New User iLife '11 Update Question

Hey all,
Satisfied new Mac User. Bought a mildly used MacBook Pro 13". Had no problem integrating with internet passwords, email, iTunes, etc. Been having fun learning all the shortcuts and tricks. Glad I gave it a shot.
I just opened iPhoto and it prompted me to something a out iLife '11. It looks like a package of new programs, 15 bucks. Doesn't seem like a bad deal, just curious as a new Mac user what this is about, is it worth it, am I fine with my software, is this normal type questions. Thanks for any direction everyone.
jmk

It sounds to me like your MacBook came with iLife 09 (which is a suite of programs including iPhoto, iDVD, iMovie and Garageband).

When you open up a copy of iPhoto 09, Apple will let you know that there's an updated version (in this case, iPhoto '11). Since iPhoto 09 came out, Apple now sells the programs separately OR in a retail box as a suite (your choice). So the message is telling you that there's a major-version upgrade of iPhoto available for $15 from the Mac App Store.

I'd recommend the upgrade, but you might want to just buy the retail box for $50, which will include significant upgrades to iMovie and Garageband (iDVD and iWeb will remain if they are already present, but Apple has given up on them and they won't be upgraded further). You also have the option of upgrading iMovie and GB through the Mac App Store, which will save you $5 but you don't get a shiny DVD that way.

You should also look into upgrading to Lion (10.7) if you haven't already. All the upgrades I've mentioned don't *require* Lion but work well with it and it's broadly speaking a good idea to keep up-to-date with paid updates.

As for iPhoto being worth it, I think it's awesome personally. There are other options but they are aimed at pros and cost more. For most consumers, iPhoto is the best all-around program I've seen in my opinion.

Sounds like what I expected, thanks chas!
This brings up another question as I'm learning as I go...
What exactly is Lion? Is that the operating system that I am using? I thought the operating system was OS X 10.6, but maybe I'm being redundant and don't even know it. Thanks for the help and pointers.

You're currently using Snow Leopard (10.6.X). Lion is 10.7.X and only available as a download or on flash drive direct from Apple. No DVD. It's the latest version of OS X. Upgrading will also allow you to use iCloud which is handy if you have an iPad or iPhone.

Ok I'm starting to understand a little more. Do I need to upgrade? Or am I okay with what I have now? I'm interested in the Cloud, but I don't think it will work very well for me. I don't buy a lot of music on iTunes, I'm still in the dinosaur age and actually purchase the CD, I love having the liner notes and watching the collection build on my wall and I have been collecting since I was a kid (lots of vinyl, too). Also, I have a HUGE collection of music, well over 100gig+, so I don't know if the cloud will work for me.

Should I upgrade to Lion, or is Snow Leopard sufficient enough?

If you're interested in iCloud or staying current, you really don't have much choice: you'll have to go to Lion (or it's successor) eventually. It's just a question of when.

iTunes Match (which you've incorrectly confused with iCloud) can handle your collection, assuming there aren't more than 25,000 songs that iTunes doesn't already have.

I too enjoy buying the physical CD from artists I collect, but there's a lot of music that I don't buy the CD of because I'm not a serious collector of that artist, I just like "this song" or "that song." For that (and podcasts, iTunes U, movie rentals, internet radio, ebooks and apps of course) iTunes is a constant companion.