Computers for Digital Photography

1. Computers for Digital Photography Terry Straehley Channel City Camera Club Digital Interest Group November 23, 2004

2. Two Premises • Photographic/Graphic Applications will stress your computer more than anything else you do with it. (If you’re not into gaming) • Your Photos will be the most valuable data on your computer. • They are costly to replace – If not Irreplaceable.

3. Two Major Decisions • PC vs Mac • There is no “right” answer. It depends upon personal preferences, other uses, previous experience. • My personal decision matrix follows • Desktop vs Laptop • Laptops are convenient, but are not ideal computers for serious long-term photo work. • Reasons Below

4. PC VS Mac • A personal decision – often driven by previous experience. My decision circa 1984

5. Desktop vs Laptop • More objective decision – whether you use PC or Mac.

6. Intended Use • Photography as a hobby – Advanced amateur • Photography is not a primary income source

7. Premises for Rest of Talk • PC (Wintel) based System • Desktop System • Advanced Amateur – Not professional use.

8. Computer Configuration • Major Computer Components • CPU • Memory • Hard Disk • Video Adapter • Monitor/Display • All of these affect the usability of a well-designed system and should be balanced.

9. Central Processing Unit • Intel Pentium 4 • 3.0, 3.2, 3.4, 3.6 GHz Clock Rate • 1 MB L2 Cache • 800 MHz Front Side Bus (FSB) • HyperThreading (HT) Technology • Intel 915, 925X Chipset

10. Memory • 1 GB Minimum, 2 GB Recommended • Dual Channel DDR 2 • 400 MHz

11. Hard Disk (s) • 160 or 250 GB • Serial ATA (SATA) 150 MB/sec transfer • 7200 RPM rotational speed • Two disks recommended • One for OS, Programs, OS swap file • One for Photos, Photoshop Scratch File

12. Two Disk Configuration • Disk 1 – System and Programs 80 GB ATA133 • C: Boot Partition – 1GB FAT • D: OS and Programs – 20 GB NTFS • E: General Data – 5GB NTFS • F: OS Swap and General Use – 54GB NTFS • Disk 2 – Photos and Photoshop Scratch 200GB SATA 150 • G: Photoshop Scratch – 20GB NTFS • H: - ?? Photos 180 GB

13. Video Adapter • Use a separate card • Integrated adapter uses memory shared with CPU • Not as fast • Impacts Video and CPU performance • Video Memory 128 MB to 256 MB • AGP Port (Requires AGP Port on Main Board

14. Monitor / Display • CRT vs LCD – Parameters for a typical 19” – 21” display

15. Total Configuration • This is a total configuration done for me by my local supplier • Intel Pentium 4 3.0Ghz (E) w/ 1MB Int Cache (800FSB, HT) on Genuine Intel 865PERLX, 6USB 2.0 (2Front, 4Rear), 4DDR (up to 4GB), 1AGP(8x), 5PCI • 1GB DDR PC-3200 / 400Mhz (Kingston) • 80 GB Ultra ATA 133 Hard Drive (7200rpm) • 200GB Serial ATA 150 Hard Drive (7200rpm, 8MB) • ATI Radeon 9800 Atlantis (TV Output, DVI) • Pioneer DVR108 DVD+/-RW 9-in-1 Drive 32x24x40 CDRW, Reads @ 16x DVD • Integrated 6 Channel Sound • Integrated 10/100Ethernet • ATX #228 USB 2.0 Mid Tower Case (360W SilverStone heavy duty Power Supply) • PS/2 Internet Keyboard & Optical Mouse • Win XP Professional CD & License • Total: $ 1279.00

16. Display Choices • Some typical display choices • 19” KDS XF9i Xtreme Flat CRT Monitor .25dp, 1600x1200 $195.00 • 21” Viewsonic G220 Flat CRT Monitor .25dp $484.00 • 19” AG Neovo F419 LCD Contrast Ratio: 700:1 $434.00

17. Part II Security • Defragmentation • Backup • Anti-Virus • Firewalls (Hardware and Software) • Adware and Spyware

18. Disk Defragmentation • Deleting Files leaves empty spaces on the disk which are then filled with the next data written. • These spaces may be smaller than new data, leading to multiple fragments of next file. • Fragmentation Slows Disk Access • XP comes with a Defrag Program that can be scheduled with the Task Scheduler • 3rd Party Programs such as Diskeeper (www.diskeeper.com)

19. Memory Defragmentation • Loading and Unloading Programs Leads to Memory Fragmentation. • This reduces available contiguous memory and sometimes overall memory • No memory defragmenter included with XP • 3rd Party Programs • MemTurbo www.memturbo.com

20. Backup • Backup Protects against mechanical failure, human failure, and disaster (fire, theft, etc. • No perfect backup method. • Right Now – I would: • Archive Photos on CD-R or DVD-R • Backup System, Data and Programs on Magnetic Tape or External Hard Disk • Long Term Archiving Issues • Media Failure • Media Obsolescence • Expect to Re-record archives every 5 to 10 years

21. Anti - Virus • Current Anti-Virus Program is absolutely Essential if you receive E-mail • AV Program should update automatically, over the Internet. • AV Programs are sold on a yearly subscription basis. • Even so • Don’t run your e-mail program with preview window open • Don’t open unexpected attachments (esp. .exe, .scr) • Text E-mails are generally safe, but not HTML

22. Firewalls • Hardware and Software Firewalls • Absolutely Essential with “Always On” Broadband connection • Software Firewall for Single Computers • XP Firewall, McAfee, ZoneAlarm, Norton • Hardware Firewall for Home Network • Built into Router • NAT plus SPI

23. Adware and Spyware • Generates POPup Ads • Sends Information back relative to your web surfing, could do much worse. • Known to slow down computers substantially • Remedy • Safe Surfing – surf legitimate web sites • Safe Installation – Know what “free” software you install • Detect and Clean Software • AdAware – Free Manual Scan – www.lavasoft.com • Spyware Doctor - $ Auto Scan – www.pctools.com