Chills

1 There is no "normal" Some programs upgrade the app that is there and over write. Some install a new version that runs beside the original. Many, like Affinity will update the version X.* with sub versions but when the get to version Y.0 they install a new version beside the Version X.* 2 It is not "normal" for files to be backwards compatible. Sometimes they are and some times not. Often when new features are added to a program the file formats they save change and they are not open-able by a previous version. Though the latest version will open the old versions. Sometimes they may even let you save in older formats. Affinity does not. Points 1 and 2 have been true for as long as I have been using and writing software IE over 45 years. With Affinity they update the app with minor versions but install a new app on major version changes. This is quite common with many apps. So Version X.1 will be updated to VersionX.1 but when it gets to Version Y.0 it will install a new version beside Version X.* With Affinity V2 it installs a new App beside V1 because the V2 files have a different format and can not be opened by V1 apps. When you open your V1 files in V2 it will save them as V2 and you can't open them in V1 any more. So the question is: Are you working with people still using Affinity V1? If not you can delete the V1 Apps. I did. Especially as the V2 Affinity are a LOT smaller than the V1 apps. You will reclaim a lot of HDD space.

The problem is that unlike Windows and OSX, Linux is not an OS. Linux is the name given to a collection of several thousand different OS. There are some programs that have the complexity of the Affinity suite that run on Linux but they run on ONE SPECIFIC distribution. So Affinity might do an XYZ Linux version which may not be too difficult as OSX is POSIX compliant and Linux is not too far off. The other problem, less so for Affinity than other apps, is licensing of Codecs. Both Apple and Microsoft license some codecs you simply can't get on any Linux. Finally the number of installed Linux users who would want Affinity is VERY small (even if the users are vocal). It simply isn't commercially viable to do a Linux version (for a single Linux distribution) for the number of potential users.

Now I understand. Many thanks. Having uninstalled the Open Sans fonts and then reinstalled the static ones, I am now sorted.

What have you found? it makes no sense to me.

Hi I have Open Sans installed (a Google font) that has 15 TTF faces they are correctly shown in all the other software I have but Publisher shows them as below... I have six "regular" and three "italic" rather than showing 9 fonts correctly. I can supply the font package to Affinity if this would help. I am on Windows 11 (upgraded from Win10... this is URGENT as I have a client that wants me to use the Open Sans font.

With the older Macs eg the 2015 vintage you can replace the HDD/SSD etc (or upgrade HDD to SSD, I did) you can't do that on the M1/2 Macs. The problem is the SSD's on the M1/2s are very fast so people don't realise they are "thrashing the disk" as we used to say. This is the killer flaw. Cynics would say Apple have done this intentionally so that people have to buy new Macs every 4-6years. I am not so sure. If you buy the right spec mac it should last a good long while. However that can be expensive.

Inless you are just doing emails, web serfing and the odd light office document: you also NEED 512GB SSD MINIMUM The problem is on just the OS but the applications also use swap pages and write temporary files etc. You some times have some control over this if you dig deep enough in to the advanced preferences in the apps. You need a larger SSD that has wear leveling to even out the wear of the flash so that the SSD lasts long enough. Note that people are talking about a 3-4 year life for these M1/2 Macs. IT seems to be entering the Mac world as a reality now. My older MAcs have a 15 year life. Very cost effective, . My PC's a similar life span. But then I can upgrade both my PCs and Macs. The problem is the M1/2 Macs have componants with a finite life span. That on current usage for many is 4-5 years. For some power users (photo, video, audio) with lower spec Macs it is 3-4 years.

EDIT Answer deleted as more fully answered in post above.

As the saying goes: Eat shit! 10 million flies can't be wrong. Apple is chasing the consumer market who go for style. The professional market that worked on performance is leaving Apple for other things. Not all of the pros are going, many have too much invested in Apple but lot have gone.

Interestingly in a discussions elsewhere The video industry is jumping to Windows and Linux. Particularly for the reasons above however in a discussion with some audio people it seems the music/recording industry has also moved off Macs for PCs. It seems that the Professionals in Music, Video and according to NPM Graphics are leaving Apple. This is not a surprise as Apple has over the last decade or so chased he mass consumer market at the expense of the Professional market which, it has to be said is now a niche market for Apple. The Mac Pro user base is probably as large as it was in numbers but as a percentage of Apple sales is now lost in the mist. The killer was the "Trash-Can" Mac Pro. That was a real kick in the nuts. The new Mac Pro that went back to the silver crate format of the previous one was too little too late and far too expensive. Most I know who trialed it returned it to Apple. Also as several people pointed out you could build an entry Pro spec PC for half the cost and for several design reasons the PC would perform better than the mac. In fact the same as the pro two levels up. Not Good Especially when the Professionals knew the "Arm-Based" Macs were on the horizon. Why buy an expensive pro that was about to become obsolete? That broke the connection for most pro users with Apple. It is up to Apple how they work. If had plenty of spare cash I would have an m2 laptop as they are nice to use. For serious work it is now a PC.

in the past yes. However the new M1s have a shorter life span if you skimp on the RAM and SSD size. Apple has calculated that most users won't fail inside the 3 year Apple Care. After 3 years the new M1s will have zero resale value. That is the problem. If you can afford the max RAM and SSD they will hold their value if you are not a video editor.

That is a marketing answer. You are buying a dream and don't want a technical answer. OSX reminds me of Solaris I used in the mid 1990s The file management system has changed several times. Even as OSX. Go buy your dream and be happy.

You only quoted hald of what I said. The x86 architecure is a pig. Have you seem the segmented adressing? Windows is several very different systems depending on which one. Just as System 7 and OSX were compoletley different. This is a purly techical discussion.

I said ignore the hype, marketing and brands. You have a requirement, look at how you can meet that requirement technically and at what costs and with options. As you may have noticed I am an Electronics/software engineer with no brand loyalty. I have macs, PCs and linux boxes puls a whole load of sutff that is different. If you can't get a "referbished" 16GB/512SSD M1 then lookat a PC and add RAM and SSD's and M.2s as you can afford them. The only thing is don't skimp on the CPU. Everything else is an easy upgrade. People buying Merc S, BMW 7s and Audis have money to spare. You don't. Do not get sucked in by the hype and marketing. Windows ins't ugly*, the x86 architecture is though. That said untill recently both PC's and Macs were x86. I have used PCC and Intel macs. *Windows is not what it was. It has compleltey changed architecures over the years. It was based on the VAX OS principals at one point Interestingly Macs (Lisa?) were origionally Motorola 68K based at the beginning before going to Motorola PPC then Intel x86. Spiritually the ARM parts are connected to the 68K (you have to know the background history of the industry for this) So one could argue the Apple M1s have come spiritually full circle.

Quite. My appolgies for riasing to the bait. On the original point:- the minimum, for anything other than email, web surfing and simple documents, is an M1 with 16GB Ram / 512SSD. If the OP can't afford that then look at the "refurbished" part of the Apple Web site for one. With the Launch of the M2 etc. at the bare minimum the stock will have a new motherboard (with new RAM and SSD). More likely it will be a completely new machine. The refurbished area is where Apple gets rid of excess [new] stock. Otherwise look at why “it has to be” a MAC. You can probably get a better spec Windows PC and then add more RAM and SSD’s or M.2 drives later. Also you can up the graphics card. Important if you are doing photo work. My Mac Pro does not have the original Graphics card in it. Though even for upgradeable macs the choices are limited and more expensive than a PC. The problem with the new Macs is you can’t upgrade them or replace parts. So ignore the hype, marketing and brands. Work out what you actually need.