I have OS X 10.5.8, should I upgrade to Snow Leopard, or a later version?

I have OS X 10.5.8 on a 2008 Macbook Pro. Should I upgrade to Snow Leopard, or a later version?

Depends. If you use and need PPC apps, then SL. If you don't use any of those, then go to whatever the machine supports. Details at Lion specs and MLion specs.

Similar Messages

Should I upgrade to Snow Leopard/ Lion using a MacBook Pro with 2.26 GHz Inetl Core 2 Duo Processor and 2GB Memory? Can my old macbook take it?

Should I upgrade to Snow Leopard/ Lion using a MacBook Pro with 2.26 GHz Inetl Core 2 Duo Processor and 2GB Memory? Can my old macbook take it?
thanks

Yes. You should be fine with Snow Leopard, but Lion requires a minimum of 2 GBs of RAM. If you upgrade to Lion I would first upgrade your RAM to at least 4 GBs if your model supports it. Also, see:
How to Install OS X Updates Successfully
A. Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions:
Boot from your current OS X Installer disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. Then select Disk Utility from the Utilities menu. After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list. In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive. If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit DU and return to the installer. Now restart normally.
If DU reports errors it cannot fix, then you will need Disk Warrior (4.0 for Tiger) and/or TechTool Pro (4.5.2 for Tiger) to repair the drive. If you don't have either of them or if neither of them can fix the drive, then you will need to reformat the drive and reinstall OS X.
B. Make a Bootable Backup Using Restore Option of Disk Utility:
Open Disk Utility from the Utilities folder.
Select the destination volume from the left side list.
Click on the Restore tab in the DU main window.
Check the box labeled Erase destination.
Select the destination volume from the left side list and drag it to the Destination entry field.
Select the source volume from the left side list and drag it to the Source entry field.
Double-check you got it right, then click on the Restore button.
Destination means the external backup drive. Source means the internal startup drive.
C. Important: Please read before installing:
If you have a FireWire hard drive connected, disconnect it before installing the update unless you will boot from this drive and install the update on it. Reconnect it and turn it back on after installation is complete and you've restarted.
You may experience unexpected results if you have installed third-party system software modifications, or if you have modified the operating system through other means. (This does not apply to normal application software installation.)
The installation process should not be interrupted. If a power outage or other interruption occurs during installation, use the standalone installer (see below) from Apple Downloads to update. While the installation is in progress do not use the computer.
D. To upgrade:
Purchase the Snow Leopard Retail DVD.
Boot From The OS X Installer Disc:
Insert OS X Installer Disc into the optical drive.
Restart the computer.
Immediately after the chime press and hold down the "C" key.
Release the key when the spinning gear below the dark gray Apple logo appears.
Wait for installer to finish loading.
E. If updating:
Download and install update(s)
Use Software Update, or
Download standalone updater(s).

How far should I upgrade from snow leopard

how far should I upgrade from snow leopard. I just installed more RAM for a total of 4 GB.
Thanks

Check that your computer is compatible with Mountain Lion/Mavericks/Yosemite.
To check the model number hold down the option/alt key, go to the Apple menu and select System Information.
iMac (Mid 2007 or newer) model number 7,1 or higher
Your Mac needs:
OS X v10.6.8 or OS X Lion already installed
2 GB or more of memory (More is better - 4 GB minimum seems to be the consensus)
8 GB or more of available space
Check to make sure your applications are compatible. PowerPC applications are no longer supported after 10.6.
Application Compatibility
Applications Compatibility (2)
Do a backup before installing.
If you can/do upgrade, I recommend you make a copy of the installer and move it out of your Applications folder. The installer self-destructs. The copy will keep you from having to download the installer again. You can make a bootable USB stick to install using this free program.
Bootable USB Flash Drive – Diskmaker X
If your computer isn’t compatible, you might be able to upgrade to Lion. Personal opinion, I'd stay with Snow Leopard rather than Lion.
Computer Compatibility - Lion Lion

Should i upgrade from Snow Leopard to Lion on my Macbook Air1,1 ?

Hi, I just found out the Macbook Air i bought from my friend recently isn't compatible to upgrade to Mountain Lion.
I'm very dissapointed, but thought i would upgrade to OS X Lion instead, so at least i would be able to use iCloud.
Two problems:
This is my first Mac, i know very little about them; i have no idea if an upgrade could make my Mac slower or cause other problems.
And I can't find OS X Lion in the App Store.
I verified my disk (found no problems) and have back-ups using Time Machine.
I'm running Snow Leopard 10.6.8
Model Name:          MacBook Air
Model Identifier:          MacBookAir1,1
Processor Name:          Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed:          1.8 GHz
Number Of Processors:          1
Total Number Of Cores:          2
L2 Cache:          4 MB
Memory:          2 GB
Bus Speed:          800 MHz

You can install it if you want. If you see that the system is unstable, press Command and R keys when your Mac starts, open Disk Utility, erase the disk and install OS X. See if your applications are supported > http://www.roaringapps.com

I have upgraded to snow leopard 10.6.3 version and it will not open mail it says i cant use this version of mail 3.6

I have upgraded to mac os x snow leopard but it doesent let me open mail it says i have mail 3.6 so i tried to download a larer version of mail and i havent got space.

While the minimum free space some quote of 4GB or 10% in actual practice you want more like 10-15GB minimum and that doesn't mean it will perform as it should, only that it may be able to function at all. 20% free space, but none of that means that your free space is large enough, or that the pieces of free space may be so small as to still not allow writes.
The worst is when it is no longer possible to update the index to the drive directory of where files and fragments are located.
Last, good idea when moving to a new OS, to backup/clone your drive, erase and install, then use Setup Assistant, as in going from 10.5 to 10.6. It may seem like you or others can "get away" with avoiding formatting a drive. In practice, you want to be safe rather than sorry. And the only time to insure the partitions are aligned and healthy and no bad sectors, especially those contained by the OS that are hidden.
Swapping out hard drive, moving your drive to an external case kit can be found here:
http://www.macsales.com/firewire - has all types

Should we upgrade to Snow leopard?

Basically, I'd suggest: don't upgrade --- but I would love to hear from those who have found any real or substantial benefits from doing so (the extreme number of messages re problems and disadvantages are already overwhelming and cover that side thoroughly)
My experience:
I should have remembered: if it ain't broke, don't fix it (and all I was even hoping for or expecting was for my (fairly new) Mac to operate about the same with maybe a minor 64 bit speed increase).
I have encountered numerous problems and disadvantages related to SL (Snow Leopard) (though my actual several-hour upgrade/installation worked flawlessly), and what is worse, even after getting some of the problems sorted out (and some not yet) and using SL for about a week, I very much regret 'upgrading' to SL (and will be working on restoring (non-snow) Leopard tonight/tomorrow).
I have looked at every upgraded and new aspect of SL, trying to find a reason to keep it, and there is nothing of any significance to me (and, I expect, to most people) that was not already in (non-snow) Leopard in one way or another - and some advertised things like new Safari features were already available with (non-snow) Leopard as automatic/free updates (and Safari 4 works perfectly for me there). It's nice to look at the advertising and try and justify the upgrade, but do those things (some about the most minor differences - 'refined, not reinvented' as they say), make any real difference in the hours we spend using our computers each day? I couldn't find any that truly saved me time, effort or let me do more, and I looked hard.
Now the down side...
I have a fairly new iMac (well less than a year old) with a dual core processor and 3GB RAM (and it is what I consider a very basic, typical, 'safe' setup, using the most popular brand name hardware/software, no games and very little software in general - i.e. my computer is not loaded with all sorts of 'stuff', or any uncommon 'stuff'). With SL, the OS related software (e.g. Safari) now runs in 64 bit (confirmed), but I have found no perceptible speed increase in anything from the basic to the graphic intensive - in fact, I have found quite the opposite - very significant lags, commonly in saving files, opening dialogs and certain operations (sometimes consistently, sometimes intermittently) in many software programs (including Apple OS related programs, other Apple software, and 3rd party software such as Adobe CS4) - even simply saving an image in Safari now takes a painfully long time to simply display the dialog. The 'beach ball' has become a very common sight (where it wasn't in non-snow Leopard), and a great many of the other lags and slowness occurs without the beach-ball appearing at all (which is disturbing for a number of reasons). That, combined with (for me) the system crashing, the system simply hanging when left on overnight (set to never sleep/etc), printer driver problems, UPS status problems, screen zoom problems, various program crashes, and the Finder not working properly (doesn't crash but doesn't find consistently/reliably), all means that the SL 'upgrade' is 0% benefit and 100% detrimental for me. Even without any of the specific (to me perhaps) problems/bugs above, the lags and sluggishness alone has turned a beautiful Mac into something frustrating to use (especially since I'm very used to and LOVED how consistently responsive it was with non-snow Leopard).
With (non-snow) Leopard, my Mac was basically perfect, reliable, fast, everything ran right and flawlessly, etc - all the stuff Apple talks about in their commercials. With SL, Apple has severely disappointed, and added 0 significant advantages/features and made my Mac slow, sluggish, unreliable, unstable and problematic - just like the PC they compare to in their commercials. I have also been waiting/checking for a 'software update' re the countless problems I and others have found in SL - nothing has come, or seems to be forthcoming (perhaps I have missed some acknowledgement of the problems or pending fixes by Apple). I simply hope I will be successful in restoring my Mac (through time machine) to it's pre-snow condition.
Note: If you do try SL, I'd suggest you do a full image backup beforehand (which the OS install does not suggest/warn you to do, or do itself).
If anyone has experienced any advantages with SL (other than the few esoteric 'new features' already covered in the advertising) that outweigh the disadvantages/problems and that would affect most users in a REAL/substantial way on a daily basis, please reply. If you have an experience/opinion similar (in general) to mine, a short reply would also be appreciated.
I hope Apple is taking notice of these discussions, and remembers and returns to their previous quality/standards - sorry, but we already have PC filling the other type of market, and Apple is about something different (isn't it, still, I hope!) --- and, not to be (too) funny, but is it possible SL was really written/released by Microsoft as a sneaky way to level the competition with Apple (reference the latest Apple commercial with 'PC guy' impersonating 'Apple guy')? Forgive this last paragraph - now getting off the soap box

Hi JasonFear...
Thanks for the info... and to clarify, mine was an upgrade (rather than an erase/clean-install - as per recommendations from Apple and the discussion board, regardless of extra work involved) - I have not tried an erase/clean-install.
One reason for my (very long) post was to cover my real daily use experience re SL (aside from problems/crashes that may be specific to me or certain software) - on things like Safari, page loads are as fast (perhaps imperceptibly faster) than in non-snow Leopard; however, it is during some user interactions, things like opening dialogs (e.g. save image as one example in Safari, other dialogs, menu/button selections, saves, etc in other software) that there are lags and sluggishness - it is not that my Mac now runs slow overall (it doesn't), it is that crisp responsive interactive aspect that has greatly and very noticeably degraded (and even so, not universally or always consistently). I too have a great deal of experience in doing upgrades/etc to large numbers of systems, but not involving Macs - one thing I've have found over the years is that users will rarely ever mention things like a dialog now taking 3 seconds to appear where before it appeared instantly - if it appears at all, they often just leave it at that. Also, these type of things (lags) were not immediately noticed by me right after the upgrade, or I just wrote them off as a one-time or circumstantial thing, but they persisted and became very noticeable and appeared in more places as I got back into using the computer extensively all day as I have always done.
I thought of SL as more of an internal upgrade to allow for the future (and was aware it may have limited immediate advantage) - that is also why I put it on rather than waiting (as I would have if it were an 11.0 rather than a 10.6) - I think the reality is that it will still be quite some time before it becomes a real requirement (for future compatibility). The fact that this 'update' is charged-for (though very inexpensive) feels more like a marketing/psychological thing so there is something 'new' to release, to keep up with the other guys, and not leave the Apple users feeling like they don't have something 'new'/current.
Thanks for replying with your experience and suggestion of an erase/clean-install (though so far it still seems to be a lot of pain for no practical gain, other than being ready for the future way in advance of necessity).
Though I am encouraged to see several replies reporting no problems, I am still looking forward to some replies with real-life experiences related to real advantages for daily use of most users.

GMA X3100 Macbook-Should I upgrade to Snow Leopard?

I've read all kinds of horror stories about this Graphics Card GMA X3100 and Snow Leopard. I see that SL doesn't support it. I'm running ok on 10.5.8.
Should I upgrade or not? I'm mostly doing audio in Logic Pro and will be doing more HD video in iMovie for YouTube etc.
I like to hook up an older monitor to mirror my Macbook's. I've read where people have had problems with this after upgrading from 10.5 to 10.6.
Should I stay on 10.5 or will I get any benefit from 10.6? I'd like to get as close to up to date as possible if it'll be good for me. Thanks!
I have a few years old white Macbook:
MacBook
Model Identifier:          MacBook4,1
Processor Name:          Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed:          2.4 GHz
Number Of Processors:          1
Total Number Of Cores:          2
L2 Cache:          3 MB
Memory:          2 GB
Bus Speed:          800 MHz
Chipset Model:          GMA X3100
Type:          Display
Bus:          Built-In
VRAM (Total):          144 MB
Vendor:          Intel (0x8086)
Device ID:          0x2a02
Revision ID:          0x0003
Displays:
Color LCD:
Resolution:          1280 x 800
Depth:          32-Bit Color
Core Image:          Hardware Accelerated
Main Display:          Yes
Mirror:          Off
Online:          Yes
Quartz Extreme:          Supported
Built-In:          Yes

I've read all kinds of horror stories about this Graphics Card GMA X3100 and Snow Leopard. I see that SL doesn't support it. I'm running ok on 10.5.8.
Should I upgrade or not? I'm mostly doing audio in Logic Pro and will be doing more HD video in iMovie for YouTube etc.
I like to hook up an older monitor to mirror my Macbook's. I've read where people have had problems with this after upgrading from 10.5 to 10.6.
Should I stay on 10.5 or will I get any benefit from 10.6? I'd like to get as close to up to date as possible if it'll be good for me. Thanks!
I have a few years old white Macbook:
MacBook
Model Identifier:          MacBook4,1
Processor Name:          Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed:          2.4 GHz
Number Of Processors:          1
Total Number Of Cores:          2
L2 Cache:          3 MB
Memory:          2 GB
Bus Speed:          800 MHz
Chipset Model:          GMA X3100
Type:          Display
Bus:          Built-In
VRAM (Total):          144 MB
Vendor:          Intel (0x8086)
Device ID:          0x2a02
Revision ID:          0x0003
Displays:
Color LCD:
Resolution:          1280 x 800
Depth:          32-Bit Color
Core Image:          Hardware Accelerated
Main Display:          Yes
Mirror:          Off
Online:          Yes
Quartz Extreme:          Supported
Built-In:          Yes

Should I upgrade to Snow Leopard now or wait?

Hi I have a Mac Pro running Leopard 10.5.8. I have Snow Leopard but I've been waiting on upgrading mostly because I heard there's still some bugs and that some printers don't work 100 percent. With the recent Snow Leopard 10.6.2 update is it now safe to upgrade? Should I wait for the next update? Thanks

Stuart Lawrence wrote:
Hi I have a Mac Pro running Leopard 10.5.8. I have Snow Leopard but I've been waiting on upgrading mostly because I heard there's still some bugs and that some printers don't work 100 percent. With the recent Snow Leopard 10.6.2 update is it now safe to upgrade? Should I wait for the next update? Thanks
Here's a couple of lists of 3rd-party apps, with info about compatibility (accuracy unknown):
http://snowleopard.wikidot.com/
http://www.macintouch.com/specialreports/snowleopard/slcompat.html#d31aug2009-21 56
And Apple's list: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3258
Also, Snow Leopard Printer and Scanner software: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3669
If an app or printer you use shows as not compatible, or isn't listed at all, check it out with the maker. Otherwise, don't necessarily believe that a few posts here are representative -- a few folks have trouble with every update ever released. That doesn't mean you will.
But by all means, be sure you have at least one complete backup. You really should do backups regularly (all disk drives do fail, sooner or later), but especially before an upgrade. Many of us keep both a "bootable clone" and full Time Machine backups, just in case Murphy comes calling.
CarbonCopyCloner and SuperDuper are the two main "clone" apps.

Should I upgrade from snow leopard to mountain lion?

I've got a 2008 2.8 8-core Mac Pro, and wonder if upgrading is going to be worthwhile. I've read horror stories about slow response time, etc, but I've also ready the these problems are solved by flushing PRAM and other maintainance utilities.
I run FCP 7, all the CS 5.5 stuff, and MS Office 2011.
Should I do it?

I use both - separate partitions. I can run older games and programs not compatible with Mountain Lion. Most of the time I use Mountain Lion.
Check to make sure your applications are compatible. PowerPC applications are no longer supported as John pointed out.
Application Compatibility
You can also check by going to the  menu, select About this Mac, click on More info…, then click System Report and select Software/Applications.
If you have applications that you want to use that aren’t compatible, you can retain Snow Leopard and create a new partition to install Mountain Lion on or you can run Snow Leopard server in a virtual mode.
If you can/do upgrade, I recommend you make a copy of the installer and move it out of your Applications folder. The installer self-destructs. The copy will keep you from having to download the installer again. You can make a bootable DVD/USB stick to install using this free program.
Bootable Drive DVD or USB Flash Drive – Lion Diskmaker
From Kappy
Install Mountain Lion Successfully from 10.6.8

A1181 2.1 running 10.5 should I upgrade to snow leopard?

I purchased a gently used white pre-unibody macbook 13". It is running 10.5.8 and does fine but I hear that snow leopard will speed it up considerably. Reading the threads about past upgrades makes me a bit leary with multiple issues arrising after the snow leopard install. I cannot find any recent posts on this issue. The most recent I can find is almost 2 years old. I would really like to upgrade it but do not want big problems with battery slowing down and other issues that have been mentioned. I am hoping that the updates on Leopard have solved some of these problems in upgrading.
Thank you in advance for any help you can offer!

Actually Snow Leopard is not faster than Leopard. At best they are about the same. However, doing maintenance may make the machine run better:
Kappy's Personal Suggestions for OS X Maintenance
For disk repairs use Disk Utility. For situations DU cannot handle the best third-party utilities are: Disk Warrior; DW only fixes problems with the disk directory, but most disk problems are caused by directory corruption; Disk Warrior 4.x is now Intel Mac compatible. TechTool Pro provides additional repair options including file repair and recovery, system diagnostics, and disk defragmentation. TechTool Pro 4.5.1 or higher are Intel Mac compatible; Drive Genius is similar to TechTool Pro in terms of the various repair services provided. Versions 1.5.1 or later are Intel Mac compatible.
OS X performs certain maintenance functions that are scheduled to occur on a daily, weekly, or monthly period. The maintenance scripts run in the early AM only if the computer is turned on 24/7 (no sleep.) If this isn't the case, then an excellent solution is to download and install a shareware utility such as Macaroni, JAW PseudoAnacron, or Anacron that will automate the maintenance activity regardless of whether the computer is turned off or asleep. Dependence upon third-party utilities to run the periodic maintenance scripts had been significantly reduced in Tiger and Leopard. These utilities have limited or no functionality with Snow Leopard and should not be installed.
OS X automatically defragments files less than 20 MBs in size, so unless you have a disk full of very large files there's little need for defragmenting the hard drive. As for virus protection there are few if any such animals affecting OS X. You can protect the computer easily using the freeware Open Source virus protection software ClamXAV. Personally I would avoid most commercial anti-virus software because of their potential for causing problems.
I would also recommend downloading the shareware utility TinkerTool System that you can use for periodic maintenance such as removing old logfiles and archives, clearing caches, etc. Other utilities are also available such as Onyx, Leopard Cache Cleaner, CockTail, and Xupport, for example.
For emergency repairs install the freeware utility Applejack. If you cannot start up in OS X, you may be able to start in single-user mode from which you can run Applejack to do a whole set of repair and maintenance routines from the commandline. Note that AppleJack 1.5 is required for Leopard. AppleJack 1.6 is compatible with Snow Leopard.
When you install any new system software or updates be sure to repair the hard drive and permissions beforehand. I also recommend booting into safe mode before doing system software updates.
Get an external Firewire drive at least equal in size to the internal hard drive and make (and maintain) a bootable clone/backup. You can make a bootable clone using the Restore option of Disk Utility. You can also make and maintain clones with good backup software. My personal recommendations are (order is not significant):
Backuplist
Carbon Copy Cloner
Data Backup
Deja Vu
iBackup
JaBack
Silver Keeper
MimMac
Retrospect
Super Flexible File Synchronizer
SuperDuper!
Synchronize Pro! X
SyncTwoFolders
Synk Pro
Synk Standard
Tri-Backup
Visit The XLab FAQs and read the FAQs on maintenance, optimization, virus protection, and backup and restore.
Additional suggestions will be found in Mac Maintenance Quick Assist.
Referenced software can be found at CNet Downloads or MacUpdate.

Should I upgrade to Snow Leopard from Leopard on Early 2009 Mini?

Just got an Early 2009 Mini on eBay. Here's the specs:
2 Ghz Core 2 Duo Intel CPU, 120 Gb Hard drive, 4 GB RAM and a Super Drive optical drive
Wondered if it should be upgraded to SL or not. How does Snow Leopard compare to Leopard? Also, I've noticed on eBay that there's Full Retail versions of Snow Leopard available for sale. I've only seen upgrade versions, not full. Is this true?
Thanks.
silverado93

I've got a 1.66 GHz Intel Core Duo (2nd Gen) and had OS Tiger originally on it. I've sinced went to Leopard and then Snow Leopard through the OS releases. I found that since my original HD was only 80 Gb (it died on me last year and now have a 500 Gb) that the stream lined snow leopard was a great benefit as it made every program on the computer (Ilife, etc) smaller in size. The only downside for me was that the USB webcam i had was not supported by with snow leopard and stopped working. The Ecamm company who sells a usb driver online for usb based cams to work with macs do not support snow leopard OS and will not make a driver for it. So I've gone back to Leopard for the time being.
On another note, with the older mini that i have, when i bought Ilife 11 and installed it, i found that the new iphoto program was very slow and lagged so much, that it was bothersome in comparison to the previous iphoto in ilife 10 which never had an issue. It was not worth the upgrade for this machine and i have gone back to ilife 10 as a result.
And since my machine is older, my internal speaker has recently died, preventing me from using external speakers. So just a note, that these items may fail, but are replaceable.

Should I upgrade from Snow Leopard to Lion?

This is my first Mac.I purchased it (in May 2010 with Snow Leopard installed) primarily to avoid the hassles worrying about malware on a PC. I love it and everything Mac. What are the major drawbacks to not upgrading to the newest OS (which is now apparently called Lion)? I don't have any plan for the future other than buying a desktop to replace this notebook someday since I understand that notebooks may be replaced by iPads or similar models and I want a large size display. Is best to simply not fix something that isn't broken? Thanks very much for any thoughts.

Some thoughts
Lion is very different, so if you just got used to Snow Leopard get ready for some changes. Lion annoyed a lot of Mac purists because it is so different. A lot of features have become, and are becoming, more "iOS-like". Some people think this amounts to "dumbing down" the OS and I can't say I disagree. However, I've been using Macs since the original one in 1984 and personally, I like Lion and consider it an overall improvement. A lot of people have difficulty letting go of the past, but when you use Macs as long as I have, you get used to it!
Since you have only been using a Mac since 2010 it is unlikely you have any PowerPC (PPC) programs but you should be aware they will no longer run in Lion. Most Mac programs written since the switch to Intel processors in 2006 will work without a problem.
You will want a Magic Trackpad or at least a Magic Mouse to take advantage of Lion's many new gestures. I can't imagine using a scrollwheel mouse ever again, but some people prefer them even with Lion. A mouse certainly enables finer control over the cursor so if you're manipulating little elements a lot you may prefer it. I suppose it's a question of personal choice and what you do with the computer. I keep a Magic Mouse right next to my Magic Trackpad so I can use either one - they are both active simultaneously so I can just reach over and use one or the other.
Every new Mac OS release (major releases, not point releases) places greater demands on your hardware. Your MacBook Pro has an i7 CPU, a major improvement over the Core 2 Duo. If you still have the basic 4 GB memory that's certainly adequate, but more would be more comfortable. Lion will run in as little as 2 GB but just barely. Your MacBook pro is going to last a long time so why not just get the maximum memory right now. (I'm typing this on my Powerbook G4, it's ten years old).
Before buying and installing Lion, get an external backup hard disk and use Time Machine to back up your current system. Once you install Lion there is no undoing it, so archive your system the way it is in case you change your mind. Also, you can boot your computer from the backup volume and run Snow Leopard any time you want to. It's a good idea to have a backup anyway. External disk drives are not terribly expensive (less then $100 if you shop around). I have Snow Leopard on an external drive but I haven't needed it since upgrading to Lion.
It's only $30, so what are you waiting for?
One more thing - Apple is not going to abandon notebooks in favor of iPads any time soon. Their laptop segment has enjoyed explosive growth and it has been very profitable. I imagine they are only going to increase their presence in that market. The iPad is extremely capable and complements a traditional computer very well, but it's not quite a replacement for one.

Why should I upgrade from Snow Leopard to Yosemite?

I am currently running Yosemite on my MacBook but my iMac is still running Snow Leopard.
I believe that the hardware is compatible and I have enough RAM (4GB) and everything seems to work fine but are there enough advantages of making the change and there are any disadvantages.

pfaepeebles wrote:
if the upgrade does not work correctly I can use my latest Time Machine backup to get to Snow Leopard. Are there instructions on how to do this.
Thanks.
Paul..
Research Apple's Knowledge Base - http://support.apple.com/kb/index?page=search

I have a very old mac and need to upgrade to snow leopard to update my itunes, my disc drive is not working can i download snow leopard without a disc?

I have an old mac version 10.5.8 I need to update to snow leopard and my disc drive isn't working... Can I download snow leopard without a disc?

Snow Leopard is only available on disk. Furthermore, even if you had a working disk drive, you may not be able to install Snow Leopard anyway, depending on just how "old" your Mac is. It must have an Intel processor to run Snow Leopard (Macs with Intel processors were first made in 2006), among other requirements.

HT3874 should I upgrade to Snow Leopard?

if I upgrade to snow leopard will I still be able to run my old software such as quicken an ms office?
I am using MS office 2008 and Quicken 2007.
Thanks for any help from anyone who has done this!

In that vein, see
http://www.macmaps.com/upgradefaq.html
http://www.macmaps.com/backup.html
http://www.thexlab.com/faqs/installswupdates.html
http://www.thexlab.com/faqs/backuprecovery.html

I have OS X 10.5.8, should I upgrade to Snow Leopard, or a later version?

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