Getting a new Mac
May 3, 2017 12:56 PM Subscribe
I'm ready to replace my ten-year-old Mac, and I have questions, particularly about transferring stuff from my old Mac.
So my old Mac is getting kind of persnickety, and I want to replace it before it dies altogether. First of all, I'd appreciate any thoughts on how to decide what type to get (non-Mac suggestions are a waste of your time). I like using my Mac to play DVDs. Is that no longer an option? Also, I use a computer mostly for writing, though I am taking a webinar this weekend and may want to do more stuff like that in the future. I don't play computer games at all. I do watch Netflix, but I use my iPad because it doesn't work well on my current Mac.
But mostly I'm concerned about transferring stuff from my old Mac. I read in one article that it's not a good idea to transfer everything, particularly if you've upgraded the operating system. I have some Word documents, but I can just e-mail those to myself and download on the new Mac, right? What about iTunes? I still have a Nano (you can pry it from my cold, dead hands), which has all of my music on it. If I try to sync it to the new Mac, will it end up erasing itself, or will it transfer music to the new one? What am I not thinking of?
Also, I am extremely technologically inept. If some serious transferring is involved, will Apple store employees do it?
So my old Mac is getting kind of persnickety, and I want to replace it before it dies altogether. First of all, I'd appreciate any thoughts on how to decide what type to get (non-Mac suggestions are a waste of your time). I like using my Mac to play DVDs. Is that no longer an option? Also, I use a computer mostly for writing, though I am taking a webinar this weekend and may want to do more stuff like that in the future. I don't play computer games at all. I do watch Netflix, but I use my iPad because it doesn't work well on my current Mac.
But mostly I'm concerned about transferring stuff from my old Mac. I read in one article that it's not a good idea to transfer everything, particularly if you've upgraded the operating system. I have some Word documents, but I can just e-mail those to myself and download on the new Mac, right? What about iTunes? I still have a Nano (you can pry it from my cold, dead hands), which has all of my music on it. If I try to sync it to the new Mac, will it end up erasing itself, or will it transfer music to the new one? What am I not thinking of?
Also, I am extremely technologically inept. If some serious transferring is involved, will Apple store employees do it?
Migration Assistant should work perfectly. It has never once failed me and I have like 12 Macs. What version of OSX are you running on your old Mac?
If you can limp it through to the fall, that's usually a better time to buy a new (or refurbished) iMac, both for price discounts and new model releases (related, as is the availability of late model refurbs). I am a big fan of buying Macs refurbed from Apple, they have the same one year warranty and are usually indistinguishable from new computers at a hefty discount if you are ok with something recent but not the newest models.
posted by spitbull at 1:22 PM on May 3, 2017 [6 favorites]
If you can limp it through to the fall, that's usually a better time to buy a new (or refurbished) iMac, both for price discounts and new model releases (related, as is the availability of late model refurbs). I am a big fan of buying Macs refurbed from Apple, they have the same one year warranty and are usually indistinguishable from new computers at a hefty discount if you are ok with something recent but not the newest models.
posted by spitbull at 1:22 PM on May 3, 2017 [6 favorites]
Also you'll have to buy an external disc drive to play DVDs. They're cheap.
posted by spitbull at 1:23 PM on May 3, 2017
posted by spitbull at 1:23 PM on May 3, 2017
1. You can get an external DVD drive for about $25
2. Based on your described use, you could probably get away with a Mac mini and a $100 monitor.
3. I would strongly recommend setting up a Dropbox account and moving your Word documents to that account immediately. If you can't install their little software app, you can use the web interface to upload stuff. It has saved my life so many times.
4. If it were me, I would transfer the music to a 128gb flash drive and then import them into your new computer's Itunes. There is probably a smarter way to do this. Here is Apple's advice.
Note: I believe this will also retain your playlists and other metadata, like most popular songs, etc.
clouds at work
posted by mecran01 at 1:27 PM on May 3, 2017 [2 favorites]
2. Based on your described use, you could probably get away with a Mac mini and a $100 monitor.
3. I would strongly recommend setting up a Dropbox account and moving your Word documents to that account immediately. If you can't install their little software app, you can use the web interface to upload stuff. It has saved my life so many times.
4. If it were me, I would transfer the music to a 128gb flash drive and then import them into your new computer's Itunes. There is probably a smarter way to do this. Here is Apple's advice.
Note: I believe this will also retain your playlists and other metadata, like most popular songs, etc.
clouds at work
posted by mecran01 at 1:27 PM on May 3, 2017 [2 favorites]
I want to address this specifically:
Sure, you may end up moving over an app or two that won't work under Sierra, but their presence won't hurt you at all. Macs don't have a Registry to get all crufty.
People who say "oh, I always reinstall everything" or "don't use M.A. because it can do something-something-something" may fancy themselves experts, but it's more likely they are laboring under some unexamined and incorrect assumptions.
Now, a couple other points:
As mecran01 notes, you should absolutely set up a dropbox or something to back up those Word docs. It's not worth sifting through "keep or delete" during this process; just move them all over. Migration Assistant will move them to your new computer flawlessly, but you STILL ought to be using a Dropbox or some other cloud sync/backup solution to protect yourself in the event of some sort of catastrophic failure.
I'm a little confused about your music, however. You say all your music is on the Nano; is it ALSO all on your old Mac? If so, Migration Assistant is just going to move it all over with everything else, and you'll be able to sync with your new Mac just as you did with your old Mac.
However, if the music is ONLY on the Nano, and isn't on your (old) Mac anymore, then yeah, you have a problem. Is that the case?
posted by uberchet at 2:25 PM on May 3, 2017 [3 favorites]
I read in one article that it's not a good idea to transfer everything, particularly if you've upgraded the operating system.There is a LOT of folk "wisdom" out there about computers in general and Macs specifically that is just plain uninformed and wrong. The Migration Assistant is an amazing piece of software, and I would not hesitate to use it even across a wide version gulf. It saves you SO MUCH EFFORT it's insane not to at least try it.
Sure, you may end up moving over an app or two that won't work under Sierra, but their presence won't hurt you at all. Macs don't have a Registry to get all crufty.
People who say "oh, I always reinstall everything" or "don't use M.A. because it can do something-something-something" may fancy themselves experts, but it's more likely they are laboring under some unexamined and incorrect assumptions.
Now, a couple other points:
As mecran01 notes, you should absolutely set up a dropbox or something to back up those Word docs. It's not worth sifting through "keep or delete" during this process; just move them all over. Migration Assistant will move them to your new computer flawlessly, but you STILL ought to be using a Dropbox or some other cloud sync/backup solution to protect yourself in the event of some sort of catastrophic failure.
I'm a little confused about your music, however. You say all your music is on the Nano; is it ALSO all on your old Mac? If so, Migration Assistant is just going to move it all over with everything else, and you'll be able to sync with your new Mac just as you did with your old Mac.
However, if the music is ONLY on the Nano, and isn't on your (old) Mac anymore, then yeah, you have a problem. Is that the case?
posted by uberchet at 2:25 PM on May 3, 2017 [3 favorites]
If you are upgrading a 10 year old machine, then you are probably running a version of OSX which is no longer supported by Apple. Your new machine will be running the most up to date version of OSX which - as of mid 2017 - is 10.12 'Sierra'.
You are probably running 10.6 "Snow leopard" or 10.7 "Leopard" the underlying architecture for those Operating Systems (old vs new) is very different and a lot of popular programs that worked under 10.6/7 will no longer work under 10.7 as-is. You'll have to either find alternatives, or upgrade to the most up to date version of those programs.
One prominent example is Adobe Lightroom 3, which flat out won't work under 10.12, which requires Adobe 5 - which is incidentally the last boxed version of Adobe availble, all other versions are going to be subscription based only.
Unfortuantely there doesn't seem to be a comprehensive list of what software that worked under 10.6/7 will still work under 10.12, so if a particular programs functionality is critical for you then you'll have to google along the lines of ' does x work under El Capitan' or 'X El Capitain compatability'
Also if you have an older iPad or iPhone, be aware that you might have problems synching your device with iTunes on your Mac after the upgrade. Unless your iDevice is running the latest version of iOS then it might not be able to play nice with the latest version of iTunes.
Good luck.
posted by Faintdreams at 4:05 PM on May 3, 2017 [1 favorite]
You are probably running 10.6 "Snow leopard" or 10.7 "Leopard" the underlying architecture for those Operating Systems (old vs new) is very different and a lot of popular programs that worked under 10.6/7 will no longer work under 10.7 as-is. You'll have to either find alternatives, or upgrade to the most up to date version of those programs.
One prominent example is Adobe Lightroom 3, which flat out won't work under 10.12, which requires Adobe 5 - which is incidentally the last boxed version of Adobe availble, all other versions are going to be subscription based only.
Unfortuantely there doesn't seem to be a comprehensive list of what software that worked under 10.6/7 will still work under 10.12, so if a particular programs functionality is critical for you then you'll have to google along the lines of ' does x work under El Capitan' or 'X El Capitain compatability'
Also if you have an older iPad or iPhone, be aware that you might have problems synching your device with iTunes on your Mac after the upgrade. Unless your iDevice is running the latest version of iOS then it might not be able to play nice with the latest version of iTunes.
Good luck.
posted by Faintdreams at 4:05 PM on May 3, 2017 [1 favorite]
I just went through this - transferred all my stuff from an old iMac running 10.7.5 to a new iMac running the latest software. I used Migration Assistant and connected the computers with an Ethernet cable, and sat back with a book while it figured things out. No problem. It told me a few things were incompatible, and some had to be updated once I brought them over, but things have been fine and I'd do it this way again.
posted by trillium at 4:20 PM on May 3, 2017
posted by trillium at 4:20 PM on May 3, 2017
Remember to back up your old computer to an external drive before doing any system upgrading. If you don't have an external drive, get one, and use it as a Time Capsule after the upgrade.
There is a LOT of folk "wisdom" out there about computers in general and Macs specifically that is just plain uninformed and wrong. The Migration Assistant is an amazing piece of software, and I would not hesitate to use it even across a wide version gulf.
Thanks for this, uberchet. I've avoided MA based on a completely unfounded suspicion that it might transfer over unneeded or destabilizing junk files, and I am happy you have put my mind at rest.
posted by ejs at 4:28 PM on May 3, 2017 [1 favorite]
There is a LOT of folk "wisdom" out there about computers in general and Macs specifically that is just plain uninformed and wrong. The Migration Assistant is an amazing piece of software, and I would not hesitate to use it even across a wide version gulf.
Thanks for this, uberchet. I've avoided MA based on a completely unfounded suspicion that it might transfer over unneeded or destabilizing junk files, and I am happy you have put my mind at rest.
posted by ejs at 4:28 PM on May 3, 2017 [1 favorite]
I know Ask isn't about back-and-forth, least of all between commenters, but I wanted to amplify & clarify a little. It's on-topic, and seems to be helping people, so, I hope it's okay.
The way Windows works leads people to think all computers get destabilized and junky over time, but that's really an outgrowth of some (defensible at the time!) choices that Microsoft has made over the years. Other systems don't have the same issues, but Windows has been so close to a monopoly for so long that people think it's a universal trait and not a peculiarity of the Windows platform.
To drastically oversimplify, Apple made very different choices, and did so pretty late in the game (turn of the century) so they had the benefit of Microsoft's experience. At that time, they basically threw out all that went before and build something entirely new (sorta; it's based on something called FreeBSD), and then just attached a compatibility layer for a few years so the old apps would work for a while.
The result is a more stable system. The biggest example of this is the lack of a "Registry" to get all crufty and bloated over time on a Mac. It's not old or disused files and apps on your Windows machine that make it unstable over time; it's the way Windows handles patches, updates, and installations. (Which, again, was a defensible choice at the time that MSFT just hasn't been able to fix -- the kind of change Apple made was easy for Apple, but would be harder for MSFT for lots of reasons beyond the scope of this post, so parts of Windows are still beholden to design choices made a really long time ago that are aging badly.)
Macs don't have the same pitfalls, so you could move your (e.g.) 2004 apps over to your 2017 Mac and it wouldn't hurt anything at all. They won't WORK, mind you -- in 2004, Macs were still using PowerPC chips -- but they'll just be inert files [1]. They'll take up a little disk space; that's all. And in 2017, the amount of disk space your old apps and forgotten config files take up is a tiny fraction of the space that most of us (I, for example) waste on funny cat pictures.
So, yes, please use Migration Assistant. It'll make your life so much simpler and easier. It's a key advantage of the Mac platform at this point.
([1] yes, there are exceptions, but they're rare, and you probably don't have any of them.)
posted by uberchet at 4:43 PM on May 3, 2017 [5 favorites]
The way Windows works leads people to think all computers get destabilized and junky over time, but that's really an outgrowth of some (defensible at the time!) choices that Microsoft has made over the years. Other systems don't have the same issues, but Windows has been so close to a monopoly for so long that people think it's a universal trait and not a peculiarity of the Windows platform.
To drastically oversimplify, Apple made very different choices, and did so pretty late in the game (turn of the century) so they had the benefit of Microsoft's experience. At that time, they basically threw out all that went before and build something entirely new (sorta; it's based on something called FreeBSD), and then just attached a compatibility layer for a few years so the old apps would work for a while.
The result is a more stable system. The biggest example of this is the lack of a "Registry" to get all crufty and bloated over time on a Mac. It's not old or disused files and apps on your Windows machine that make it unstable over time; it's the way Windows handles patches, updates, and installations. (Which, again, was a defensible choice at the time that MSFT just hasn't been able to fix -- the kind of change Apple made was easy for Apple, but would be harder for MSFT for lots of reasons beyond the scope of this post, so parts of Windows are still beholden to design choices made a really long time ago that are aging badly.)
Macs don't have the same pitfalls, so you could move your (e.g.) 2004 apps over to your 2017 Mac and it wouldn't hurt anything at all. They won't WORK, mind you -- in 2004, Macs were still using PowerPC chips -- but they'll just be inert files [1]. They'll take up a little disk space; that's all. And in 2017, the amount of disk space your old apps and forgotten config files take up is a tiny fraction of the space that most of us (I, for example) waste on funny cat pictures.
So, yes, please use Migration Assistant. It'll make your life so much simpler and easier. It's a key advantage of the Mac platform at this point.
([1] yes, there are exceptions, but they're rare, and you probably don't have any of them.)
posted by uberchet at 4:43 PM on May 3, 2017 [5 favorites]
I just did a version of this (migrating a very old Mac to a new Mac). I would take the following steps:
1. Go and buy an external hard drive. There are lots of options, but this is a good one.
2. Set up time machine on your current Mac. You'll plug your new external hard drive, run "Time Machine," and set it up so it's using that hard drive for backup. The first backup you run will take quite a while (hours, possibly). Subsequent backups will be much faster.
3. Buy your new Mac. Lots of good advice here on the details. If you want a desktop, a Mac mini is a great option, but be aware you'll have to buy a monitor, keyboard, and mouse seperately. I can not stress strongly enough that these do not need to be Apple products. Any monitor, keyboard, and mouse will work with the mini. The iMac is the other desktop option. They're good-looking and generally reasonable computers that have everything you need included, if you're OK with the price. If you want a laptop, get some flavor of MacBook.
4. When you get your new Mac, do one last Time Machine backup of your old computer, hook the hard drive up to the new computer, and use the Migration Assistant during your new Mac's setup to move your stuff to the new computer.
5. Continue to use your new external hard drive to do backups of your new computer. Using Dropbox is also a great idea. So is using a real cloud backup service like Crashplan.
posted by Betelgeuse at 5:56 PM on May 3, 2017
1. Go and buy an external hard drive. There are lots of options, but this is a good one.
2. Set up time machine on your current Mac. You'll plug your new external hard drive, run "Time Machine," and set it up so it's using that hard drive for backup. The first backup you run will take quite a while (hours, possibly). Subsequent backups will be much faster.
3. Buy your new Mac. Lots of good advice here on the details. If you want a desktop, a Mac mini is a great option, but be aware you'll have to buy a monitor, keyboard, and mouse seperately. I can not stress strongly enough that these do not need to be Apple products. Any monitor, keyboard, and mouse will work with the mini. The iMac is the other desktop option. They're good-looking and generally reasonable computers that have everything you need included, if you're OK with the price. If you want a laptop, get some flavor of MacBook.
4. When you get your new Mac, do one last Time Machine backup of your old computer, hook the hard drive up to the new computer, and use the Migration Assistant during your new Mac's setup to move your stuff to the new computer.
5. Continue to use your new external hard drive to do backups of your new computer. Using Dropbox is also a great idea. So is using a real cloud backup service like Crashplan.
posted by Betelgeuse at 5:56 PM on May 3, 2017
Response by poster: Thanks everyone. This is all great and super helpful.
To answer a few questions:
My old Mac is running 10.6.8.
My music is on both my old Mac and my Nano.
I bought my iPad new in September.
My iPhone is a 5s. Version is 10.3.1.
Also, I definitely want a laptop so I can cart it around. (Partly because my cat has decided she likes my favorite writing chair. She's 16, and I don't have the heart to make her move. Sorry - no place I can put up a picture.)
posted by FencingGal at 6:55 PM on May 3, 2017
To answer a few questions:
My old Mac is running 10.6.8.
My music is on both my old Mac and my Nano.
I bought my iPad new in September.
My iPhone is a 5s. Version is 10.3.1.
Also, I definitely want a laptop so I can cart it around. (Partly because my cat has decided she likes my favorite writing chair. She's 16, and I don't have the heart to make her move. Sorry - no place I can put up a picture.)
posted by FencingGal at 6:55 PM on May 3, 2017
Also worth noting that with Migration Assistant, when the migration is done, your old computer still retains everything it had and behaves as it did. Migration doesn't delete anything from the old one,
posted by chimpsonfilm at 7:19 PM on May 3, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by chimpsonfilm at 7:19 PM on May 3, 2017 [1 favorite]
@Betelgeuse, #2 & #4:
Does OS 10.6.8 even have time machine?
posted by leafwoman at 8:02 AM on May 4, 2017
Does OS 10.6.8 even have time machine?
posted by leafwoman at 8:02 AM on May 4, 2017
The Wirecutter has a useful & not-too-technical guide to Mac laptops that may help. Something I learned here is that many external DVD players won’t plug directly into the new type of USB ports that new Mac laptops are mostly fitted out with. There are easy & fairly cheap workarounds (cable adaptors or hubs), but it may also make a difference in your choice of older or newer model. The Wirecutter's good at walking non-technical people (raises hand) through choices like that.
posted by miles per flower at 10:32 AM on May 4, 2017
posted by miles per flower at 10:32 AM on May 4, 2017
I learned this the hard way:
New Mac laptops do not have upgradable storage, at least for the solid state drives. I went with the standard for a 15" mac laptop, thinking "I can always install a bigger hard drive later". It turns out you can't, and there is a whole cottage industry for secondary storage solutions now. Also, iTunes and iPhoto tend to balk at their libraries being stored on secondary drives.
The moral of the story being: get the largest SSD you can on your new mac. You will probably need more storage than you think you do. At the very least, confirm whether the storage is upgradable or not before deciding.
posted by Cranialtorque at 11:12 AM on May 4, 2017
New Mac laptops do not have upgradable storage, at least for the solid state drives. I went with the standard for a 15" mac laptop, thinking "I can always install a bigger hard drive later". It turns out you can't, and there is a whole cottage industry for secondary storage solutions now. Also, iTunes and iPhoto tend to balk at their libraries being stored on secondary drives.
The moral of the story being: get the largest SSD you can on your new mac. You will probably need more storage than you think you do. At the very least, confirm whether the storage is upgradable or not before deciding.
posted by Cranialtorque at 11:12 AM on May 4, 2017
Also, iTunes and iPhoto tend to balk at their libraries being stored on secondary drives.I don't use iPhoto, but my iTunes library has been on an outboard drive forEVER. It's never been a problem as far as iTunes function is concerned, though obviously doing so compromises the portability of the music library.
It is, however, absolutely true that RAM and SSD storage are not upgradable on modern Apple laptops, and at present I do not think they sell any laptops with traditional hard drives. Get as much as you can afford when you buy.
posted by uberchet at 12:19 PM on May 4, 2017
Like others here, I can wholeheartedly recommend Migration Assistant. 10.6.8 was (is still?) one of the greatest releases of OS X, but yeah, it's time to migrate.
The only other recommendation I have for you is: make sure you have good, current, working backups before you start. Check the backed up files, try to read a few.
Migration hits the old disk hard because it has to copy all the data (obviously), and I've had oneof my old laptop disks fail *during* the migration procedure. Luckily, I had a Time Machine copy (as well as another offline backup) so it was just a few hours of time wasted, nothing more. But it would have made me awfully nervous if that was my only backup!
posted by RedOrGreen at 1:51 PM on May 4, 2017 [1 favorite]
The only other recommendation I have for you is: make sure you have good, current, working backups before you start. Check the backed up files, try to read a few.
Migration hits the old disk hard because it has to copy all the data (obviously), and I've had oneof my old laptop disks fail *during* the migration procedure. Luckily, I had a Time Machine copy (as well as another offline backup) so it was just a few hours of time wasted, nothing more. But it would have made me awfully nervous if that was my only backup!
posted by RedOrGreen at 1:51 PM on May 4, 2017 [1 favorite]
Seconding uberchet - my iTunes library I'd on its its own dedicated external drive and has for years. I've never ONCE had a problem with it - up to and including playing MP4 files from "home movies" in iTunes from the external drive, through iTunes on the laptop, over wireless network, to my AppleTV.
posted by tzikeh at 10:14 AM on May 5, 2017
posted by tzikeh at 10:14 AM on May 5, 2017
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Connect both computers to the same local Wi-Fi or Ethernet network.
Or connect both computers directly using a Thunderbolt, FireWire, or Ethernet cable.
Or connect your new Mac to a Time Capsule or external drive that has a Time Machine backup of your old Mac.
posted by Captain_Science at 1:16 PM on May 3, 2017 [5 favorites]