As I start writing this blog post, I know it is going to incite some readers into thinking “them’s fightin’ words!” but that is really not my intention, so please take this post for what it is.
I have recently been doing some photography for friends who are in school who want portraits done. Thanks to my amazing mother-in-law and father-in-law, I have a ridiculously nice camera that allows me to take professional quality photos, and I’ve always enjoyed the look on someone’s face when you capture that moment, that look, that catches them at their best. Most of the work of making a great photo is done camera side, but every once in a while, you need to tweak the photo on the computer. That’s why I want my wife to let me buy a Mac.
But we can’t justify the cost at this point. I have a really nice PC laptop that gets the job done. It has plenty of RAM, a dual core processor, dedicated graphics card… sorry I geeked out there for a second… For you non-geeks, it’s more than passable and definitely works well. There’s no “need” for a Mac in my house. Except it’s sexy. Can I say that on this blog? It really is. I want to be cool. I want the new MacBook Pro. I want people to have laptop envy.
Let’s move this scenario into your church offices. What’s your set up? Has your church invested $1700 on a laptop for your secretary that doesn’t do anything other than email and use your church CMS? Does your Youth Minister “need” a $2900 MacBook Pro to create 1 t-shirt a year?
As stewards of the gifts God has entrusted us with, we must evaluate what we are spending money on, even if Apple tells us we will look like geeky nerds who go to sleep hugging spreadsheets. Here’s some questions that might help you determine how much computer power you really need:
- Will this computer be used for graphic & video editing? If you said yes, then a powerful machine is a must. This is the person in the church that needs the big-daddy computer. Now, Mac or PC, that’s your call, but make sure you trick that bad boy out!
- How much use will this computer get? If you said minimal use, email or internet use, church CMS use, then you can probably get by with a lower end computer. Don’t break the bank on this machine.
- Do I really need this to be portable? I know a number of people with work laptops, who leave them at their desks. Every day. Save some money and buy a desktop.
So what does your church use? Mac or PC? Laptops or desktops? Who has the nicest machine? Why? Is it time to hold a draft party and re-assign computers? Let us know how you do it!
Photo By: lizzardo
May 5th, 2010 at 8:04 pm
Our graphic designer and i (i do the website and edit video) have the nicest computers (quad core 4+gb ram, etc) in the church. Everyone else has p4 2.5ghz to some core2 duo's which are probably $600 or less per machine. Our IT manager is pretty good about saving money when it comes to our IT budget. Another tip i would suggest Greg is using friends that work for microsoft/adobe to buy the software at company store prices and sell or donate it to the church.
May 5th, 2010 at 8:19 pm
Right on. That's a great idea! Something you didn't put in your comment I was curious- do you have Mac or PC machines since you are both working with media? I know it's a sin to use a PC to do design right? I mean, I don't even know why they make Photoshop outside of the Mac environment!
May 5th, 2010 at 8:25 pm
Well we WANT macs but we use PC's so CS5 coming in June for us due to a church member that works at Adobe and Sony vegas for video editing although i am looking into PremierPro and After effects when cs5 comes.
May 6th, 2010 at 6:32 pm
Our church is very small. We own one six year old PC for the church office that the pastor, secretary (4 hours/week) and everyone else share. We did manage to upgrade to a wireless high speed internet connection (cell service is cheaper than cable) this year though. Nothing fancy but it gets the job done.
May 6th, 2010 at 7:42 pm
John- that's exactly what I'm talking about. Doesn't need to be fancy, just get the job done. I think I'd start wanting to pull my hair out using a 6 year old computer, but I understand computers can be an investment. Luckily, in this day and age, you can score a decent PC new for a few hundred dollars that would probably blow the current machine out of the water. But then again, if it ain't broke, don't fix it!
May 6th, 2010 at 7:44 pm
Eric- I am a PC guy (mostly due to financial reason). My uncle got me a killer computer for my high school graduation that I was able to build a video editing suite onto during school (I majored in radio/tv communication). I think for most people, Adobe Premiere & After Effects on a good quality PC work just fine. If you are trying to get your Indy Production into Sundance, they you should probably get Final Cut Pro and a Mac.
July 21st, 2010 at 8:19 pm
Mac is best for video editing and stability… IF you can afford the purchase. The problem is in a church environment you have to try and justify buying one mac over buying three or four really good PC's for the same money.
We are in the process of buying a new media computer for the sanctuary. I am looking at a Intel Core i5-750 2.66GHz with 8GB DDR3 and a 1TB HDD. I have found that when you go looking for computers theones that work the best in a high-intensity graphics format are the ones that are made for gaming. I will be adding an M-Audio Delta 1010LT audio card so that the connection to the board is better (don't EVER try to run to the board through a headphone jack… lol). The computer will have easyworship on it, but no editing programs. I have basically the same computer in my office that is loaded with Vegas and all that.