new mac pro

Posted on
Sun Oct 25, 2015 4:22 pm
kw123 offline
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new mac pro

I need another box to run a twitter analysis. It is currently running on my 2008 Mac Pro in parallel to indigo, security spy and my general stuff

The twitter thing does not need a lot of cpu but a lot of memory ~ 100 python jobs each ~ 300+mbyte (querying twitter with 100 ids as they throttle the queries for each id) . OS X does a nice job compressing memory .. it works fine, but is at its limit, would like to go to 200 jobs, that would over stretch the box..

I am considering
(a) get a new mac pro, keep twitter + security spy on old Mac Pro and run indigo and my day to day stuff on the new Mac Pro or some other split
(b) get a linux box and move just twitter onto that box
(c) get a mac mini and put just indigo and security spy on that one and keep the mac pro for day to day stuff and twitter analysis. ( but that would not get me the new thing on my desk)

the new mac pro is now 2 years old and still sells for the same price .. I wanted to wait until they come out with a new version, but that seems to be a year out

any suggestions?

Karl

Posted on
Mon Oct 26, 2015 9:19 am
jay (support) offline
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Re: new mac pro

Personally, I've decided that Mac Pros are really not worth the price any more. They used to have the advantage of expandability via standard slots and bays - this is no longer the case. And the technologies I work with just don't need the kind of compute power that you're paying for. When my development 2009 Mac Pro finally becomes unusable (El Capitan is pushing it), I'll not be replacing it with a Mac Pro.

In terms of your options, of course I would do C - but that's because I'm me. If your twitter thing is your actual job or you're making money off of it, then it might make sense to do B since that one is actually contributing to your income. I definitely wouldn't do A... ;)

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Posted on
Mon Oct 26, 2015 10:31 am
kw123 offline
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Re: new mac pro

Twitter is for research for my son. I can look cool that I can show him how to use Python and download 900 gbytes of tweets for 2 million followers of political parties.
And yes I guess option c is likely that path I will take but it is disappointing. On macrumors they suggest that a new mini should be coming out. But that's just a rumor I guess.

We really should see if we can't move indigo to a Linux box one basic that we buy from you , no config no hassle. Or one we can configure ourselves and have fun with it.


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Posted on
Mon Oct 26, 2015 11:34 am
RogueProeliator offline
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Re: new mac pro

Personally, I've decided that Mac Pros are really not worth the price any more. They used to have the advantage of expandability via standard slots and bays - this is no longer the case. And the technologies I work with just don't need the kind of compute power that you're paying for.

Totally agree with all that -- my MacPro is a very well designed machine that you can upgrade, ticker, whatever. In fact, this is my second one - the first was handed down to my wife and is still going relatively strong 9 years on! I'd probably buy an iMac in lieu of the new MacPro can-style machines.

Karl, I personally would grab an old Dell server machine off eBay or similar. They still have a ton of power, especially when loaded with a RedHat or Ubuntu. Dual NIC cards, load balanced, and the hyper-threaded CPUs will give you a nice multi-thread/multi-process performer. Only downside is they can be a little loud under load though you can turn down the cooling fans if you know they are running within reasonable temps.

Adam

Posted on
Mon Oct 26, 2015 5:06 pm
petematheson offline
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Re: new mac pro

As an owner of a 2012 MacBook Pro, 2015 MacBook Pro (there's no real difference), and an 2015 iMac...

I'd definitely suggest if anything, and new MacBook Pro.

The Mac pros do have the processing power, however more for REALLY intense stuff like 64 tracks of audio or high end video editing. The MacBook pros have the performance (mainly from the flash storage) that's not too overkill. The iMacs aren't really that great performance wise unless you upgrade to the flash storage. Even with the fusion drive it's no match for flash. Then it costs a bucket because of Apples flash prices.

I have a Mac mini running indigo and other home stuff like plex, newsgroup downloading apps / scanners etc.. I've found this to work really well. Keeps everything separate and doesn't interrupt anything if you need to reboot / do maintenance / take the MacBook Pro out of the house.

Posted on
Mon Oct 26, 2015 6:40 pm
kw123 offline
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Re: new mac pro

I ordered a used Mac mini i7 w 2 tb fusion drive
I remember there was a discussion on how to use a headless mini but I can't find the thread.


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Posted on
Mon Oct 26, 2015 8:24 pm
DaveL17 offline
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Re: new mac pro


I came here to drink milk and kick ass....and I've just finished my milk.

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Posted on
Mon Oct 26, 2015 8:34 pm
keifer1 offline
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Re: new mac pro

I had speed issues with a headless mac, this did the trick.....


http://blog.macminicolo.net/post/338396 ... s-mac-mini

At least in past their was an issue with core animation. This really slowed down somethings on the headless mac.

Computer Keith
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Posted on
Mon Oct 26, 2015 9:32 pm
kw123 offline
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Re: new mac pro

thanks for the links, yes thats what I was looking for

Karl

Posted on
Wed May 04, 2016 9:38 am
srkinard offline
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Location: Austin, Texas

Re: new mac pro

jay (support) wrote:
When my development 2009 Mac Pro finally becomes unusable (El Capitan is pushing it), I'll not be replacing it with a Mac Pro.


I know this is an older thread, but I put a bit of new life into my 2009 Mac Pro by flashing the firmware with the 2010 version and putting a pair of 6-core Xeons in it.

1. Flash firmware http://arstechnica.com/apple/2011/05/firmware-hack-can-transform-a-2009-mac-pro-into-a-12-core-monster/
2. De-lid a pair of 6-core Xeon CPUs I got...the 2009 model doesn't use the IHS (Integrated Heat Spreader) so those had to be removed to fit with the factory heatsink.
3. eBay RAM - standard Dell server memory for a R710 or similar. Now have 64GB in the machine.
4. 240GB SSD
5. MacVidCards-flashed nVidia GTX570 (needed a booster PSU mounted in the 2nd optical bay) but you can get less power-hungry Mac video cards. Standard PC cards work but no boot screen shows since they lack the EFI BIOS.

I still have a few of the 6-core CPUs left...you're here in Austin too so would be easy to give them to you if you wanted. I'd just need to de-lid them. Learned the hard way with one of the 1st ones where the resistors under the lid were when I pushed the razor blade through it and destroyed the CPU.

It really only took about an hour to upgrade mine.

I could hook you up with the CPUs and some RAM...anything to help with v7 development :lol:

Posted on
Wed May 04, 2016 4:16 pm
jay (support) offline
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Re: new mac pro

Thanks for the offer, but the Mac Pro is history. I finally just got fed up with it, so when I sold my house I set aside some of the profit to buy a new MacBook Pro 15". It's hooked up to my two external monitors and is amazingly fast. Just waiting on my horizontal Henge Dock to arrive to complete the setup.

The Mac Pro is now just sitting by my desk waiting to get wiped and sold on eBay.

Jay (Indigo Support)
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Posted on
Wed May 04, 2016 4:33 pm
srkinard offline
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Re: new mac pro

Ah...cool. My main daily use machine is a Mid-2012 15" Retina MBP...so yeah...and the new ones with the next-gen SSDs are really fast. I need to start planning to upgrade myself.

Posted on
Thu May 05, 2016 10:24 am
Colorado4Wheeler offline
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Re: new mac pro

jay (support) wrote:
The Mac Pro is now just sitting by my desk waiting to get wiped and sold on eBay.


Yea, I have a 2013 Mac Pro and I'm ordering a MacBook Pro 15" to replace it and put mine on eBay as well. I still have a 2010 Mac Pro with all the expansion and it's a workhorse but a power hungry pig too so I'm consolidating my two Mac Pro's, two Mini's and a MacBook Air and that will cover the cost of the MacBook with plenty left over and I'll be good.

That being said I still run Indigo on my Mac Mini 2011 and it works great, even with SecuritySpy and a ton of other HA stuff on it. I maxxed the memory and put in an SSD and it's the perfect headless HA system.

There have been many times I thought "maybe I'll just use the Verde for HA and rid myself of all these computers" and then I think about how much stuff Indigo does and how many untold hundreds of hours of Python scripting I've done and I scrap that idea right quick ;).

My Modest Contributions to Indigo:

HomeKit Bridge | Device Extensions | Security Manager | LCD Creator | Room-O-Matic | Smart Dimmer | Scene Toggle | Powermiser | Homebridge Buddy

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Posted on
Thu May 05, 2016 10:46 am
srkinard offline
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Re: new mac pro

My Mac Pro runs a lot of stuff...Plex Media Server, Transmission, Sonarr, SABnzbd+, File Sharing (36TB storage via SAS HBA/Expander Chassis), Time Machine Server, Mail Server, etc.

I moved Indigo to a 2011 mini also...easier to separate it from the more likely to get rebooted Pro, plus I positioned the headless mini centrally so it has an almost equal reach to all devices.

Posted on
Thu May 05, 2016 11:18 am
durosity offline
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Re: new mac pro

srkinard wrote:
My Mac Pro runs a lot of stuff...Plex Media Server, Transmission, Sonarr, SABnzbd+, File Sharing (36TB storage via SAS HBA/Expander Chassis), Time Machine Server, Mail Server, etc.

I moved Indigo to a 2011 mini also...easier to separate it from the more likely to get rebooted Pro, plus I positioned the headless mini centrally so it has an almost equal reach to all devices.


Strangely I did the exact opposite, I moved from a 2011 Mac mini to a 2008 8 core Mac Pro and have found it so much more stable (after a few teething issues).. I was just sick of odd USB hub issues and the mess of external hds and what not.. Now everything that can sits inside the pro (with a 4 port USB pci card and pci serial card) and the whole setup is a lot tidier and much more stable.

Computer says no.

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