[X4U] New Mac Pro's and Video Cards

[Zane H. Healy]

I'm starting to finally look into replacing my Rev.0 G5 2x2 with a brand-new
Mac Pro.  The primary reason for upgrading is Adobe Lightroom 2, Adobe
Photoshop CS3 extended, and Nikon Capture NX.  With the rest of my
applications the G5 is still more or less fast enough.

I am also interested in adding either VMware or Parallels Desktop to the
mix so I can run Windows or Linux at the same time.  I doubt playing games
under a virtual machine is that practical, but I have a couple niche apps
that are only available on Windows (in one case there is also a Linux
version).

Given that my primary use will be for graphics, is there any real reason to
mess with anything other than the stock GeForce GT 120?

I'd rather put the money the better video card would cost towards more RAM
for the system.  My G5 is at 7GB and I often need more so I want to have
16GB in the Mac Pro.

I think I can hold off on any Hard Drive upgrades by simply moving my data
drive over, and digging into the stash of old hard drives my G5 has
outgrown.

The G5 will either find a new life as a Digital Audio Workstation, or a Mac
for my kids.  As I'll also need to either run Claris Draw on an old Mac or
under emulation, the DAW idea has merit.

Zane