Recommendations for OS

Hi all,

I have an Early 2008 Macbook Pro 15" which I am looking to sell to buy a new MacBook Pro. Before doing so I want to get people's thoughts on which is the best OS to install for performance.

I am currently running Mountain Lion, and being a Early 2008 model, it is quite sluggish on this OS. So I was thinking of installing Snow Leopard instead.

The Mac has recently had a new Logic Board, and I have recently installed a 256GB SSD and upgraded the RAM to 4GB - so pretty much a new computer.

What do you guys think? Keep Mountain Lion or run on Snow Leopard?

Will running Snow Leopard improve the performance? (aware that Mountain Lion is more ideal for the newer Uni-body Mac's).

Thanks in advance.

??? I'd question if something else is going on if ML is running sluggish (vs some newer CPU intensive apps running sluggish) on an SSD - even in that '08 model.

In any case, since both 10.7 & 10.8 belong to the Apple ID - not the computer - and you have the 10.6 disc to give the new owner - I would install that and let the new owner spend the $20 if they wish to upgrade to 10.8 so they will have it associated with their own Apple ID. If a buyer questions having to pay for it, you can always offer to take the extra $20 off the price of the machine.

bobtomay said:

??? I'd question if something else is going on if ML is running sluggish (vs some newer CPU intensive apps running sluggish) on an SSD - even in that '08 model.

In any case, since both 10.7 & 10.8 belong to the Apple ID - not the computer - and you have the 10.6 disc to give the new owner - I would install that and let the new owner spend the $20 if they wish to upgrade to 10.8 so they will have it associated with their own Apple ID. If a buyer questions having to pay for it, you can always offer to take the extra $20 off the price of the machine.

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Thanks for the quick reply. I'm actually suprised you think it should run ok. The SSD has made some difference, however some simple tasks just don't run well. For instance this morning I was watching a YouTube video with only Safari open and no other apps, and it just froze until I forced a reboot.

I'm sure the SSD is working fine, and I can only think it's an old Logic Board that can't process the info any quicker. By old I mean old compared to Unibody Mac's. It is a new Logic board in this laptop as the graphics card on the original logic board went faulty.

I have also created a Bootable USB drive with Mountain Lion so can either provide the new owner with SL or ML and the Apple ID shouldn't be a problem.

I do think SL will make the Mac run smoother and faster

tbh - have not run 10.8 on that old a model - both my older Macs max out at 10.7 - so no personal experience

my '11 MBA occasional just freezes up running 10.8 requiring a hard shut down and have not been able to pin point the reason - although, am currently leaning toward some sort of bug that occurs when I accidentally have my palm brushing the trackpad (actually moving across it) while simultaneously typing as it only occurs when I have quickly moved my hands onto the machine and begun typing.

And 10.6.8 is still a good OS - it may be the best I've ever used - although I keep all my machines as up to date as they'll go (well, except I'm not putting Win 8 anywhere at this point)

I have a late 2008 15" Mac Book Pro running Mountain Lion. It seems to run fine for me most of the time. Most You Tube video plays well. I get the occasional beach ball and things slow down a bit if I get too many apps open but I'm not having the problems you seem to be having.

I had things lock up about two weeks ago (don't remember what I was doing) but prior to that I had not had a lockup in months. In fairness I do keep my graphics card running in higher performance mode

My Macbook that is not even supposed to run ML but does runs You Tube just fine. Your issue sounds like something is wrong somewhere either in the OS install or something else. I run ML on a late 2007 iMac day and night and never have you tube issues. Was running 4GB Ram also.

The only reason I would suggest SL is what Bob above said, license issues with your Apple ID going to the buyer of your Mac.