Author Topic: Macs, Development, and NWN  (Read 1598 times)

EberronBruce

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Macs, Development, and NWN
« on: May 22, 2015, 10:13:15 AM »
Hey guys,

I have a question.

I am not much of a Mac user. However, I will need to get a new computer as my current is dying and I will be getting a job as an iOS developer soon. So, I would like to get a Mac to be able to train and develop for the iOS, Android, Websites, and other developmental projects. I also would like to be able to continue NWN as well when I can. I heard of a thing called WINE which is a windows emulator.

Here is my the issue. I am unsure of which Mac to get. I know I want a laptop and I will have maybe around $1,000 USD as my budget give or take.

So which Mac would be the best to get for my situation? Which would be better, a higher end i5 or low end i7? And how will I be able to setup a Mac to play NWN?

functor

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Re: Macs, Development, and NWN
« Reply #1 on: May 22, 2015, 10:30:02 AM »
Use a mac myself, let me try to help you.

I am unsure really which one to advise, but the current Air line is pleasing to most people who get it. However people who surround me don't write and compile code on it. From a daily user perspective, configuring 8gb ram is preferential. Otherwise it's rather a question if you need a lot of processor power to compile things; people online say iOS development is ok on Air, so...

My family member owns a retina MBP; it is an eyecandy but performance-wise the difference is not that unthinkable.

As for NWN, I run it on my 2012 non-retina MBP with little issue. I use a Wineskin with a few tweaks as advised by wineHQ. I can even tell you the engine name: WS9WineCX14.0.0 --- with this one the game runs almost natively (no problem of alt-tabbing, layouts switch in game if you need etc.). The only thing I have is the disabled anti-aliasing, but that proved to be minor.

So my concrete advise would be (maybe refurbished certified to save money) 2013 or newer MBAir 13 inch with 8gb ram and maybe 256gb drive.

functor

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Re: Macs, Development, and NWN
« Reply #2 on: May 22, 2015, 10:34:03 AM »
PS if I was in the market at the very moment with like $1100 budget, I'd seriously consider this http://store.apple.com/us/product/FGX82LL/A/refurbished-133-inch-macbook-pro-26ghz-dual-core-intel-i5-with-retina-display (it is certified refurbished, so I suppose it works just like new, but costs less)

Purist

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Re: Macs, Development, and NWN
« Reply #3 on: May 22, 2015, 10:52:20 AM »
This is the place for MAC gaming.

Get something called "The Porting Kit". With this software piece, all else you need is the GOG Neverwinter Nights installer.

During the week I play from a Macbook Pro, which the hardware isn't much of a biggie nowadays, but it runs NWN well, specially after I disabled some visual effects. Didn't take too long for me to adapt to playing without a mouse, using the touch pad thing.
« Last Edit: May 22, 2015, 10:57:32 AM by Purist »