Graphic editing application

[Vaizard]

So i mainly got a MacBook Pro because of you and then my win PC died 4 days later so now I HAVE to do everything on the Mac (yay to the HL2 Cider Version)

I have 2 quick questions:
1. Which (free) application would you suggest for graphic editing? (i tested gimp but it is slow for no reason i know of)

2. How the heck do you keep those damn things clean? oO The grey is a real dirt magnet and the screen :/ i should stopp smoking

[OrcishIncubus]

For your second question, get a clean washcloth or rag and use rubbing alcohol to clean the exterior, it's debatable how good it is for the screen, but meh.  It'll do fine for the exterior.

[Knightslugger]

debatable indeed. use a VERY mild detergent if you're going clean the LCD screen. my favorite is a warm damp cloth for just about everything.

[OrcishIncubus]

Been using rubbing alcohol and a clean washcloth/rag for a while on my LCD... haven't had any problems...

[Knightslugger]

Straight 83% Alcohol... by chance, do you know what material the LCD screen is comprised of?

[OrcishIncubus]

Straight 83% Alcohol... by chance, do you know what material the LCD screen is comprised of?

Isopropyl ~70% alcohol.

Nope.

[Knightslugger]

70% eh?  i'd dilute it even further. The general rule in the motor pool was if you can light it on fire, don't use it to clean the windows of the HMMWVs (made of polypropylene)... which also carries over to other soft plastics as well, such as window tinting, and decals, plastic windshields on motorcycles (learned that the hard way) and visors... kinda stuck with me, so i avoid alcohols when cleaning plastics. do with it what you like, i've always used water and a mild detergent.

are the glossy screens made of glass? or is that polycarb as well?

[Hawk]

So i mainly got a MacBook Pro because of you and then my win PC died 4 days later so now I HAVE to do everything on the Mac (yay to the HL2 Cider Version)

I have 2 quick questions:
1. Which (free) application would you suggest for graphic editing? (i tested gimp but it is slow for no reason i know of)

2. How the heck do you keep those damn things clean? oO The grey is a real dirt magnet and the screen :/ i should stopp smoking

i doubt you can find a decent free for graphic editing. pixelmator is pretty close to photoshop and it's not that expensive.

get a screen cloth and have it with you at all time.

[joltvolta]

I have 2 quick questions:
1. Which (free) application would you suggest for graphic editing? (i tested gimp but it is slow for no reason i know of)

2. How the heck do you keep those damn things clean? oO The grey is a real dirt magnet and the screen :/ i should stopp smoking

1. I would suggest giving Gimp another try. Gimp devs are continuously making improvements and putting out releases. Gimp version 2.6 came out in the beginning of October and list some interesting improvements.

( 2.6 release notes: http://gimp.org/release-notes/gimp-2.6.html )

As for 'slow for no reason', I would run a few searches in the GIMP forum for possible solutions, that is if the problem still exists with the newer version.

There is Krita that comes with KOffice, but that runs under KDE (*nix OS). Probably doesn't help.

2. A manual came with it, right? Right. I'm invoking the power of RTFM on this one. It should provide information on the proper care. BUT! I understand lazy as I too am lazy.  . Here is a link of Apple's care page: http://www.apple.com/support/macbookpro/care/

[OrcishIncubus]

70% eh?  i'd dilute it even further. The general rule in the motor pool was if you can light it on fire, don't use it to clean the windows of the HMMWVs (made of polypropylene)... which also carries over to other soft plastics as well, such as window tinting, and decals, plastic windshields on motorcycles (learned that the hard way) and visors... kinda stuck with me, so i avoid alcohols when cleaning plastics. do with it what you like, i've always used water and a mild detergent.

are the glossy screens made of glass? or is that polycarb as well?

I never understood WHAT would happen by using rubbing alcohol, I've read about people using it for years on screens and never having a problem.  Sure, the LCD may scream if it were an animate object, but what else could happen?

[Keizuki]

WHAT - going by what Knightslugger said it'd probably 'melt' your screen. So you'd end up with a busted screen. Not exactly what you want after just wanting to clean it up. Would I be right and say it'd be like cleaning those Swarovski crystal things with a metal scouring pad rather than a cotton cloth?

I also agree with what he says: use a damp cloth with water preferably warm, with some mild detergent or soap. Your screen can't get that dirty to require an alcohol based product...

Unless you have idiots round you like I do that point at stuff on the screen and jab at it with grubby fingers. I never understood why people do that - when they point at stuff they cover the stuff they're pointing at making it almost possible to click on it. Anyway enough of me ranting. ; )

Free image editing app: Gimp even though it doesn't work on Intel Mac's with 10.5 unless you do a load of crap to get it to work. But then again you could spend a few quid on say Photoshop Elements or something similar. Apple also provide information on how to keep your screens and other hardware clean, joltova put it right RTFM or Google ; ).

[OrcishIncubus]

WHAT - going by what Knightslugger said it'd probably 'melt' your screen. So you'd end up with a busted screen. Not exactly what you want after just wanting to clean it up. Would I be right and say it'd be like cleaning those Swarovski crystal things with a metal scouring pad rather than a cotton cloth?

I also agree with what he says: use a damp cloth with water preferably warm, with some mild detergent or soap. Your screen can't get that dirty to require an alcohol based product...

Unless you have idiots round you like I do that point at stuff on the screen and jab at it with grubby fingers. I never understood why people do that - when they point at stuff they cover the stuff they're pointing at making it almost possible to click on it. Anyway enough of me ranting. ; )

Free image editing app: Gimp even though it doesn't work on Intel Mac's with 10.5 unless you do a load of crap to get it to work. But then again you could spend a few quid on say Photoshop Elements or something similar. Apple also provide information on how to keep your screens and other hardware clean, joltova put it right RTFM or Google ; ).

You'd be surprised who I live with.  Luckily my nephew isn't allowed on my computer... I'd probly smash a few heads if he were...

I don't wash the screen often /shrug ... and I use rubbing alcohol cause it's easy to find, I'm lazy, I take a damp cloth, pour rubbing alcohol on, and wipe the screen down once, it's clean.

[Keizuki]

I guess so long as the quantity is not that large and it's done once it should evaporate quickly enough that it won't do any damage. So go with what you know works. : )