problem with graphics card + cd drivee

recently iv started using photoshop cs5. and it comes up with this message at the start
Photoshop has encountered a problem with the display driver, and has temporarily disabled GPU enhancements. and iv also been having problems running it efficiently

now my imac memory is only 2gb and im guessing idealy i could do with getting myself some more ram to run this program more efficiently.
but iv read in places about updating your graphics card?? iv looked about and cant find a driver update for a mac? for a NVIDIA GeForce 9400??

also recently my disk drive has stopped reading ALL cd's and DVD's. is it likely its knackered. or should i get one of those lens cleaners.?

not all that with the inside workings of computers so any help much appriciated

It depends on what you're doing with Photoshop but generally more memory is better. You didn't tell us anything about which year model Mac you have or what version of OS X it's running. However, you should have the latest drivers provided for your machine to support the nVidia 9400.

As for the optical drive problem, try using compressed air. Blow inside the opening several times. Compressed air in cans are sold at most places that stock computer accessories.

chscag said:

It depends on what you're doing with Photoshop but generally more memory is better. You didn't tell us anything about which year model Mac you have or what version of OS X it's running. However, you should have the latest drivers provided for your machine to support the nVidia 9400.

As for the optical drive problem, try using compressed air. Blow inside the opening several times. Compressed air in cans are sold at most places that stock computer accessories.

Click to expand...

thanks
im running on 2009 imac osx 10.5.8 2.66ghz 2bg.
hmmm. maybe that graphics card just isnt good enough for the new photoshop.

do you think if i bought 2gb of ram of would it be enough to greatly improve the running of my mac? or is it worth splashing out on a little more??
i am student about to graduate from a graphic design degree so i will be using demanding software.

thankyou

No question 4 GB would help speed things up somewhat. Also, I'm surprised you haven't upgraded to Snow Leopard. For $29.99 upgrade price, it's well worth it. And Snow Leopard for the most part is faster than Leopard.

But since you're going into graphic design as a profession, you might want to think about purchasing a more powerful Mac, one that will last for some years to come. Apple should be refreshing their iMac line in the next several months so you might want to wait and see what they will have to offer before spending more money on your 2009 iMac.