Tiger to Snow Leopard - advice w/ install and imovie '06

[pa6860]

Hello,

I've searched these great forums regarding this, but I was hoping for some more advice.

1. I'd like to do an erase and install. Is this really better than a simple upgrade?
If so, how can I get all my stuff back? I realize this is a silly question, but how can I get all my 17,000 iphoto pictures/folders/albums/slideshows, etc. back the exact same way they are now? (I have iphoto '06-but I will upgrade to iPhoto 09- will this be a problem when restoring my iphoto library?)

Same with itunes? As I am new to this, can you give me a step by step process please?

2. I have several imovieHD/imovie'06 videos. How can I move my iMovieHD application over to snow leopard? Will it co-exist with iMovie09 when I upgrade to ilife 09? Note- I have the original discs that came with the computer 3 years ago

In preparation for the upgrade, I did recently get SuperDuper and I've backed up my HD.

Any advice how to proceed from here (for a "relative newbie") would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks much!

 

[HLdan]

At the risk of everybody here on MR starting over and going step by step with you, what have learned so far from the other forums so we can continue from there?

 

[pa6860]

I've learned a lot, but as to be expected, there are varying opinions out there on what is best, and a lot of advice that assumes too much from newbies like myself. So instead of getting varying points of view about similar (but different) subjects, I'd like to get direct opinions about this specific subject.

For example, some on the apple forums state that upgrading is much better than erase and install, stating that it actually causes more problems for former tiger users. Others, on this forum, state the opposite suggesting that since tiger is 2 os's old, it's definitely best to erase everything and start from scratch. Both opinions seem best for me, but I'd like to present the question directly so I can get a more focused answer from you all.

Secondly, I'm still not sure how to reinstall all my apps and iPhoto folders, etc. On most of the apple forums, for example, posters simply state "just back everything up and then reinstall them from the backup." Ok. How? Do I just drag and drop? What do I drag, and where do I drag it to? I have 17,000 pictures and 50 plus folders, albums, slideshows, etc. What and how do I do this? Again, I'm a newbie here, so that's why I was hoping you could give a step by step process--which I've seen many great posters do in great detail for other "similar knowledge level" subjects.

Finally, iMovie 06 and 09. I've learned they can co-exist, but can not find detailed instructions on how to reinstall my imovie 06 after I upgrade to SL and iLife 09. Also, how can I bring my old imovie 06 projects over?

Again, ANY help would be appreciated.

Thanks.

 

[HLdan]

The upgrade path works well IF you have a very recent install of Leopard or Tiger. If you've used your computer for quite a while and have lots of files it's best to do a full erase and install. I can't imagine why anyone would say the upgrade path gives better results than doing a full erase and starting over from scratch on an empty drive.
I don't know which version of iPhoto you have but if you are using iPhoto 7 and above (not sure about version 6) there should be an iPhoto Library file with a picture of a pine tree on it in your Pictures folder. Just drag and drop that onto your new install of SL in your Pictures foler. If you do a full erase and install of SL then you'll need to take your original install DVD's and reinstall iPhoto afterwards.

It's best to have an external drive and backup everything. I will recommend to set aside either this weekend or a whole day where you can manually install each one of your apps, this will give you the best experience when doing a major OS upgrade.

Some people will tell you to clone your drive and dump everything back onto SL after the install. This may cause corrupt files as you are blending old system files with new ones and if you are using any haxies to change the look and feel of the Dock that might cause issues with SL.