For those of us using Apple computers, a new OS "Snow Leopard" 10.6 has been released. I have tested it somewhat and found the following:

Vue 7.4 (with most recent patch from e-on) in Snow Leopard seems to crash at random times shortly after starting the program or upon exit. I have also seen it crash once after saving a scene, but not able to replicate the results again. Seems to also hang at random times on some scenes, especially the more complex ones with longer render times.

I am unsure if it has to do with the new 64 bit code in Snow Leopard and/or the fact you can boot into it in a 32 bit or 64 bit kernel as well. At this time, I would NOT recommend installing Snow Leopard on a production computer until more testing is done. It may just be a matter of getting some settings right for the boot up in the new OS or you may need to wait for either a patch to Vue or Snow Leopard service update which I am sure will come in the next couple of months before the holidays.

At this time I will doing some more testing to see results. NOTE: I have NOT tested the results with Vue 7.5 as I do not have that version.

Seems to be the opposite results as this thread:

Seems the only problem is with some plants not loading materials. Maybe you could check the thread and see if the other mac guys can help you out?

Quote - Seems to be the opposite results as this thread:

Seems the only problem is with some plants not loading materials. Maybe you could check the thread and see if the other mac guys can help you out?

I looked into the thread you pointed to and please note the following.

First, it talks about Vue 7.5 on the Mac, not Vue 7.4 as noted in this thread here as I pointed out. So, there may indeed be a difference given they are not the same version.

Second, it was not at all conclusive and people seem to be getting mixed info even from e-on software on this, for example:

"I was just told by e-on software that Vue 7.5 infinite is NOT compatible with Snow Leopard, but some future version would be...now what??"

Third, there is a LOT of misinformation in that thread I will try to clear up for them. Many are confused about the whole 64 bit thing. This is NOT the case of any trouble reported as the OS is just like Windows 7. You can run applications that are 64 bit or 32 bit in the 64 bit OS. However, the application MUST be written in 64 bit to take advantage of the 64 bit kernel and memory. If talking about Vue, then ONLY the Windows 7 64 bit running Vue 64 bit will take full advantage of this. But, this does NOT mean Vue will not run as it always did on Mac, it will still be just a 32 bit application. There is further confusion about booting into a 32 bit kernel or 64 bit kernel on Snow Leopard OS and this has been outlined in several tech articles by now.

Fourth, some users mentioned "Rosetta" and that is NOT what you want to do. Mainly, Rosetta was only for applications that were NOT universal binary or ones that were written ONLY for the Power PC instead of the newer Mac Intel machines. It has nothing to do with if Vue will run or not properly in Snow Leopard as Vue on the Mac is a Universal Binary at this time meaning meaning it runs on BOTH the newer Intel Macs and older Power PC.

From e-on product page:
"Vue 7.5 Infinite is optimized for Power PC and Intel Macs, and for XP/Vista 32 and 64."

That is why I said I will have to do further testing to see about the kernel difference of 32 and 64 bit boots among other things. Also, there is a very good chance that because Snow Leopard no longer support ANY code for the Power PC and runs on newer Intel Macs ONLY, there may be code issues there due to Vue on Mac being a Universal Binary.

I am also going to see what, if any official word from e-on I can get. However I don't think it will be any real technical benefit judging from past answers given.

Hope this helps some.

 Hi, so far no more crashes than before snow leopard, but vue seems faster for me in snowleopard in vue 7.4
I'm happy I installed snowleopard so far.
Love esther

Quote -  Hi, so far no more crashes than before snow leopard, but vue seems faster for me in snowleopard in vue 7.4
I'm happy I installed snowleopard so far.
Love esther

That's good to hear, I hope to have some more tests done over the extended holiday weekend. Also, I have written several detailed posts in the link referenced above and cleared up some misconceptions a few people had.

One thing too is there is a REAL good review over at Ars Technica and also an article explaining the 64 and 32 bit confusion at TechMPH.com you may want to read.

The Macbreak Weekly podcast pointed out the same thing I did and some of the other tech articles picked up on too regarding possible conflicts with legacy Power PC code running on Snow Leopard. Since Vue is a "Universal Binary" that applies for it too. Some have found issues, others have not. It will be interesting to see how e-on addresses this as most like the podcast above say it's best to remove all support for Power PC code and move forward as that is what needs to be done since Snow Leopard is for Intel based Macs only now. I am REALLY hoping this is a wake up call for e-on to at least begin SERIOUS work on a full re-write in 64 bit Cocoa as Apple has been saying to do for years now.

 Hi there,
well pre and post snow leopard I was getting many crashes except in compatibility mode which works well.  Dunno if this helps.
Love esther

Quote -
Vue 7.4 (with most recent patch from e-on) in Snow Leopard seems to crash at random times shortly after starting the program or upon exit. I have also seen it crash once after saving a scene, but not able to replicate the results again. Seems to also hang at random times on some scenes, especially the more complex ones with longer render times.

That I used to have with Vue all versions, no change in Vue world ...
Just now, I had a crash with Vue 6.60 (on Tiger) after loading a V4 and try to see if lines display is faster : no it's slower than OpenGL, amazing ! Also with line display, the mouse wheel don't zoom anymore, weird.
Just to say that I don't think Vue will ever work well on Mac.

 just downloading this one - i must have somehow missed it

Vue 7 xStream 7.4 Build 43993 Full Update

Quote -  just downloading this one - i must have somehow missed it

Vue 7 xStream 7.4 Build 43993 Full Update

Yes, that is the build I am using too as it is the most current one. Because Vue is a "Universal Binary" still, it was designed to work on both Mac Power PC and Intel machines. However, I have been discussing this with several others and because Snow Leopard is Intel only there may well be issues with some programs like Vue that still contain the legacy code. While not Vue related, several have reported hit and miss issues with Adobe CS3 suite and other misc Universal Binary programs.

Still hoping Vue 8 on the Mac gets some MAJOR code revisions even if they don't have time for a full Coca re-write. Just eliminating the legacy Power PC code will help.

 Anyway - in compatability mode in this up to date version of vue, no crashes yet.
and very fast.
Love esther