Making The Switch

[Cooknn]

In the evenings I do DTP for a Re/Max office. I've been using Adobe Pagemaker for the last couple of years (currently on v.7) - on Windows XP Pro. I am so sick of the bugs in this program. It drives me nuts. I e-mailed my contact at the newspaper and confirmed that I was not alone. I'm not too confident in any Adobe product at this point so I am not yet looking at InDesign, and don't even know if the newspaper can take those files.

Which brings me to problem one - they all use Mac's. That I knew. They use Quark Xpress. I thought COOL - I'll get a new Mac with QuarkXpress v.6 and my problems will be solved. Not so quick. They are on v.4. Yikes. Until they move up I have to wait on that one.

Question One: I see that Pagemaker 7 has to be run in OSX "Classic" mode. Probably don't want to go there. Do you know if InDesign is compatible with Pagemaker? Probably should be asking that one on the Adobe site...

Question Two: I am looking hard at the 17" Powerbook, but read about an update looming on the horizon. Would you suggest that I wait before placing my order, or are the revised products already in the pipeline?

Question Three: Airport Extreme. I live in 2 floor 1000SqFt condo and would like to be able to work upstairs or down. Do I need an antenna? I am connected to the outside world via Comcast with an RCA Digital Broadband Cable Modem...

That's it for now. Thanks in advance.

 

[4409723]

Re: Making The Switch

Questions 2: I wouldn't buy yet, the powerbooks have not been updated for ages, there is an update coming. People are dying for them, just wait it out.

 

[the future]

Question One: I have never used Pagemaker, but I believe InDesign is actually a much more advanced application. And you definitely *can* use Quark 4 (or 5) in Classic mode without a problem, I'm doing it all the time (on a 15'' TiBook 867 MHz).

 

[soggywulf]

Re: Making The Switch

Originally posted by Cooknn
Question Three: Airport Extreme. I live in 2 floor 1000SqFt condo and would like to be able to work upstairs or down. Do I need an antenna? I am connected to the outside world via Comcast with an RCA Digital Broadband Cable Modem...

Hi Dave. I think your Airport will work fine, using the built-in antennas on the base station and laptop. I have set up a similar system in a 2 floor + basement house with tall ceilings--the base station is in the basement. No auxiliary antennas used, and the iBook works great anywhere in the house.

 

[Cooknn]

Thanks gang. As I read the Technology Overview for the 17-inch Powerbook G4 I get even more excited when I find that I *may* be able to connect to the 'net with my GSM/GPRS phone - I have a Panasonic GU-87. It's got Infrared, not Bluetooth, though.

What are your experiences with connecting to the net via GSM/GPRS?

 

[rainman::|:|]

new macs do not have an infared port. you may be able to use a data cable, tho...

pnw

 

[PixelFactory]

InDesign will indeed open your pagemaker files. If the newspaper doesn't take inDesign they might take PDF files and inDesign will export them.

Your right about Quark 6. They shot themselves in the foot with not being able to save down to 4. Many newspapers and printers do not want to spend the money to upgrade to a new version and deal with all its new bugs and quirks. It took them years to go to version 4 and still some will only accept version 3 files.

 

[Horrortaxi]

From the InDesign 2.0 manual: "InDesign can convert document and template files from Pagemaker 6.5 or later and QuarkXPress 3.3 or later. Both types of files open in InDesign as untitled documetn files. InDesign converts the original file information to native InDesign information."

Pagemaker is dead--replaced by InDesign. Quark might (should) die as well, but it will take a while.

 

[Cooknn]

I read a number of reviews in Mac Design Magazine today and the overwhelming majority of designers prefer InDesign. I mailed my contact at the paper (again) and am hoping her response on Monday is favorable. I read that InDesign could open Pagemaker files, but I also found in my research that there is no way to get from InDesign to Pagemaker without going to camera ready such as pdf. I need to keep the ability to have last minute changes by the paper if a listing has a price reduction, etc.

Adobe has a pretty good deal too for the bundle of Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator and Acrobat all for $1100. Not bad when you consider the stand alone app's run about $800.

I really don't want to have to run anything in "classic" mode. Maybe I'm being closed minded, but I've never owned a Mac, and want to take advantage of all the bells and whistles. Hopefully the paper (Fort Myers News-Press) will have someone in their tech department with InDesign...

Regarding the cell phone/GPRS issue - I may not need that functionality too much anyways. Both places I will be working will have wireless broadband access. This brings up another question:

At the office we access the internet via Sprint ADSL w/ dynamic IP addressing, and at home as previously mentioned I use my RCA cable modem for access via Comcast. Should this all work seamlessly?

 

[solvs]

Makes sense that InDesign works better with PageMaker files. In my limited experiance, InDesign beats both PM and Quark hands down. Though it does have it's quirks (no pun intended). Kinda funny, though, that InDesign works better with old Quark files than the new Quark. Cheaper too.

New PowerBooks in Sept. Probably. Minor updates. If you need it now, get it now. If you can wait, wait. Buy extra third-party RAM either way. InDesign is rumored to be updated soon, but that may be awhile too. You can always buy the Design Collection, and buy upgrades when you need them.

If you buy the Airport Base Station with modem and antenna port, you can attach an external Dr, Bott antenna to increase the strength. Or 2 as a bridge. Apple just released a patch that helps against interferance, like with 2.4 GHz phones and Microwaves. It's not perfect, but you should be ok.

You can always buy third-party routers.

 

[soggywulf]

Originally posted by Cooknn
At the office we access the internet via Sprint ADSL w/ dynamic IP addressing, and at home as previously mentioned I use my RCA cable modem for access via Comcast. Should this all work seamlessly?

Oh yeah, all of this will work quite well.

 

[bwawn]

Originally posted by Cooknn
At the office we access the internet via Sprint ADSL w/ dynamic IP addressing, and at home as previously mentioned I use my RCA cable modem for access via Comcast. Should this all work seamlessly?

You shouldn't even notice a switch from office to home -- OS X is extremely seamless when getting new IP addresses at different locations.

Also, a note about your concern with Classic: it's cool and not close-minded. I've been using Macs for about fifteen years now and have altogether ditched Classic. In fact, on one of my computers, I threw it away completely and have only OS X running, and my other computer has it but it hasn't been touched for over a year.

 

[Cooknn]

Update: The News-Press (Gannett Publishing) just confirmed that they are upgrading to QuarkXpress version 6 so I will be able to work with that program to do my ads.

Now I'm just patiently waiting for the updated PB's