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Do I want/need to update?

H

heycal

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jul 25, 2013
873
28
I have a one year old Mac Air that says it using OS X 10.8.5. I get occasional prompts asking me if I want to upgrade to something called Yosemite.

I'm a non-techie, and someone who hates change. So I've ignored it so far, not wanting to have things look different or act different in any way than than the way I'm used to.

Is this fine, or should I bite the bullet and upgrade? What might I like or not like about it if I do?
 
heycal said:
I have a one year old Mac Air that says it using OS X 10.8.5. I get occasional prompts asking me if I want to upgrade to something called Yosemite.

I'm a non-techie, and someone who hates change. So I've ignored it so far, not wanting to have things look different or act different in any way than than the way I'm used to.

Is this fine, or should I bite the bullet and upgrade? What might I like or not like about it if I do?
Click to expand...

Given you say you hate change and your non techie, you might want to hold off for a couple of months. Being an early adopter doesn't bring you anything you don't have now. If you search Yosemite on the Apple Store http://www.apple.com/uk/osx/ and read the features you can see if there is anything that would make your life easier.
The actual process of upgrading is quite easy. You'll get plenty of help if you get stuck on anything new in the OS X section on here.
 
Last edited:
Apple fanboy said:
Given you say you hate change and your non techie, you might want to hold off for a couple of months. Being an early adopter doesn't bring you anything you don't have now. If you search Yosemite on the Apple Store http://www.apple.com/uk/osx/ and read the features you can see if there is anything that would make your life easier.
The actual process of upgrading is quite easy. You'll get plenty of help if you get stuck on anything new in the OS X section on here.
Click to expand...

Thanks for responding.

If I wanted to respond to text messages i receive on my phone using my Mac instead, would that require the upgrade?

Also, what would holding off for a couple of months do for me? If I have to or want to change eventually, is there any benefit to me waiting awhile?
 
heycal said:
Thanks for responding.

If I wanted to respond to text messages i receive on my phone using my Mac instead, would that require the upgrade?

Also, what would holding off for a couple of months do for me? If I have to or want to change eventually, is there any benefit to me waiting awhile?
Click to expand...

If the person who texted you was on a non iOS device, then yes you would need to upgrade.


If you upgrade early some of your applications or peripherals might not yet be supported which can be frustrating.

Depends on what type of things you do with your Mac. Some companies are better at updating their stuff than others.
 
Apple fanboy said:
If the person who texted you was on a non iOS device, then yes you would need to upgrade.


If you upgrade early some of your applications or peripherals might not yet be supported which can be frustrating.

Depends on what type of things you do with your Mac. Some companies are better at updating their stuff than others.
Click to expand...

I don't do much with my Mac other than emailing, texting, and websurfing. Guess i have Itunes (awful ) and google play and a specialized software program I need.

I just read through the Yosemite description. Funnily enough, but they convinced me -- to get an iphone 6 instead of android.

Reading that article may be the final thing I needed to help me decide between iphone 6 and a Samsung Galaxy s4, which I also find appealing. Yosemite alone seems fine enough, and I guess I'll get used to things being changed on me, but Yosemite with the latest iphone seems a very appealing combo. Being able to send texts from my mac and all that? Sweet.
 
heycal said:
I don't do much with my Mac other than emailing, texting, and websurfing. Guess i have Itunes (awful ) and google play and a specialized software program I need.

I just read through the Yosemite description. Funnily enough, but they convinced me -- to get an iphone 6 instead of android.

Reading that article may be the final thing I needed to help me decide between iphone 6 and a Samsung Galaxy s4, which I also find appealing. Yosemite alone seems fine enough, and I guess I'll get used to things being changed on me, but Yosemite with the latest iphone seems a very appealing combo. Being able to send texts from my mac and all that? Sweet.
Click to expand...

Personally I like keeping everything in one eco system. And as my name and signature suggest, thats :apple:for me.
 
Apple fanboy said:
Personally I like keeping everything in one eco system. And as my name and signature suggest, thats :apple:for me.
Click to expand...

There's some appeal to that for me as well. Plus my daughter is iphone and Mac too, so it's nice being on the same page with her (most of my friends are iphone also).
 
heycal said:
There's some appeal to that for me as well. Plus my daughter is iphone and Mac too, so it's nice being on the same page with her (most of my friends are iphone also).
Click to expand...

My mum who lives three hours away and is not very tech savvy has just bought her first iPad and Apple product.
I'm pleased for two reasons.
I can FaceTime, iMessage, and help her to set it up correctly.
I no longer have to try and fix issues over the phone on a system I have never used.
 
heycal said:
I have a one year old Mac Air that says it using OS X 10.8.5. I get occasional prompts asking me if I want to upgrade to something called Yosemite.

I'm a non-techie, and someone who hates change. So I've ignored it so far, not wanting to have things look different or act different in any way than than the way I'm used to.

Is this fine, or should I bite the bullet and upgrade? What might I like or not like about it if I do?
Click to expand...
I have postponed upgrading to Yosemite, primarily due to a number of reports that the upgrade causes significant WiFi / Internet connectivity problems. I assume that, since your MacBook Air is quite new, it doesn't have an Ethernet port, which means that you rely on WiFi for Internet access. Some users have posted fixes that worked for them, while others have resorted to downgrading to Mavericks, the previous version of OSX, to resolve the connectivity issues. If you are a self-described "non-techie," these actions might be something you'd rather avoid. Ultimately, of course, the decision to upgrade is yours to make.

While it's true that most people are apparently having no problems after upgrading to Yosemite, the potential for issues exists, and unfortunately, Apple has been silent on the problem. They did release an update that supposedly fixed it, but there are reports that it didn't work for some users.

You can read more about the connectivity issues here on MacRumors:
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1820083/

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1816842/

and at Apple's own Support Communities:

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/6601963
(Warning: this thread has nearly 250,000 views and 1,300 replies!)

Edit: If you decide to upgrade (or even if you don't), I strongly recommend that you backup all of your important data in the event you ever need to erase your drive and restore your operating system.
 
Last edited:
Apple fanboy said:
My mum who lives three hours away and is not very tech savvy has just bought her first iPad and Apple product.
I'm pleased for two reasons.
I can FaceTime, iMessage, and help her to set it up correctly.
I no longer have to try and fix issues over the phone on a system I have never used.
Click to expand...

Yup. Things like this are nice little bonuses.

gc916 said:
I have postponed upgrading to Yosemite, primarily due to a number of reports that the upgrade causes significant WiFi / Internet connectivity problems. I assume that, since your MacBook Air is quite new, it doesn't have an Ethernet port, which means that you rely on WiFi for Internet access. Some users have posted fixes that worked for them, while others have resorted to downgrading to Mavericks, the previous version of OSX, to resolve the connectivity issues. If you are a self-described "non-techie," these actions might be something you'd rather avoid. Ultimately, of course, the decision to upgrade is yours to make.

While it's true that most people are apparently having no problems after upgrading to Yosemite, the potential for issues exists, and unfortunately, Apple has been silent on the problem. They did release an update that supposedly fixed it, but there are reports that it didn't work for some users.

You can read more about the connectivity issues here on MacRumors:
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1820083/

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1816842/

and at Apple's own Support Communities:

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/6601963
(Warning: this thread has nearly 250,000 views and 1,300 replies!)

Edit: If you decide to upgrade (or even if you don't), I strongly recommend that you backup all of your important data in the event you ever need to erase your drive and restore your operating system.
Click to expand...

Good to know, thanks. My Mac Air is the 13" 'mid 2013' edition.

If one switches to yosemite and it's a nightmare, can I go back to the exact one I'm using now? (OS X 10.8.5)
 
OP wrote above:
[[ I'm a non-techie, and someone who hates change...]]

Only you can decide whether you want to "upgrade", or not.

If you "hate change", I sense you're going to be displeased with Yosemite, at least initially. It most definitely "looks different" than does 10.8.5. Chances are some of the things you do now will "work differently" under 10.10.

I myself still use 10.8.5 as my "main OS". I've been experimenting with Yosemite installed on an external drive, but am not ready to "commit" to it yet.

If everything works for you as you like it right now, my advice is to keep using what you have, and don't worry about upgrading as of yet.

I have an almost-five-year-old April 2010 MacBook Pro, and I'm still using the OS that came on it -- 10.6.8. It runs clean and quickly, so why bother changing it?
 
heycal said:
If one switches to yosemite and it's a nightmare, can I go back to the exact one I'm using now? (OS X 10.8.5)
Click to expand...
It is possible to downgrade to Mountain Lion (your current OS), but it will require some work, including backing up your data before you upgrade to Yosemite.

Apple has provided instructions to erase and reinstall Mountain Lion here.
 
Fishrrman said:
OP wrote above:
[[ I'm a non-techie, and someone who hates change...]]

Only you can decide whether you want to "upgrade", or not.

If you "hate change", I sense you're going to be displeased with Yosemite, at least initially. It most definitely "looks different" than does 10.8.5. Chances are some of the things you do now will "work differently" under 10.10.

I myself still use 10.8.5 as my "main OS". I've been experimenting with Yosemite installed on an external drive, but am not ready to "commit" to it yet.

If everything works for you as you like it right now, my advice is to keep using what you have, and don't worry about upgrading as of yet.

I have an almost-five-year-old April 2010 MacBook Pro, and I'm still using the OS that came on it -- 10.6.8. It runs clean and quickly, so why bother changing it?
Click to expand...

While I hate change, it's not like I never adapt to it. Facebook's changed about 10 times and I grumble and seem lost at first, then I adopt and can barely remember the way it was before.

So the change part, while unpleasant, would be worth it IF the new system is definitely better. They seem to claim it will certainly integrate better with your new iphone -- though that could be all marketing hype to get you to go for both.
 
Mountain Lion

I'm on 10.8.5 and staying there. Mavericks would have broken some applications I need. Yosemite has no appeal for me.

Personal preference, I guess.
 
SusanK said:
I'm on 10.8.5 and staying there. Mavericks would have broken some applications I need. Yosemite has no appeal for me.

Personal preference, I guess.
Click to expand...

When you read the description of it, are there things you don't like the sound of, or is just you're happy with what you have?

Is there some overall consensus about Yosemite? Any numbers on "percentage of people who switched to Yosemite and are happy they did" info?
 
heycal said:
When you read the description of it, are there things you don't like the sound of, or is just you're happy with what you have?

Is there some overall consensus about Yosemite? Any numbers on "percentage of people who switched to Yosemite and are happy they did" info?
Click to expand...


Hi,

I'm pleased with ML.
 
heycal said:
I have no complaints either. But if I do get an iphone, and it would work better with Yosemite, that would be tempting.
Click to expand...

I hope it all works out for you. The new iPhone sounds like fun. Enjoy!

----------

heycal, I have documents in old Pages. I don't want to chance losing that data with an upgrade. I would lose the ability to administer my AE too.
 
Stuff changes. You can fight it. You can hate it. You can avoid it. But eventually, one day, someday, sometime, you will have to change. That is life. Why fight something that is inevitable? It's just futile. Embrace change. Eventually, you will be forced to use a newer OS or newer computer or something. Might as well start now.
 
SusanK said:
I hope it all works out for you. The new iPhone sounds like fun. Enjoy!

----------

heycal, I have documents in old Pages. I don't want to chance losing that data with an upgrade. I would lose the ability to administer my AE too.
Click to expand...

I don't know what AE is, and also have don't have too many documents on my computer. (Though I suppose if I lose them all, I'll realize I had a lot more than I thought!)

SnowLeopard2008 said:
Stuff changes. You can fight it. You can hate it. You can avoid it. But eventually, one day, someday, sometime, you will have to change. That is life. Why fight something that is inevitable? It's just futile. Embrace change. Eventually, you will be forced to use a newer OS or newer computer or something. Might as well start now.
Click to expand...

Yes and no. If this operating system is fine, and someday I'm truly forced to switch to what may be the third or fourth generation after this, why bother switching to each new one inbetween that comes along?
 
heycal said:
I don't know what AE is, and also have don't have too many documents on my computer. (Though I suppose if I lose them all, I'll realize I had a lot more than I thought!)
Click to expand...

AE is Airport Extreme. I used Pages before it was dumbed down. Mavericks forward requires that version of Pages. So I am staying where I am. It's ain't broke . . .
 
heycal said:
I don't know what AE is, and also have don't have too many documents on my computer. (Though I suppose if I lose them all, I'll realize I had a lot more than I thought!)



Yes and no. If this operating system is fine, and someday I'm truly forced to switch to what may be the third or fourth generation after this, why bother switching to each new one inbetween that comes along?
Click to expand...

You need to learn to read. Either way, you'll be forced to change. So why bother delaying the inevitable?
 
Apple supports the latest four operating systems. Currently, the four operating systems supported are Lion (10.7), Mountain Lion (10.8), Mavericks (10.9), and Yosemite (10.10). You can stick with Mountain Lion until the release after the next one. After that you may want to consider updating to Mavericks or later, because unsupported operating systems do not have security updates.

But for now you have plenty of time. Mavericks brought a lot of under-the-hood changes and broke many programs, so you may not want to update now. Yosemite brought a lot of graphical changes and surface-level features, which may take a while to get used to.

TL;DR: Stick with Mountain Lion until it is no longer supported.

----------
SnowLeopard2008 said:
Stuff changes. You can fight it. You can hate it. You can avoid it. But eventually, one day, someday, sometime, you will have to change. That is life. Why fight something that is inevitable? It's just futile. Embrace change. Eventually, you will be forced to use a newer OS or newer computer or something. Might as well start now.
Click to expand...

Says the person named Snow Leopard. :rolleyes:
 
poiihy said:
Apple supports the latest four operating systems. Currently, the four operating systems supported are Lion (10.7), Mountain Lion (10.8), Mavericks (10.9), and Yosemite (10.10). You can stick with Mountain Lion until the release after the next one. After that you may want to consider updating to Mavericks or later, because unsupported operating systems do not have security updates.

But for now you have plenty of time. Mavericks brought a lot of under-the-hood changes and broke many programs, so you may not want to update now. Yosemite brought a lot of graphical changes and surface-level features, which may take a while to get used to.

TL;DR: Stick with Mountain Lion until it is no longer supported.

----------



Says the person named Snow Leopard. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

Well... like I said I'll adopt the newest OS or whatever if available. Unfortunately, usernames at MR aren't changeable after the fact.
 
SnowLeopard2008 said:
You need to learn to read.
Click to expand...

You need to learn some common sense. Just because something new is offered, you don't have to jump on it.

Or you are you one of those types who had the iphone 4, then the 4s, then the 5, then the 5s, and now the 6? "I'lll have to switch to a new phone someday, so I'd better switch now to whatever the current one is!!!"
 
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