reinstalling osx / archive & install

ok...i plan on reinstalling my os...& i need some help...i have never tried reinstalling the os before or archive & install...

i need to know...if i dont chose to archive & install...what data & settings will be lost & what will stay

incase i do lose data in the regular reinstall will doing an archive install preserve data in my downloads & documents folders?

also...what about os upgrades & other upgrades i had done over time...will i need to reinstall/download them all?

hope to get some help soon...i want tot do this as soon as i can....thanks

if you don't chose archive and install it will all be lost. Archive and install, in my experience, restores pretty much everything in your users directory.

http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=301239

talks about tiger, but you get the idea... things to backup first....

backup your stickies file... unless you have no data in stickies, then dont worry about it.

why are you reinstalling? having problems?

try archive and install first.... that may fix any problems.... you would need to run software update again...

backup any music or apps you bought/paid for on the web.... itunes purchases.... there is an option in the itunes menus to backup I believe.

archive and install moves all your data in your home folder to another folder saving the data... but I would backup first anyway just to be safe.

stickies is not an issue...nor are the itunes files...im worried about things like my AU plugins for logic & stuff like that...

i do have a backup for most of my data...the two main things that worry me is that ill have to reinstall all my os & app updates & the other is i dont know whether ill have to reinstall & revalidate all the plugins i have...that would be a pain...

also what about the preferences & changes...for example my itunes ratings...look & display style of folders & those kind of things...will chosing the save user prefs & settings options keep those things intact too?

some progress

the archive & install did most of the work i needed it to....but not all....fortunately most of my apps etc seem to work...but one of the main reasons why i did all this still remains a problem

im attaching a pic of what happened so that it would be easier for you'll to figure out what the problem is...& hopefully suggest a solution...
basically this part of my user interface has been changed...& i dont know how to change it back...



notice the forward & back buttons....& also the view options buttons...they have been changed into the tiger versions...& they don t seem to be alligned correctly...if someone could please tell me how i can change this back...it would be great...thanks

Did you upgrade to Leopard from Tiger or do a completely fresh install? I would suggest starting from scratch to ensure there's nothing left behind that'll cause problems. It may take some time and effort, but it is worth it in the end.

thats the funniest part...i have never used tiger (on this computer)...i got my mac in dec 2007 so it came pre-installed with leopard...the changes to the UI were made by this dumb app i installed that changes the system graphics...it said it would backup & restore my original settings when i uninstall...but this is what it restored it to...