Can I upgrade OS from 10.5.8 to 10.6 or later?

[confusedconnie]

I have discovered a program I would like to use needs 10.6 or 10.7 to run. I have no knowledge of the different versions and therefore don't know the advantages or disadvantages of upgrading my version. (As stated in the title, I'm running on 10.5.8)

How do I do this? Can I do this?


Thanks once again for your help.

[Giuly]

All Intel Macs should be able to update to 10.6, and if you would tell us which Mac it is, it might run 10.7 or 10.8, too.

Getting the Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard DVD and upgrading is recommended anyways, as it's faster than Leopard.

[aicul]

Originally Posted by confusedconnie

I have no knowledge of the different versions and therefore don't know the advantages or disadvantages of upgrading my version.

As previous response you should first see if you can upgrade to a higher version. And the Intel-Mac question is quite fundamental.

For an old Mac (running 10.5 - hence oldish) the advantages are a better OS with more functionality (APP store, Face Time, Messages, etc. built-in), the disadvantages are that your Mac may not be very responsive.

Even here, Apple tries to block installs of newer OS's on low end Macs that do not have a reasonable configuration. (there are hacks to bypass this).

So do not run out to buy the software, and the new OS, until you are sure.

Maybe if you tell us what mac you have, etc, etc. we can be a little more precise.

[confusedconnie]

Originally Posted by aicul

Maybe if you tell us what mac you have, etc, etc. we can be a little more precise.

Is this what you're talking about?

[aicul]

Mmmmmhhh.. let's say that is not a very powerful iMac.

Indeed add RAM and you may also want to check the needs of your new app in terms of memory/disk requirements.


Let me ask the question differently, is this new Application really necessary ? Seems you may be rebuilding your whole iMac just for 1 Application..

[minifridge1138]

That Mac will run up to 10.7, but not 10.8.

The 1 GB of ram will be ok in 10.6. I don't know about 10.7.

I have the same model with 2GB of RAM and 10.7 ran fine (others have had less luck). But I switched back to 10.6. There are some minor things I prefer, and most of the 10.7 features need a multi-gesture trackpad.

Good luck!!!

[confusedconnie]

Originally Posted by aicul

Mmmmmhhh.. let's say that is not a very powerful iMac.

Indeed add RAM and you may also want to check the needs of your new app in terms of memory/disk requirements.


Let me ask the question differently, is this new Application really necessary ? Seems you may be rebuilding your whole iMac just for 1 Application..

Originally Posted by minifridge1138

That Mac will run up to 10.7, but not 10.8.

The 1 GB of ram will be ok in 10.6. I don't know about 10.7.

I have the same model with 2GB of RAM and 10.7 ran fine (others have had less luck). But I switched back to 10.6. There are some minor things I prefer, and most of the 10.7 features need a multi-gesture trackpad.

Good luck!!!

This particular application isn't necessary BUT every other application also requires a higher OS (ie. Google Chrome, Realplayer).

I plan on using this computer for about 2 more years before getting a new one and there's no doubt that I'll need more applications in the future that also require a newer system. I'm going to buy more RAM because I also want to install FinalCut Studio (which requires around 124 RAM) so when I go to the store I'll also ask about updating the system.

Thanks for the help.

[surroundfan]

Connie

I've just upgraded a mate's MacBook 2,1 (which was still running the original 512MB RAM and Tiger ), which is the same model as yours, doing what I describe below. It performs very well for a 6 yo laptop, and runs all modern programs pretty smoothly...

There are three things you should do:

1) buy 4GB of RAM - the model can accept 4GB, but will only see 3.3GB, but if you run 10.7 Lion on it, it's highly recommended. This will run to about $60 (e.g. http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/memory/MacBook/DDR2/) as well as a #00 Philips screwdriver. It's a DIY install.
2) buy an SSD - 120GB should be less than $100 and will make the lappy super snappy as well as an empty 2.5" case to set up the SSD and enable migration of your data and a Torx T6 screwdriver
3) buy Lion - this will require a call to Apple.

[ResPublica]

You will have to buy Snow Leopard (10.6) from the Apple online store. With the install DVD, you can easily upgrade your Mac to Snow Leopard.

Do that before even considering upgrading to Lion (10.7). Lion requires an installation of Snow Leopard and an upgrade of your machine's RAM memory. The latter is recommendable even if you stay with Snow Leopard, because the 1GB of RAM you have now does restrict the performance of your machine.