Last week, Apple unveiled the first machines to run on Intel CPU’s. This is the start of a 1 year transition away from PowerPC based RISC CPU’s to Intel X86 based CISC CPU’s.
Whilst RISC technology has the advantage of efficiency of code and execution – meaning more code is executed at a slower clock speed (the reason a 2.5 GHz G5 is FASTER that a 4.3GHz Pentium), CISC has the advantage of massive market pressure keeping the price down and now for the first time, lower power requirements – essential for laptops, and small machines like the Mac Mini.
What this means for the publishing industry is “Classic” (needed for old scanners, QuarkXpress 4 and 5, and old peripherals WILL NOT RUN!
Also, programs will have to be re-released for the Intel platform – this should take around 3 to 6 months depending on the size of the program. Expect QuarkXpress, Photoshop and Microsoft Virtual PC to be late to the Intel party.
In the mean time, Apple have included “Rosetta”, a technology that allows PowerPC programs to run on the new Intel macs.
The downside is that they will run at about 60% the speed due to emulation – similar to Virtual PC (which won’t run via Rosetta)
Curently, the new machines announced include the MacBook Pro (replacement for PowerBook) and iMac.
This means that if you need new machines, you need to totally ditch any dependance on Classic programs BEFORE you buy a new machine. Call us for more information