill out this form and post the results here in the thread: Details about your Computer's Health

Very Cool! You are off to a great start! 80mm to 105mm is where you want to be for product photography, so that's why I recommended a lens like a 24-105. Enjoy your purchase. Don't be afraid to shoot at f/8 or even f/11...but usually these apertures tend to need some sort of strobe or two off camera, with a modifier of some sort.

Yep. My prices are US Dollar Based. Canada is more expensive than the US. England is even higher...and OZ, well...that's a whole other topic altogether. I feel really bad for recommending this shit to people who live in OZ. Your prices are incredibly expensive.

Always remember: As with anything Macintosh related, or anything Apple related, they want you to "Go Big or Go Home." You are going to pay a premium for that to happen. With current Macbooks, both the 13" and 16" versions, you MUST upgrade the RAM to 32GB at the time of purchase, and pay Apple's insanely high prices as a result. Today's Macbooks are not like ones a decade or more ago, the RAM is soldered to the motherboard, and there isn't any upgrade sockets. So if you just get a Macbook with 8GB or 16GB of RAM, you are stuck with it and will have to buy a new computer if you want to go higher. Fun times, eh? From my POV, spending $4000+ to run seamlessly with no lag on a MBP is a hard pill to swallow for a 13 year old. I'm 47 and I can't justify that kind of cost. Of course, your 13 y.o. is just starting out. Speed is relative. How complex are their videos going to be? Just 5 second Tic-Tok videos? Or stuff that is posted to YouTube? She might just love a 13" MacBook and the cost will be around $2600. Basically, start with the most expensive 13" MBP and upgrade the CPU, RAM and HD: You will save about $1000 or so by choosing a Windows Gaming Laptop with similar specs. The Windows laptop will need to have: i7 Intel CPU 32GB RAM 1TB EHD A video card that has at least 2GB dedicated Video RAM. (More is better, like 4GB - 8GB.) A IPS-Based display panel. 1920 x 1080 is fine. Believe it or not, this is the hardest thing to find on a Windows Laptop. When it comes to a Mac, it's a standard thing. Windows, especially gaming laptops, will have a cheaper TN display panel, which is faster / meant for video games. As soon as you add "Photo Editing" or "Video Editing" to the mix, your requirements really increase. The problem with the 13" MBP is the video; the graphics card which After Effects or any current Adobe product for that matter, will definitely use...is under-powered. That "Intel Graphics" card that you get with the 13" MBP is only meant for "General Computing," not Photoshop. Not anything major. Will it work? sure. Will it work well? Probably not. So if you choose Apple, the only alternative is a tricked out 16" MBP for around $4000+. Truth be told, you are going to pay out the ass for any computer now, as prices are $500 - $1000 more than they were last year, before COVID19. So if she is going to get really serious, and take classes and eventually become a Professional, then spending the cash if you can afford it might be a good investment. If this is just a fad and next month she will want to learn to play the guitar or whatever, then spending a huge chunk of cash for a laptop will be a decision you will have to make. Do not think for a second that you can get away with a $500 laptop for anything PS or Adobe Product related. I can say this, my Mother was a single Mom and we didn't have a lot of cash. She was the 1st person to purchase my first DSLR camera, and well, she couldn't afford it. (What do you mean the lens is extra? This expensive camera doesn't come with a lens?!?? - I remember that day well.) Well here I am, 34 years later-still taking photos.

Correct. Well, partially. The problem is the MacOS speaks one language and Windows speaks another, at least as far as the hard drive partitions are concerned. By default a Macintosh will READ a Windows hard drive, but not write to it. This makes switching from Windows to the Mac really easy, and it's intended that way. The problem is going the other way, Mac to Windows. You really do not want to go back and forth, so pick a format and stick with it. What you will need is to purchase this translation software, yes...it's better for it to be paid and not free, and install it on your Mac. Then purchase a Windows-based computer, laptop or desktop and a new external HD. Then partition/format the new EHD on the Windows computer with a NTFS partition and then hook it up to your Mac. Then copy your data files to this new EHD and let it finish. Then eject the EHD on your Mac and hook it up to the Windows computer and see if it can read the files. Most of the time, there aren't any issues. That said, this "Translation Software" isn't 100% bullet-proof. This is why it is very important to "Copy" and not "Cut" your files to the EHD. This way if something goes screwy during transfer, you have the source file(s) to try copying again. If you select the "Cut" option, you are moving the files, which is very bad due to the source file getting deleted on your Mac as it moves stuff over. Recovering data on a Mac is extremely difficult, and I wouldn't recommend it. I've permanently lost files due to my own stupidity on my Mac.

Software options...no, I do not care what software advertises to increase RAM capacity, it never truly works. What it does is take a chunk of the HD to act as RAM. It doesn’t work. All you are doing is throwing money away.