I only here all the Canon guys complaining here. I am shooting P30 tethered all the time and no problems here.
I would say your lucky that C-1 even deals with Canon files, Not to mention theirs converts better in my my mind.
Snook
Before I went to digital backs I swore I would never tether. We had a great system with handing off cards and nobody complained, everything went fast and smooth and the clients got the see the images in more detail than any polaroid. It was also very simple to run two computers and download the cards twice, that way the clients could edit in photomechanic (which takes about 2 minutes to learn) and our files were protected in our system.
It's interesting because the only reason I went to Phase backs was for the stability of the software and at the time I had fallen into the same thing as everyone else and was tethering everything.
3.7 is/was rock solid and though the previews are challanged and anything over 200 images to a single folder become somewhat of a risk in terms of crashing, if it did crash it started up instantly and you rarely lost anything. The previews were brittle but running a focus check was easy and renaming, going back to previous sessions was a snap. Same with tagging images. I had clients/ad's that knew how to work version 3 for editing.
I wouldn't tether a job with a new software if you pointed a gun at me. I've been there, done that, and it ain't pretty if everything doesn't work.
The only reason I have 10.5 at all is my last two apple computers came with it. 10.4 whatever was stable, 10.5 whatever is buggy, more so depending on machine.
Phase is not without blame on this though as they built their new software to run on 10.5, so it should work without fault, though as we know no new software works without fault.
As far as buying a PC, I have no desire to buy anything that I don't need but after my first day of dealing with Apple's usb drivers, I got rid of that thought of hitting a buffer every 10 frames and waiting. I don't think usb2 is that bad of a way to connect and actually seems more secure than firewire, it's just slow on a mac. It also doesn't hurt to have a pc box around. There are things they can do that apple can't and it let's you check what you send out to the world to see if it actually works, plays or views.
Once again phase is behind on their pc updates as well, as the first versions of 4point whatever did not tether anything on vista even Phase's own cameras, which makes you shake your head and wonder why, since Phase has a deal in the works with microsoft.
Still, it doesn't matter to me if Canon's tether to Phase one software or not, but if they say they do, then it should work with stability.
Actually, what all these people that write software need to do is come on a busy set and work with clients and photographers in different genres. Tethering, at least in my experience, is only needed for certain ad jobs where the layout needs to be exact, or on catalog type gigs where the AD wants to tag images as they go to cut down on the editing time. Any other time tethering just slows things up, makes the project flat footed and is only needed with backs that have challanged lcd's.
The newest Canons and Nikons have a detailed enough lcd to view whatever the photographer, crew and talent needs to see. Once the shot is really ready for world view, it's no issue handing off a card and letting the clients see it in all 30" glory.
JRR
Edit: One thing to add is in today's climate, I guess the best way to put it is when it comes to digital, the thrill is gone. Waiting for the newest, whiz bang software, or piece of equipment seems to have lost some of it's luster. Maybe it's the economy, maybe it's just people are overworked or stressed, but I find everybody just wants it to go smooth, happy and easy and get on with the job at hand.
Everybody wants to produce great work, but most clients are now aware that with digital it all works about the same, as long as it just works, but there is no margin for error anymore. In the early days clients accepted that tethering might have dropouts or crashes, but today, they don't expect it, or have time for it.
I've shot about every digital camera made and could write a transition story from my first kodak 760's to today's cameras and quite honestly from the first magic 1ds to todays newest, there is not that great of a leap.
I have also found that the most important element of digital camera is not in micro detail, or frame format but time. Cutting down on set and post production time is the most important consideration, because at the end of the day all of these files can be made to look good.
I have to admit I don't understand how most of these cameras and software is thought out because in some ways they are all lacking in must have features. Why medium format backs have those guess at the world lcd's still amazes me and why Nikons and Canons don't have full featured tethering software suites is also something I'm surprised about, after all, Canon and Nikon do have the resources.
The one thing I've learned is just to use whatever works and I've yet to find one camera, software or digital back that will do everything. The Canons come close to covering the most territory though they really aren't digital backs, they really aren't fast low light location cameras, they are somewhere in between. The D3 nikons are amazing at focus and low light, but for studio they jsut don't have enough oomph and medium format as wonderful as the files can be for heavy compositing work, deep detailed post production can also be a chore when it comes to batching out thousands of jpegs for early view, or trying to work them in anything but lots of light situations.
Digital backs should be bundled with a set of profotos and Canons should come with a Dell or Sony laptop.
If any maker of any big ticket item wants to know why sales are slow, it's not just the state of the economy, it's the fact that nobody has offered anything in the last year or so that you just can't do without.
There is also the overwhelming mind set of us users that we know that whatever we buy today will just be an incremental upgrade, not a complete new design. I am positive that the next whatever will have a better lcd, maybe better software, maybe video that has manual settings, but I also know that instead of coming out in one step, it will probably take two or three versions before I get anything with substantial change.