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Buying for a Church

J

jon-chan

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Feb 27, 2006
13
0
Hello everyone. My Church is going to be buying a new MacBook Pro very soon (actually 2, but the second one later). And since I'm the resident Mac expert, I'm kinda in-charge of this project.

I'm pretty computer savvy, but just thought I would get some input on my decisions. I'm getting: 1 MacBook Pro, a Gig of RAM from Crucial, and probably AppleCare. I might possibly upgrade the HD from the 80G but I'm not sure if the pastor needs it. The MBP is mainly going to be used for iMovie/FinalCut, DVD burning (iDVD), Garage Band, Office, etc. I'm going with the 1.83GHz one, not the 2GHz. Also I'll be using a program called MediaShout, as soon as they release their mac version.

I'm only upping the RAM to 1.5 Gigs total, because otherwise I'll just have a 512 stick laying useless. Also I believe that (Do it yourself) RAM upgrades are OK, and you still retain your warranty. Right? Also, I'm wondering if Apple has any sort of lower-pricing for NON-Profit organizations. If not, I might buy it myself (w/ a student discount), 'donate' it, and have the Church cut me a check.

I don't foresee any problems with this decision. But If you have any suggestions, I'll be happy to hear them.

Thanks,
--Jon
 
I personally would do without Applecare. Not that it wouldn't maybe be needed, but in all likelihood the computer will either work fine for years or break within the built-in warranty period. All other choices are fine. It will be much easier than a PC, but your projects coming up sound ambitious and I hope it is not more than you all can chew.
 
Yeah, RAM is user upgradeable. I would suggest going with the lowest size HDD you can get. I am planning the same thing, here is why:

Get MPB
Take out HDD
Sell HDD
Buy new HDD
Pop in New one
Save $$.

Kinda like the underpants gnomes theory, except with a step 2. And purpose.
On Apple Care, I tend to go the other way. I have seen things break down outside of warranty, and that AC really came in to save me, i.e. when my father's Sawtooth died unexceptedly, we found out it was the logic board...that was a good grand and change....thankfully, AC covered it and we went on our Merry way. AC is good, if the Church can afford it, buy it.
 
macaddict06 said:
Yeah, RAM is user upgradeable. I would suggest going with the lowest size HDD you can get. I am planning the same thing, here is why:

Get MPB
Take out HDD
Sell HDD
Buy new HDD
Pop in New one
Save $$.

Kinda like the underpants gnomes theory, except with a step 2. And purpose.
On Apple Care, I tend to go the other way. I have seen things break down outside of warranty, and that AC really came in to save me, i.e. when my father's Sawtooth died unexceptedly, we found out it was the logic board...that was a good grand and change....thankfully, AC covered it and we went on our Merry way. AC is good, if the Church can afford it, buy it.
Click to expand...

Yes, you could do this but it voids a perfectly good one year warranty. If you want to upgrade the Hard drive then do it from apple or wait a year and then do it.
 
Definitely get AppleCare. Since it's not for you personally you have to plan as if you wouldn't be around or involved as much in a year. You never know.

macaddict06: AppleCare won't help you if you've upgraded the hard drive yourself.
 
If the church is paying, I suggest you get Applecare. I used to think the one year warrenty was enough, assuming a problem would come up in that time. However, my hard drive failed a month or so after it expired. Not cool. Go with the Applecare.
 
Yet another vote in favor of Applecare - especially in this case, where there may be more than one person using the computer who may or may not be tech-savvy. The Applecare gives them a full 3 years of telephone support, instead of 90 days that you would get with the original warranty.

As for the non-profit discount, I haven't heard of that, and my wise friend, Mr. Google, couldn't come up with anything either.
Looks like you'll be using the education discount...

Best wishes & congrats on a GREAT purchase!
 
Kingsly said:
What is the church using it for? We use MediaShout for PC, but we have a G5 and a G4 for editing and stuff...
I have been trying to convince them to move to Mac for MediaShout, but so far it is not mac - compatible (or at least it wasn't last time I checked)
Click to expand...

Correct. It's not Mac compatible YET. However they are supposed to be releasing the mac version any time now, and I'm guessing it will be within the next month or so. In the mean time, I suggest using OpenSong. Its a wonderful app, both Mac and Windows compatible, and FREE. It's like MediaShout lite, however I have about a years worth of custom songs which I've added to the database. I've been using it for about a year to do mid-week worship on my iBook (yeah, with the screen-spanning hack :D ) and it works great.

Actually, the MediaShout for Mac is more for ME, for midweek services; and for the Worship pastor (who will be getting a MBP later). Although I might stick with OpenSong especially if I have to convert my whole song DB. :rolleyes:

In response to your other question: my youth pastor is probably going to use it mostly for movie editing, DVD burning (he NEEDS a SuperDrive), garageband, iTunes, email, and general office type tasks. Also since his current Dell laptop is on its last leg (and pretty slow)... here comes the MBP.

Also, in response to the applecare suggestions....yeah I'm going to go with it. My limit is approx. $2500 and between Applecare and a RAM upgrade I'll be around that. Also since my Church is currently budgeted on a three year computer upgrade cycle (for the pastors) then if something bad happens after the Applecare expires then it won't be so big of a deal. Although, I'm willing to bet that the MBP will still be a decent machine by then.
 
Thanks, I'll check out OpenSong. We do a lot of heavy Media rich stuff (ie. custom graphics from Motion, etc...) and Im wondering if OpenSong can handle it. I am actually surprised because almost all of the pastors use iBooks and Power Books, so it strikes me as a little odd that we don't just use keynote or something for sunday services... Oh well...
 
Just a quick question from a lapsed Catholic, why does a church require a high powered editing computer? You're all talking about "rich, integrated media and graphics" and that sort of stuff - is going to church like going to a SteveNote for you guys or what?

Last time I went to church (years ago cause I was told to and it was christmas) we sang songs with the lyrics on an OHP and that was about it. Are the new-fangled christian churches (where you have a "pastor" instead of a priest) some hot bed of technological innovation? I have no intent on returning to the fold, I was just wondering if somehow the new churches had gone all techo.
 
Chundles said:
Just a quick question from a lapsed Catholic, why does a church require a high powered editing computer? You're all talking about "rich, integrated media and graphics" and that sort of stuff - is going to church like going to a SteveNote for you guys or what?

Last time I went to church (years ago cause I was told to and it was christmas) we sang songs with the lyrics on an OHP and that was about it. Are the new-fangled christian churches (where you have a "pastor" instead of a priest) some hot bed of technological innovation? I have no intent on returning to the fold, I was just wondering if somehow the new churches had gone all techo.
Click to expand...


Alot of the larger churches are very much on the cutting edge of presentation technology.


BTW, anyone compare mediashout to liveworship?
 
macaddict06 said:
Yeah, RAM is user upgradeable. I would suggest going with the lowest size HDD you can get. I am planning the same thing, here is why:

Get MPB
Take out HDD
Sell HDD
Buy new HDD
Pop in New one
Save $$.

Kinda like the underpants gnomes theory, except with a step 2. And purpose.
On Apple Care, I tend to go the other way. I have seen things break down outside of warranty, and that AC really came in to save me, i.e. when my father's Sawtooth died unexceptedly, we found out it was the logic board...that was a good grand and change....thankfully, AC covered it and we went on our Merry way. AC is good, if the Church can afford it, buy it.
Click to expand...

By changing the HDD you are voiding the warranty. What HDD do you plan on sticking in there if the 100GB 7200 RPM or the 120GB 5400RPM don't seem to satisfy you HDD cravings?
 
jon-chan said:
If not, I might buy it myself (w/ a student discount), 'donate' it, and have the Church cut me a check. Thanks,
--Jon
Click to expand...
Jon,

You do what you want to do, but I would think about this a little more. I'm no tax lawyer, but this sounds illegal. Not the part about cheating Apple from the extra $200, but the part about 'donating' it to the church and having them reimburse you.

If the church is buying it, they should buy it. If you donate it, then they should not reimburse you, regardless of whether you claim the deduction on your tax return or not. The IRS may have a different view than you.
 
ftaok said:
Jon,

You do what you want to do, but I would think about this a little more. I'm no tax lawyer, but this sounds illegal. Not the part about cheating Apple from the extra $200, but the part about 'donating' it to the church and having them reimburse you.

If the church is buying it, they should buy it. If you donate it, then they should not reimburse you, regardless of whether you claim the deduction on your tax return or not. The IRS may have a different view than you.
Click to expand...

Well I'm no tax lawyer either. And I'm sure not trying to do anything illegal or unethical. I guess it was a bad idea that came to me a little too late in the evening (check the time-stamp...lol). But yeah, I can see your point. I know Microsoft offers discounts for non-profits on office software at least. I figured Apple might as well.

Thanks for your input,
Jon
 
Chundles said:
Just a quick question from a lapsed Catholic, why does a church require a high powered editing computer? You're all talking about "rich, integrated media and graphics" and that sort of stuff - is going to church like going to a SteveNote for you guys or what?

Last time I went to church (years ago cause I was told to and it was christmas) we sang songs with the lyrics on an OHP and that was about it. Are the new-fangled christian churches (where you have a "pastor" instead of a priest) some hot bed of technological innovation? I have no intent on returning to the fold, I was just wondering if somehow the new churches had gone all techo.
Click to expand...

Several churches are very technically oriented. Some of the larger ones have capacities for near 5,000+ people. Overhead projectors just don't cut it. Many of them display 2 or 3 live feeds of the pastor on large screens. Often times videos are shown to highlight various activites that have happened or are happening.

Also some churches have advandced lighting systems which allow you to move and control the lights remotely. Often times these are utilized for Christmas and Easter plays or other thing throughout the year.

Just some examples.
 
I'll echo the others concerning AppleCare and the church paying for it. Personally, I think it's a gamble whether or not you get it. I personally don't think the cost is worth it but I'm sure I'll sing a different tune if my Powerbook dies on me in the near future.
 
jon-chan said:
Well I'm no tax lawyer either. And I'm sure not trying to do anything illegal or unethical. I guess it was a bad idea that came to me a little too late in the evening (check the time-stamp...lol). But yeah, I can see your point. I know Microsoft offers discounts for non-profits on office software at least. I figured Apple might as well.

Thanks for your input,
Jon
Click to expand...
Jon,

I apologize if I offended you. I didn't intend to imply that you were doing anything shady. It's just the way I read your original statement where you put donate in quotations. Kinda like "I'll donate it, wink wink..."

Anyways, I guess if you're not going to claim it as a deduction, then you should be OK with the IRS (like one of the posters above has mentioned).

Good Luck!
 
I'll just add "me too" to the list of people in favor of AppleCare. Even if only one minor problem crops up in those three years, the AppleCare will most likely pay for itself. For me, it was some memory that went bad in year two.
 
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