Photo software failure

[ericmark]

Started using a Nikon D7000 where I have always used Pentax K10D in the past and my first thing was to set to take in RAW. This was the start of my problems CS4 even with RAW 5.7 will not open the files. I can't unlike the Pentax find how to change the RAW format to DNG in the camera. Loads of converters which will convert to jpeg but really that loses the whole point of taking in RAW in first place may as well set camera to save as jpeg.

Details below and PC is old so CS5 is just too much for the old girl.

Most stuff works A1 but ViewNX 2, and Hugin both refuse to run on my PC. ViewNX 2 opens then disappears again and Hugin has encountered a problem and needs to close. The latest version Adobe DNG Converter also failed but an earlier version worked OK.

I am running Windows XP Professional Version 2002 Service Pack 3. The computer AMD Athlon(tm)XP 1.75 Ghz, 960 MB of RAM.

OK it is a little old but does the job for most of what I want and I can't afford a new one.

I can work around these failures using IrfanView, Adobe DNG Converter Version 6.3, and Photoshop CS4 but wondered if others also have problems with this software or is it just me?

I do have a higher spec laptop but really like using the desktop. I just wonder if it's something I have done wrong or just the girls too old. Does anyone else run this software on an old PC?

One plus is I found IrfanView which can be used very like Bridge but more powerful. I have set it so I can batch convert NEF to DNG using Adobe DNG Converter and unlike Bridge CS4 it will let me see thumbnails of the NEF files. The Nikon D7000 was inherited I would not have bought it myself but seems a lot better spec than old Pentax however think the Pentax will still be used for years to come. So much easier than the D7000 to use.

[Realist]

I also use Windows XP for my software. I use CS3, but I'm not able to use it to open RAW. I have a Canon 60D, so their RAW are called CR2. The one way that works for me that I am happy with is to use the software that came with the camera. Not sure what Nikon does, but with the Canon software I can change a good number of things, then I save them as a TIFF of JPEG. I find that if I need to do more extensive editing I will open the TIFF with Photoshop. Also I am not able to preview the RAW in Windows Explorer, so I shoot RAW + small JPEG so I have the JPEG as a preview. Not sure if that helps, but this is my workaround and I find it pretty good for me.

[asnow]

Also I am not able to preview the RAW in Windows Explorer, so I shoot RAW + small JPEG so I have the JPEG as a preview


You can view raw files with windows explorer if you install the Microsoft Camera Codec Pack. That way you don't need the jpeg file. Here's the link;

Download Microsoft Camera Codec Pack from Official Microsoft Download Center

[Realist]

Also I am not able to preview the RAW in Windows Explorer, so I shoot RAW + small JPEG so I have the JPEG as a preview


You can view raw files with windows explorer if you install the Microsoft Camera Codec Pack. That way you don't need the jpeg file. Here's the link;

Download Microsoft Camera Codec Pack from Official Microsoft Download Center

Thanks for the link, works great on my laptop, but my desktop is XP so it didn't work. Think I may have to look into updating that.

[mbrager]

Ericmark, I think it's you and it's not you. I'm fascinated by software problems people create for themselves. I'm an offender too, having refused to buy Microsoft Office for many years for my home computer and struggling to find workarounds when I had to read a file from work at home. Realistically, you can't expect 10 year old software like Windows XP to run more recent programs or apps. As you know, the camera companies have a slightly different RAW format for each of their cameras, and the software has to be updated for each new version of RAW, for every new RAW-capable camera that comes on the market.
In your case, CS4 only works with Adobe Camera Raw up to Version 5.7, which does not include your new camera, the Nikon. You would have to be running CS5 and Camera Raw 6.2 I believe to include your camera. But you can't run CS5 or CS6 on Windows XP anyway, and you don't have the minimum hardware to run Windows 7, let alone Windows 8. So you are not going to be able to use simple, straightforward tools like CS5 or CS6, or Lightroom 4, unless you upgrade your hardware and software. You might be able to get away with simply adding more memory, since Windows 7, 32-bit, requires at a minimum 1 GB of RAM. Depends on your motherboard. You would still have to upgrade your OS.
But, having said that, you and millions like you, have found very admirable, brilliant work-arounds. Indeed Irfanview is a brilliant piece of software that has solved numerous problems for me with incompatibilities and file conversions. So in my view, while this takes a little more time for you, and involves many more steps, it's the price you pay for not upgrading your hardware and/or software. In my opinion, the free ride you have now is as good as it gets.

[JAS_Photo]

Have you downloaded the Nikon codec? You should be able to see your Nef files on your computer once downloaded. Not sure if that will help at all?

Nikon Imaging | Global Site | NEF Codec Download