Press Release

[Mike S]

When I called the nemetschek sales dept to ask what kind of Mac I should purchase, they said to NOT by the Intel. So I purchased one of the last IMacs G5 available without Intel. I also could not get any info from the nemetschek how much RAM to get to run VW12 optimally. They would only tell me 512 was the minimum recommended. I could not believe a nemetschek cannot have reps available to answer these questions appropriately. That is a failure in their system.

[CipesDesign]

Hi Mike. Get LOTS of RAM. I just bought 2 gigs more, for a total of 3.5 gigs. There is a noticeable improvement.

[alanmac]

Did they give you a reason not to buy Intel Macs?

I can only think they told you not to buy Intel because they do not have a native version available at the moment and were maybe worried you'd come back complaining of speed issues etc. via the Rosetta emulation.

I'm afraid they would not have convinced me and I find it strange they can be so positive and assured about not choosing Intel but can't give you a straight answer on RAM! Get the maximum you can but look around at good quality before you buy. Apples site prices are still too high.

[ 02-04-2006, 07:48 PM: Message edited by: alanmac ]

[quigley]

Sorry chaps, been too busy to even install VW on the iMac as yet....

But, I can say the new Intel machine is the best imac yet. It is quiet (G5 users take note) and all the native (ie non Rosseta software) runs fast. The iLife apps are fantastic. Office runs fine - hard to say about speed in Office! Other apps I have loaded run and are usable but not as quick as my desktop G5 (single processor).

As I say, I've not installed VW yet.

Down to issues though...

RAM - Rosseta uses RAM in heap loads so if you can, max out the RAM to 2GB.

Let's be clear about the Native Binary thing. Most Mac CAD apps use bolt on technology to offer features (eg RenderWorks uses LightWorks rendering engine). There will be no Universal Binary available in any Mac app until these components are available in Universal Binary. So for VW that means Lightworks (unless they can make the lightworks bit run under Rossetta?).

For other Mac apps (eg FormZ, Ashlar products, maybe even VW) a key component is the ACIS kernel by Spatial. This is not available as a universal binary yet, and there has been no schedule for it either.

So, my advice would be if you need a fast production Mac now, buy a G5 machine. If you need to replace an aging secondary machine (like I did) the new Intel machines are a good buy. Most software will run (apparently its the Java based stuff that has problems), but it won't be 2 x the speed.

Of course in 6-12 months many developers will begin releasing universal apps and by then you will probably get a faster iMac and an Intel PowerMac on offer, not to mention OSx.5!!

Like I said, only buy a Mac now if you really need to!!

I promise, though, when I get VW installed I will run some tests and report back ;-)

[Kevin]

Thanks Peter. I did not think about Renderworks, I was only considering VW. Perhaps Renderworks will use all the memory that you can throw at it.

I too would welcome advice from those who know the answer.

[Kevin]

quote:

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Originally posted by CipesDesign:

Hi Mike. Get LOTS of RAM. I just bought 2 gigs more, for a total of 3.5 gigs. There is a noticeable improvement.

---

Peter I am curious about this. I have 2.5 GB. When I check memory usage, I always have spare memory unless I am running lots of open applications.

I do not see how more memory can help in VW speed, unless you have your memory being used by other applications.

Isn't this a matter of the computer either using RAM or the hard drive? If there is enough RAM, then the computer does not need to access the slower drive.

I could put 8GB in my machine, but I do not see how this will help.

[CipesDesign]

KEVIN, I do run a bunch of other app's, in the background. Always have iTunes running, as well as Mail (auto checking), Safari, iCal, etc. etc. I think you are technically correct, however, that if the RAM isn't being used, why add more. I am not a programmer or engineer, so the improvement I noticed *could* be somewhat subjective. I added the additional 2 gigs in response to advice from peers who said it would help decrease rendering times for complex models (which it seems to do). Maybe someone with a better understanding will jump in and explain it better???

[hrm]

Does NNA have an idea or timeframe they're looking to have a Universal Binary ready? I need to buy several new computers and am not interested in buying G5's as our hardware stays in service (gets passed down the food chain) for a number of years. I realize that VW12 can work under Rosetta and recognize there is some speed issues and that might be tolerable, but I'd like to know what the forecast is for delivery of a Universal version of VW12 to know if we can put up with the speed issues for the time between now and the release of the universal VW12.

Thanks

[sbose]

I am using Windows version of VectorWorks 11.00

Will Version 11.00 work on Apple's Intel Duo I Mac

Warm regards

[Kevin]

quote:

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Originally posted by sbose:

I am using Windows version of VectorWorks 11.00

Will Version 11.00 work on Apple's Intel Duo I Mac

Warm regards

---

Windows is an operating system. Intel is a chip manufacturer. You will need to run your Windows VW on a Windows operating system. The iMac runs OSX, not Windows. (Yes, you can run Virtual PC on a Mac, but that is not the same).

My understanding is that you can switch to an Apple VW license if you upgrade to VW12. However, NNA has not released a Universal version of 12 yet.

See this:

http://kbase.nemetschek.net/index.php?ToDo=view&questId=91&catId=23

[Melshimber]

quote:

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Originally posted by Deirdre:

VectorWorks 12 to Support Apple?s Intel Macintosh Computers

Columbia, Maryland (December 20, 2005)?Nemetschek North America announced today that its VectorWorks 12 line of software products will support Apple? Intel? Macintosh? computers. Existing VectorWorks 12 users will receive this new support without additional upgrade fees.

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Can I reliably take this to mean that Nemetscheck will provide a download or similar is to be available, free of charge, to all existing VW12 licences that migrate to Intel Macs? From the date of normal expected compatability?

Thanks

Mike