Mavericks - Questions

I downloaded it last night and still need to get it running. I have a few questions, though.

1) Will it delete my stuff? I have backups, but still... Does running it mean everything gets wiped?

2) I'm running Sow Leopard with a 2.66GHz machine, 8GB of RAM. Will it slow my machine down considerably?

3) If I dislike it, can I get back to Snow Leopard?

gizmo8899 said:

I downloaded it last night and still need to get it running. I have a few questions, though.

1) Will it delete my stuff? I have backups, but still... Does running it mean everything gets wiped?

2) I'm running Sow Leopard with a 2.66GHz machine, 8GB of RAM. Will it slow my machine down considerably?

3) If I dislike it, can I get back to Snow Leopard?

Click to expand...

I know you were having some download troubles last night/yesterday...you should have asked these questions then. But...still asking them before you install is a great idea!

Answers to questions:

1. No...it will not delete or wipe your stuff.
2. I think that you should be ok. But it would probably be better to give us a full set of specs...then just cpu speed & amount of ram. i.e. What model computer, cpu type, etc.
3. You can...but it won't be easy. OS installs are designed for upgrading...not downgrading.

One possible VERY important question you didn't ask is..."Will upgrading to OS 10.9 Mavericks cause any incompatibility issues?"

The answer to this one is maybe. Going from OS 10.6 to 10.9 (THREE OS versions) is a BIG jump. Some or many of the apps you currently use may become incompatible with OS 10.9.

Some apps may require you to upgrade/purchase to newer versions...some apps may only need an update. Also...if you have older external hardware...such as printers, etc....they may or may not continue to work (may need a driver update).

Upgrading three OS versions is usually not the best idea...since you may be in for some real surprises (stuff I mentioned above).

Good luck,

- Nick

Thanks for the reply, Nick, greatly appreciated!

I have a 2.66GHz MacBook Pro from 2010. Here:

Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed: 2.66 GHz
Number Of Processors: 1
Total Number Of Cores: 2
L2 Cache: 3 MB
Memory: 8 GB
Bus Speed: 1.07 GHz

That's very interesting (and slightly disconcerting) about programs. For example, I do some gaming on Steam... does this mean I may have trouble playing some of my favourite titles?

gizmo8899 said:

That's very interesting (and slightly disconcerting) about programs. For example, I do some gaming on Steam... does this mean I may have trouble playing some of my favourite titles?

Click to expand...

There are two sides to this. On one hand...it is possible that some of the games may be old enough that they may not run on the newest Mac OS (10.9). But this can also mean that newer games that may require newer Mac OS versions you may now have access to.

You just got to check game title by game title with the system requirements on Steam. I would check the Steam forums for each game title as well...to see what other Mac users are using (in terms of OS) for the games you play. If other folks are using 10.9 for the games you play...then you're good to go.

- Nick

p.s. Thanks for the computer specs. It's actually newer than I expected (2010).

You're unlikely to encounter any major incompatibilities (the Steam thing is not an issue, for example) -- but before you jump forward (and while NORMALLY I'd say jumping so far forward was a bad idea, in this case Apple has provided for it) -- check to make sure that NONE of the software you need relies on PowerPC code (in other words, everything has to be Intel or Universal). PowerPC code is not supported in later OS X releases (so no AppleWorks, no Office 2004, no Adobe CS 2, etc).

Short version: make sure your software is up-to-date and you are incredibly UNlikely to have any issues.

Steam seems to run just fine and all my games on 10.9 Mavericks.