Getting a NEW Mac...Need Expert Advice On Options?

[bluetooth]

Hi everyone,

My 2009 Mac Mini has finally bit the dust. I am getting back into Graphic Design after a layoff for a few years and unfortunately, my 2009 Mac Mini just does not have a fast enough processor or enough RAM to run the current Adobe Creative Cloud. I can't upgrade any parts because it is so old.

I am looking at 4 options now. Here are a few questions:



1. If I were to purchase a 13" Mac Book Pro, or a NEW Mac Mini, would my 2007 Dell UltraSharp 2407WFP-HC (24-inch) Display be compatible with a new 13" Mac Book Pro or NEW Mac Mini? The display still looks and works like new, fantastic display and I would rather not purchase a new display at the moment, maybe in a year or two. But question is would it be compatible and work with a new Mac Book Pro or Mac Mini?

Here are the specs of my current Dell display.
Dell UltraSharp 2407WFP-HC (24-inch)
https://www.cnet.com/products/dell-ultrasharp-2407wfp-hc-24-inch/specs/



2. If my Dell display is not compatible, which iMac would you think is better, the 21.5" of the 27"? I am looking for best bang for my buck to run Adobe Creative Cloud proficiently.



3. Please see attached images of the specs I have selected/upgraded with the Mac Book Pro, Mac Mini, 21.5" iMac and 27" iMac. Do these upgrades and specs look adequate, any recommendations on changing any upgrades?



4. On the newer Macs, are the RAM 2x slots? If I select 16GB RAM, are they 2x 8GB slots? I would like this so I can potentially upgrade to 2x 16GB RAM for a total of 32GB RAM down the road.



THANKS A LOT FOR ANYONE WHO CAN OFFER ADVICE OR WEIGH IN ON THINGS! MUCH APPRECIATED!

 

[pixelatedscraps]

As much as I'm sure there are a ton of people here who don't mind Macrumors into a personalised shopping assistant, some questions first that always make me hesitate before encouraging everyone to buy a new computer:

1) What are the specs of your 2009 Mac Mini (you say it's bitten the dust but later say its cpu can't keep up with CC and why can't you upgrade its internals?)

2) What makes you think you need Adobe CC over say, CS4 or CS5.5 - which should still run pretty well on either your current Mini or a slight SSD / RAM upgrade to it.

3) Your Dell 2407 is a legend (mine lasted just shy of 10 years before abruptly dying), if your Mini is still chugging away, it might be worth exploring the second half of Q2 above - in which case, there's some different advice in store for you.

 

[opeter]

The most important question: what is you budget. Because there is a (big) difference between 1000, 2000, 3000 $.

 

[eyoungren]

Hi everyone,

My 2009 Mac Mini has finally bit the dust. I am getting back into Graphic Design after a layoff for a few years and unfortunately, my 2009 Mac Mini just does not have a fast enough processor or enough RAM to run the current Adobe Creative Cloud. I can't upgrade any parts because it is so old.

I'm just going to put this out there for you…

From February 2005 to mid-2013 I did my job on a late 2004 PowerMac G5 with 4GB ram. Running Adobe CS4, Acrobat 6 Pro, Suitcase Fusion 2 and QuarkXPress 8.5.1. From 2008 to mid-2013 my coworker used a 1999 PowerMac G4 with 1.75GB ram and the same apps.

Both Macs were using Leopard 10.5.8.

We are a weekly newspaper and we put out two papers a week. Ad design and composition, page layout, Classifieds and Legals. We are also responsible for marketing materials for our advertising reps. Those include flyers, banners, signs, etc, whatever is required of us.

My coworker now has my G5 and while I now have a refurbed 2010 Mac Pro (bought mid-2013) at work it's only got 3GB of ram and I am still limited to Adobe CS4 to remain compatible with my coworker.

So, while your statement of things being underpowered and too old may be true I wonder if the unstated assumption that you need a newer and more powerful Mac to be creative is false.

We certainly are not limited by our equipment.

Just saying…

 

[bluetooth]

Thanks for the responses.

1. My 2009 Mac Mini is maxed out in regards to RAM and processor speed because I was told by the Apple tech that upgrading RAM and/or processor speed is not possible because they newer available RAM upgrade and processors are not supported/will not fit my 2009 Mac Mini and the parts that will or would from the 2009 era, are no longer available. I hope that makes sense.

2. I made the big mistake of upgrading my OS on my Mac mini about a year or two ago (can't remember the specific version) but as soon as I did, presto - my CS4 package no longer works on my 2009 Mac Mini due to it not being supported/computable with the new OS. I have the disks and everything and they will install but they will not open. Seems that CS4 is not compatible and does not run on the newer operating system(s). I contacted Adobe and that is what they told me, that CS4 will not work with latest OS on Macs so I am out of luck because I cannot downgrade the Mac OS to earlier versions.

3. My Mac Mini is running very slow, spinning ball all the time, I called and spoke to an Apple tech and he said to bring it in for a diagnostic ($75) but that being old, there is likely not much they can do. He also said nothing would resolve my CS4 issue and just repeated what Adobe told me about it not being compatible with the newer OS on my 2009 Mac Mini. Same goes for Quark Xpress 5, which is old I know but it also will not work or even install properly on the newer Mac OS.

Any comments on the above are welcome.


TO CLEAR THINGS UP

What I was mainly wondering, is will my Dell Display (spec wise) still work with a New Mac Book Pro or a new Mac Mini?

If not, I would likely go with the iMac and thinking about it, lean towards the 27" display as going from a current 24" display with my Dell (which I love) to a 21.5" would be kind of difficult (design wise).

Ideally, I think I would go with a 13" Mac Book Pro IF my Dell display still works. That way, I would have a portable laptop and something I could use at home to hook up to my bigger display. Although a Mac Mini is half the price and would be something to also consider.

Hope this makes sense.

Thanks again for your help!

 

[eyoungren]

Thanks for the responses.

1. My 2009 Mac Mini is maxed out in regards to RAM and processor speed because I was told by the Apple tech that upgrading RAM and/or processor speed is not possible because they newer available RAM upgrade and processors are not supported/will not fit my 2009 Mac Mini and the parts that will or would from the 2009 era, are no longer available. I hope that makes sense.

2. I made the big mistake of upgrading my OS on my Mac mini about a year or two ago (can't remember the specific version) but as soon as I did, presto - my CS4 package no longer works on my 2009 Mac Mini due to it not being supported/computable with the new OS. I have the disks and everything and they will install but they will not open. Seems that CS4 is not compatible and does not run on the newer operating system(s). I contacted Adobe and that is what they told me, that CS4 will not work with latest OS on Macs so I am out of luck because I cannot downgrade the Mac OS to earlier versions.

3. My Mac Mini is running very slow, spinning ball all the time, I called and spoke to an Apple tech and he said to bring it in for a diagnostic ($75) but that being old, there is likely not much they can do. He also said nothing would resolve my CS4 issue and just repeated what Adobe told me about it not being compatible with the newer OS on my 2009 Mac Mini. Same goes for Quark Xpress 5, which is old I know but it also will not work or even install properly on the newer Mac OS.

Any comments on the above are welcome.

The MacPro at work is running OS 10.10.5. This is as far as I dare to go considering I need CS4 to work. Your statements confirm that staying where I am was the right decision to make.

That said, surely you can downgrade! This is not iOS. My understanding is that all you need is the appropriate installer. These are possible to save as they install into the Applications folder (but delete when finished). When upgrading if you quit before the actual upgrade you find the installer.

I would imagine finding one through a Google search should be fairly easy.

Apple always leads you to believe that upgrading and updating are the only path forward because that is what makes them the most money and part of the Apple employee's duty is to sell. But there is usually a way to work around them.

It's just a matter of how much effort you're willing to put into it.

 

[theluggage]

1. If I were to purchase a 13" Mac Book Pro, or a NEW Mac Mini, would my 2007 Dell UltraSharp 2407WFP-HC (24-inch) Display be compatible with a new 13" Mac Book Pro or NEW Mac Mini?

I don't see why not - with a USB-C to DVI (for the MBP) or a MiniDP to DVI (for the Mini).

However, since you're also considering $3k iMacs, I take it money isn't that tight, so you really shouldn't let your desire to keep using a 10-year-old display which may be reaching the end of its life, and has well and truly paid for its keep, influence which $1000+ computer you buy. You don't have to chuck it on the landfill - even if you get an iMac, an extra external display for reference material, control palettes etc. is always useful.

I mean - apart from the display - what do you prefer? A laptop? An all-in-one? A mini with external display?

One of the big attractions of getting a new computer isn't just the speed, its the prospect of having a nice new retina-class display. I've got the newer 2012 1920x1200 24" Ultrasharp - and, yes, it is a great display, I loved it until I started using 4k/5k displays - but its now sitting alongside a 5k iMac and looking rather inferior...

Also, depending on what you are doing in graphic design, you might want to preview how your work is going to look at retina resolution...

2. If my Dell display is not compatible, which iMac would you think is better, the 21.5" of the 27"?

If you can afford it - the 27" iMac wins on bangs-per-buck - and if you're doing graphic design, why wouldn't you want a 5k 27" display?

3. Please see attached images of the specs I have selected/upgraded with the Mac Book Pro, Mac Mini, 21.5" iMac and 27" iMac. Do these upgrades and specs look adequate, any recommendations on changing any upgrades?

Trouble is, "graphic design" is a piece of string. Any of those machines will run Adobe better than your old Mini. If you're designing logos or diagrams etc. or anything that wasn't previously reducing your 2009 Mini to a quivering wreck then I'd say they'd all ace it. If you're compositing lots of really high-res images then the Mini may wave the white flag and the Non-TB MBP might also struggle.

However, on general principles:

1. Forget the Mac Mini unless the form factor is really, really a deal-maker for you. It hasn't been updated for years, and wasn't very special when it was released.

2. You might be fine with the non-touchbar MacBookPro, but the more expensive model with the touchbar also has a better processor/graphics and better connectivity - maybe at the expense of battery life.

3. Friends don't let friends buy iMacs with 5400rpm HDs or 1TB Fusion drives (which only have a miserly 24GB SSD cache). For what you're doing, the big speed boost comes from having the system and temporary files on SSD. Ideally, get a 512GB SSD model, big enough to hold your work-in-progress, and use cheap external storage for archival, photo libraries etc. If not, the 2TB or 3TB Fusion drive models at least have larger SSD caches.

4. Friends don't let friends buy 27" iMacs from Apple with more than 8GB RAM (see below)

4. On the newer Macs, are the RAM 2x slots? If I select 16GB RAM, are they 2x 8GB slots? I would like this so I can potentially upgrade to 2x 16GB RAM for a total of 32GB RAM down the road.

Of those models, only the 27" iMac has user-upgradeable RAM at all - the others are soldered-in and can't be upgraded. Yes, that does suck.

The 27" iMac, however, has 4 very easily-accessible RAM slots, of which only two are used as delivered.
What you do is order an 8GB system from Apple, then go to crucial.com (or similar) use their RAM finder to locate the appropriate RAM upgrade for your model and order a kit with 2x8GB sticks. Stick these in the 2 empty slots for a total of 24GB RAM for significantly less than you would have paid Apple for the upgrade to 16GB. Down the road, if you need 32GB then order the same again and replace the two original 4GB sticks. (NB: when I did this, Crucial were recommending a slightly different model of RAM for the entry-level i5 iMac c.f. all the other models).

Hint: if you don't know whether you need more than 16-24GB RAM, you probably don't.

 

[fig]

The MacPro at work is running OS 10.10.5. This is as far as I dare to go considering I need CS4 to work. Your statements confirm that staying where I am was the right decision to make.

That said, surely you can downgrade! This is not iOS. My understanding is that all you need is the appropriate installer. These are possible to save as they install into the Applications folder (but delete when finished). When upgrading if you quit before the actual upgrade you find the installer.

I would imagine finding one through a Google search should be fairly easy.

Apple always leads you to believe that upgrading and updating are the only path forward because that is what makes them the most money and part of the Apple employee's duty is to sell. But there is usually a way to work around them.

It's just a matter of how much effort you're willing to put into it.

I think this gets into a different argument of whether or not it's worth the hassle to run an old OS just to avoid upgrading other software.

The Photoshop only Adobe CC subscrption is only 10 bucks per month, and Affinity Photo and Designer have become pretty worthy replacement for the Adobe apps. And if you're a working designer you can probably justify the cost of an Adobe CC sub, though I can understand the reasons for not wanting to do so.

For me, those are better options than trying to run an old OS and worrying about compatibility across the board.

 

[eyoungren]

I think this gets into a different argument of whether or not it's worth the hassle to run an old OS just to avoid upgrading other software.

The Photoshop only Adobe CC subscrption is only 10 bucks per month, and Affinity Photo and Designer have become pretty worthy replacement for the Adobe apps. And if you're a working designer you can probably justify the cost of an Adobe CC sub, though I can understand the reasons for not wanting to do so.

For me, those are better options than trying to run an old OS and worrying about compatibility across the board.

Well, as I said, I work for a newspaper. By 5pm today I will by sending our printer 28 PDFs. As long as those PDFs are PDF-X1/A they could care less which app made them.

Now, I am not justifying old equipment and outdated apps. I'm merely saying that it isn't always necessary to be on the bleeding edge to get a job done.

I do have some advantages however. The shop I work for has 10 employees, two of who are the boss and the business manager. I'm alone in my 'department' so I can pretty much decide for myself what I use and how I use it.

That said, I'm not choosing to be outdated on purpose. The nature of design is change and if you don't roll with change you aren't soon employed. But I do have to make do within my boss' budget.

Getting the Mac Pro I have now meant borrowing on the death of the G5 I mentioned to replace it. It's only back now because my boss let me have it (it was dead). I swapped out the logicboard/CPU for $60 and brought it back.

If I hadn't done that I'd still be using that G5.

For the record. I use Suitcase Fusion 5, Acrobat 9 (still with Pitstop Pro), Photoshop CC 2017 and Illustrator CC 2017. I just have to stay on ID CS4 so my coworker can edit any of the ads we do.

At home it's strictly CS4. But I have a Quad PowerMac G5 with 16GB of ram so it's fairly workable for me.

 

[fig]

Yup, all fair points. I held out with CS3 for a long time, it's definitely a case by case basis type of situation.

 

[bluetooth]

Thanks all! Great points and discussion.

Yes it does suck that CS4 no longer works nor does my Quark Xpress but I prefer InDesign, the only catch being that I have an archive of hundreds of old Quark Xpress files but they are pretty much useless.

I am aware of complicated and pricey services that can convert your old Quark files to InDesign files but it's very labour intensive. These places have old G4s and G5s running on the old Operating Systems and if you remember in the old Quark you could save down and save up in terms of versions. So what they do is take your old files and save up or down, then put them into another machine with a different Operating System that can open them and repeat the process until they are at version that is convertible to InDesign.

The cut off for the conversion though is Quark Xpress 6. Any files from Quark Xpress 5 cannot be salvaged or used in InDesign because that version either didn't let you save up or down. I may not have the exacts of the process straight, but it is along the lines of the process stated above and they can only go back as far as Quark Xpress 6. Plus, it is very expensive if you are talking hundreds of files. Oh well. I just think of it as having a HD crash or fry with no backup, in other words, the files are in the grave.

SO A NOTE TO ALL YOU DESIGNERS USING OLDER MACHINES AND SOFTWARE - DON"T UPGRADE YOUR OS! lol.

Problem with downgrading would mean that I wouldn't have the options and features of the new Operating Systems and would it not also slow the speed of the computer as they "claim", each OS is improved and faster etc. I would tend to agree with the poster that said going backwards instead of forward with Operating Systems and Software will likely cause headaches, although I am sure with enough time and effort it could be done. But that is not to say that IF you have an older Mac, like a G5 and you are running CS5 smoothly then by all means, keep on trucking, I would, just don't upgrade your OS because it will render your older CS software useless.

REGARDING THE NEW MACS.

Thanks for all the input and if anyone else wants to chime in, please do. That is terrible that only the 27" iMac has upgradable RAM. I would have thought the Mac Book Pro would have at least had that feature too. Apple does strange things.

So I agree, Mac Mini is out the door as is the 21.5". Maybe the 13" Mac Book Pro with touch bar, max out the Ram is the way to go IF it works with my Dell Display. I wouldn't have the budget to cover the 13" Mac Book Pro with touch bar, max out the RAM and a new Display. I will bring in the Dell specs and ask the Apple guy about it and will also take it to a 3rd party authorized seller and ask the same thing, (they may be less inclined to push a new display on me).

Would be great to have a portable laptop and use my Dell display for a year or two and then add a new display. If not, Dell not compatible for whatever reason, the 27" iMac may be best.

Thanks again to everyone!

BTW, I had a G4 that I purchased in 2002 and it died in 2008, it was $4,000 CDN at the time, lasted me 6 years. I bought a Mac Mini in 2009 and it performed just as well as the G4 with the old CS software, was about $1,500 with the upgrades at purchase and it has lasted me 8 years. So, them the breaks I suppose.

 

[eyoungren]

Thanks all! Great points and discussion.

Yes it does suck that CS4 no longer works nor does my Quark Xpress but I prefer InDesign, the only catch being that I have an archive of hundreds of old Quark Xpress files but they are pretty much useless.

I am aware of complicated and pricey services that can convert your old Quark files to InDesign files but it's very labour intensive. These places have old G4s and G5s running on the old Operating Systems and if you remember in the old Quark you could save down and save up in terms of versions. So what they do is take your old files and save up or down, then put them into another machine with a different Operating System that can open them and repeat the process until they are at version that is convertible to InDesign.

The cut off for the conversion though is Quark Xpress 6. Any files from Quark Xpress 5 cannot be salvaged or used in InDesign because that version either didn't let you save up or down. I may not have the exacts of the process straight, but it is along the lines of the process stated above and they can only go back as far as Quark Xpress 6. Plus, it is very expensive if you are talking hundreds of files. Oh well. I just think of it as having a HD crash or fry with no backup, in other words, the files are in the grave.

SO A NOTE TO ALL YOU DESIGNERS USING OLDER MACHINES AND SOFTWARE - DON"T UPGRADE YOUR OS! lol.

You might want to look into Q2ID. The version I use is compatible with ID CS4 and converts up to XPress 8.

The one I link to will convert up to XPress 2017.

PS. XPress 5 saved documents can be downsaved to 4. Just very few people actually HAD XPress 5.

I have Markztools for XPress though (for XPress 8). PM me and I will give you my email address if you need any files downsaved to 4. You can do that direct with Markztools though.

In any case, having Q2ID is what allowed us to transition fairly easily from XPress 8 to ID CS4.
[doublepost=1503365555][/doublepost]

SO A NOTE TO ALL YOU DESIGNERS USING OLDER MACHINES AND SOFTWARE - DON"T UPGRADE YOUR OS! lol.

Problem with downgrading would mean that I wouldn't have the options and features of the new Operating Systems and would it not also slow the speed of the computer as they "claim", each OS is improved and faster etc. I would tend to agree with the poster that said going backwards instead of forward with Operating Systems and Software will likely cause headaches, although I am sure with enough time and effort it could be done. But that is not to say that IF you have an older Mac, like a G5 and you are running CS5 smoothly then by all means, keep on trucking, I would, just don't upgrade your OS because it will render your older CS software useless.

I'm just going to say on this that Apple isn't always right.

My Mac at work is using Yosemite. As I mentioned, I stopped there so I could keep using CS4. But I have to say that I probably should have stuck with Lion, the OS the Mac came with. I see no speed benefits from Yosemite over an previous OS the Mac was on. Or at least there is nothing I use in Yosemite that is not available in Lion, Snow Leopard or Leopard.

I work for a newspaper. I don't need SIRI, handoff, Airdrop, iMessage or any of that other stuff packed into the system. Furthermore, Mavericks removed my ability to shrink down Finder windows without an Applescript and SMB filesharing with Windows servers on Mavericks was a complete joke. Yosemites only fixed filesharing and not my window issue.

I do not have labels anymore, unless I use XtraFinder and with my workflow you can't see those damn dots Apple uses now. Then there is the fact that because of my window sizing (through Applescript) those tag dots are in a column that is never visible!

I don't have Appletalk and so I have a dedicated Leopard G4 just so the damn MP can print to our Appletalk printers. It'd be pretty useless for printing if I didn't.

In short I see nothing beneficial in the newer systems other than the fact that they are - newer. And newer apps will run on them.

Again, not advocating outdated equipment. But this is my experience in the last four years or so.

 

[MacGizmo]

1. If I were to purchase a 13" Mac Book Pro, or a NEW Mac Mini, would my 2007 Dell UltraSharp 2407WFP-HC (24-inch) Display be compatible with a new 13" Mac Book Pro or NEW Mac Mini?

Yes and no. Your display uses an old DVI interface. The new Macs don't have DVI ports. You will need to buy a DVI-to-USB C dongle. Generally, they run between $20-$50.

2. If my Dell display is not compatible, which iMac would you think is better, the 21.5" of the 27"? I am looking for best bang for my buck to run Adobe Creative Cloud proficiently.

Don't even consider the 21.5" - unless you want to consider all these purchases again in a few years. Get the low-end 27" iMac with 8GB of RAM and at least a 256GB SSD (don't get the Fusion Drive). You can add external storage as you need it, and RAM can be purchased much cheaper as you need it later (though I would just get two 16GB RAM sticks right off the bat and be done with it.

3. Please see attached images of the specs I have selected/upgraded with the Mac Book Pro, Mac Mini, 21.5" iMac and 27" iMac. Do these upgrades and specs look adequate, any recommendations on changing any upgrades?

No Fusion Drives! You won't know what you're missing if you get it... but if you get the pure SSD, you'll wonder how you managed without it. The speed difference is shocking.

4. On the newer Macs, are the RAM 2x slots? If I select 16GB RAM, are they 2x 8GB slots? I would like this so I can potentially upgrade to 2x 16GB RAM for a total of 32GB RAM down the road.

Yes, you can upgrade to up to 64GB with the 4 RAM slots. They're easy to access and snap in the RAM.

 

[VinOrdinaire]

That is terrible that only the 27" iMac has upgradable RAM. I would have thought the Mac Book Pro would have at least had that feature too. Apple does strange things.

So I agree, Mac Mini is out the door as is the 21.5". Maybe the 13" Mac Book Pro with touch bar, max out the Ram is the way to go IF it works with my Dell Display. I wouldn't have the budget to cover the 13" Mac Book Pro with touch bar, max out the RAM and a new Display. I will bring in the Dell specs and ask the Apple guy about it and will also take it to a 3rd party authorized seller and ask the same thing, (they may be less inclined to push a new display on me).

I also had a 2009 Mac Mini. Thought I could hold out till a decent update came out, and I still think it will happen (this fall is looking good for a quad-core 15W processor that would suit the Mini), but I gave up due to the incessant spinning ball that came up during everything I did. My Mini's dual core chip, 5400 RPM hard drive and 4 GB RAM was also no longer eligible for MacOS upgrades. The constant annoyance wore me out.

The all-in-one iMac was not my preferred configuration but was the fastest and most futureproof option. I went with 27" screen, 4.2 GHz i7, 1 TB SSD, 16 GB RAM (which comes as two 8 GB sticks) Radeon Pro 580 graphics card. Aside from price, I couldn't be happier. And I am the sort of user that will keep the PC a long time. Went with 16 GB because I didn't want to use up slots with 2x4 GB sticks but most people advise buying the 8 GB configuration. I didn't get mBP because I can't justify paying a premium for portability and would still want to buy a new external monitor.

The iMac is quiet, fast, with a beautiful screen, and is not a power hog; highly recommended.

 

[bluetooth]

You might want to look into Q2ID. The version I use is compatible with ID CS4 and converts up to XPress 8.

The one I link to will convert up to XPress 2017.

PS. XPress 5 saved documents can be downsaved to 4. Just very few people actually HAD XPress 5.

I have Markztools for XPress though (for XPress 8). PM me and I will give you my email address if you need any files downsaved to 4. You can do that direct with Markztools though.

In any case, having Q2ID is what allowed us to transition fairly easily from XPress 8 to ID CS4.
[doublepost=1503365555][/doublepost]
I'm just going to say on this that Apple isn't always right.

My Mac at work is using Yosemite. As I mentioned, I stopped there so I could keep using CS4. But I have to say that I probably should have stuck with Lion, the OS the Mac came with. I see no speed benefits from Yosemite over an previous OS the Mac was on. Or at least there is nothing I use in Yosemite that is not available in Lion, Snow Leopard or Leopard.

I work for a newspaper. I don't need SIRI, handoff, Airdrop, iMessage or any of that other stuff packed into the system. Furthermore, Mavericks removed my ability to shrink down Finder windows without an Applescript and SMB filesharing with Windows servers on Mavericks was a complete joke. Yosemites only fixed filesharing and not my window issue.

I do not have labels anymore, unless I use XtraFinder and with my workflow you can't see those damn dots Apple uses now. Then there is the fact that because of my window sizing (through Applescript) those tag dots are in a column that is never visible!

I don't have Appletalk and so I have a dedicated Leopard G4 just so the damn MP can print to our Appletalk printers. It'd be pretty useless for printing if I didn't.

In short I see nothing beneficial in the newer systems other than the fact that they are - newer. And newer apps will run on them.

Again, not advocating outdated equipment. But this is my experience in the last four years or so.

Great insight, thanks for sharing. I may take you up on that PM. I agree though, I never notice much of a speed difference when upgrading the OS. I was running CS4 on Lion perfectly.
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I also had a 2009 Mac Mini. Thought I could hold out till a decent update came out, and I still think it will happen (this fall is looking good for a quad-core 15W processor that would suit the Mini), but I gave up due to the incessant spinning ball that came up during everything I did. My Mini's dual core chip, 5400 RPM hard drive and 4 GB RAM was also no longer eligible for MacOS upgrades. The constant annoyance wore me out.

The all-in-one iMac was not my preferred configuration but was the fastest and most futureproof option. I went with 27" screen, 4.2 GHz i7, 1 TB SSD, 16 GB RAM (which comes as two 8 GB sticks) Radeon Pro 580 graphics card. Aside from price, I couldn't be happier. And I am the sort of user that will keep the PC a long time. Went with 16 GB because I didn't want to use up slots with 2x4 GB sticks but most people advise buying the 8 GB configuration. I didn't get mBP because I can't justify paying a premium for portability and would still want to buy a new external monitor.

The iMac is quiet, fast, with a beautiful screen, and is not a power hog; highly recommended.

Thanks for sharing your experience and info. Yes, I have that darn spinning ball all the time, even when I am not in Apps and just working through the Finder. Some days are worse than others but some days it gets so bad, I have to shut down and walk away. Everything will just freeze and I also get terrible lag when I type on most days.

 

[organicCPU]

If you still consider downgrading your Mac and reinstall CS4 from your installer medias, you may notice that Adobe closed their registration servers long time ago and you won't be able to activate your installed products. I had this problem with CS6 some time ago. If you'll run into the same hurdles, fortunately there are installers that should work at Adobe's site:
https://helpx.adobe.com/creative-suite/kb/cs4-product-downloads.html

As a Mac mini 2009 isn't able to do an internet recovery, you'll need to install it manually.

As I stopped using CS4 some time ago, I can only speak for CS5.5 and CS6. CS6 does run on El Capitan on my MacBook Pro 2015 pretty good, CS5.5 is failing in many things. I'm planning to upgrade to Sierra soon and see how it will work.

On my older MacBook Pro 2012 that came with Lion, I run CS5.5 and CS6 on Mountain Lion without noteworthy problems. The drawback of using Mac OS X 10.8.5 is, that it is deprecated for several years and therefore are no more security updates available. But what really hurts is the fact, that not even Firefox ESR is getting anymore updates. Nevertheless, Mountain Lion is my long term proven production system for all design works and will be for some more time.

Did you know, that Apple is planning to release an iMac Pro this fall? Maybe you should think about downgrading and await this promising all new iMac release. https://www.apple.com/ca/imac-pro/

EDIT: If downgrading is an option, consider a SSD.

 

[nexusrule]

Yes, I have that darn spinning ball all the time, even when I am not in Apps and just working through the Finder. Some days are worse than others but some days it gets so bad, I have to shut down and walk away. Everything will just freeze and I also get terrible lag when I type on most days.

Your problem is very probably the mechanical hard drive.

 

[PinkyMacGodess]

I have CS4 running on El Cap'n, and things seem to be running pretty well, except for Firefox running like a pig at times.