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Author Topic: Planning for the catastrophe  (Read 2479 times)

Offline Xairbusdriver

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Planning for the catastrophe
« on: October 13, 2007, 04:25:39 PM »
I've held out for a new iMac as long as I could without facing the fact that I'll have to 'operate' without one for at least a few days. We leave for the Grandkids house next Tuesday and I don't see how I can keep from taking my iGloo to them. I'll probably spend most of Monday cleaning it out/up, making sure I have everything backed up. I'll probably wipe it clean and re-install Tiger and all the updates (even the security ones! eek2.gif).

I can use Judy's iBook for updating/editing the web site I work on. Adding a few email accounts to iy, also. Probably won't install all the third-party hacks that I've grown to depend on so much. But I won't (shouldn't) be incapacitated while waiting on the new machine to arrive.

I plan on getting the 24" 2.8GHz iMac, comes with a 500GB SATA drive and 2GB RAM. I'm buying it through my son who has tricked a major electronics company into hiring him! ;-) That will allow me a 15% discount, so I'll probably go ahead and get AppleCare and an extension on .Mac ($30 off when bought with a machine). But I'll ask him to wait until the 26/27 to place the order, hoping that it will come with Leopard installed or at least include the DVD in the box.

My major concern is that the Migration Assistant will not recognize the Tiger-based, bootable external drive. eek2.gif I'm probably worrying for naught! But I really don't like the stories I keep hearing about the new machines even though most problems have been with the 'Books. Nor do I expect much sympathy for those needing to wait a while longer for Leopard. Truth be known, I'd rather wait until after the first update for it comes out! But that will probably be at least mid-November! laugh.gif

Any (non-alcoholic) suggestions to sooth my nerves! blush-anim-cl.gif I haven't felt this nervous since my first check ride back in '67! whew.gif Paranoid.gif ohmy.gif unsure.gif sad.gif blink.gif
« Last Edit: October 13, 2007, 04:29:14 PM by Xairbusdriver »
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Offline Ken

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Planning for the catastrophe
« Reply #1 on: October 13, 2007, 05:14:39 PM »
Upgrading your mac to a new one probably seems a little scary, but the process went smoothly for me last week.  I've retired my 867mhz Quicksilver and bought a new intel 17" MacBook Pro to replace it.  The old Quicksilver had at least seven years of everything from pro to shareware programs and prefs on the old 80gig primary drive, and migration assistant brought them all over to the "book" with very few issues.  

I did have to authorize my iTunes account with the new computer, and most of my programs even showed up correctly on the dock abiet there were about four question marks that resolved by clicking on them.  I guess some with the question marks just needed to be run the first time.  Fireworks and Dreamweaver remembered their keys along with Acrobat and Office 2004.  I had some programs like fetch, and entourage, ask for permissions to the keychain which went ok, and that was about it.  

For the most part the migration assistant worked fine.  I keep my documents externally in FW drives and my iPod as I do a lot of moving around so they weren't an issue, but I wouldn't have expected them to be much of a problem anyway.  BTW, the "book" does a pretty good job as a desktop when hooked up to the 30" display and keyboard.  It's perkier than the Quicksilver even with it's processor upgrade.

Take a big breath and go for the new computer with confidence.  Of course, your mileage may vary, but we've moved my son's really old blue iMac over to one of the new white/black ones and the seven year old QS as related above without really much of a problem.  The new migration assistant seems to have most of the bugs worked out of it.  BTW all systems were running 10.4.10.

Hope it goes as well for you.
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Retired edu Tech. Director.  Quicksilver with dual 23" Mons and Mercury Extreme 1.47 processor upgrade.  Firewire iMac in the barn and a couple of T-Books and Powerbook G-4 with airport cards for vacations.  We're wired and wireless with a Hughes.net Satellite internet connection. Pretending to do websites and having a ball.

Offline Xairbusdriver

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Planning for the catastrophe
« Reply #2 on: October 13, 2007, 09:43:50 PM »
I've heard nothing but good reviews of the Migration Assistant but they've all involved using the old and new computer together. I'd really like to hear of someone using it with only an external drive, bootable or not. SuperDuper has yet to fail me but I'm still not convinced it's not using some System stuff on the 'real' computer when it does its booting from the external! laugh.gif Do I sound paranoid? You bet! If things go awry the 'old' computer will be 13 hours away and maybe with a completely wiped drive, anyway!

Don't even mention serial numbers! eek2.gif Whose things have a way of hiding under the drawers full of disks! At least I haven't run any of those apps that strip out one or the other versions of code, so the universal ones should start up just fine on the 'foreign' chips! wink.gif

Thanks for the encouraging words, however. Do you live where the buffalo roam all day?! rofl.gif Excuse me, I have to go check something on the range in the microwave. Groaner.gif
« Last Edit: October 13, 2007, 09:44:48 PM by Xairbusdriver »
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Offline Ken

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Planning for the catastrophe
« Reply #3 on: October 13, 2007, 11:34:12 PM »
Why yes I do live on the range. Literally thousands of acres of corn and beans around me most of the year.  We have a microwave also, and twelve cars in the barn.

    Regardless of which computer you use, the iMac or the laptop, you will be using the assistant on the new to you iMac. I guess I really don't see the problem if you are taking the old computer along with you anyway for the migration.  If you need to wipe the drive before giving the computer away, use Carbon Copy Cloner to move it (a copy of your iMac) to a firewire external drive configured as a startup disk, and when you are starting up your new iMac, hook up the external drive instead of the old iMac.  I've done this with CCC and the migration assistant from time to time.  

    I hope the migration goes well for you.  I'm sure you will get through it smoothly. It's only a computer.

    Best,

    Ken
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Retired edu Tech. Director.  Quicksilver with dual 23" Mons and Mercury Extreme 1.47 processor upgrade.  Firewire iMac in the barn and a couple of T-Books and Powerbook G-4 with airport cards for vacations.  We're wired and wireless with a Hughes.net Satellite internet connection. Pretending to do websites and having a ball.

Offline krissel

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« Reply #4 on: October 13, 2007, 11:50:01 PM »
QUOTE(Ken @ Oct 14 2007, 12:34 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
Why yes I do live on the range. Literally thousands of acres of corn and beans around me most of the year.  We have a microwave also, and twelve cars in the barn.  .


cool.gif

QUOTE
It's only a computer.



Well said.

That's something we tend to forget all too often. Need to remember it's not nearly as important as so many other things in our lives. smile.gif
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Offline Paddy

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Planning for the catastrophe
« Reply #5 on: October 14, 2007, 12:52:00 AM »
Jim, you may remember my tale of a couple of summers ago - I was still living in MA at the time, but visiting family in Canada when my Powerbook G4's drive up and died - by degrees, of course! I had my external FW, with a complete backup of my G5 desktop with me. I was able to boot from that without a hitch. Different 'puter backup - the Powerbook didn't care. SuperDuper wasn't doing anything magical, because I don't think I even had it installed on the Powerbook.

See the last story on this page - it's exactly what you'll be doing (minus the toes-up equipment problems):

http://www.macobserver.com/columns/rantsan.../20050303.shtml

smile.gif
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"If computers get too powerful, we can organize them into committees. That'll do them in." ~Author unknown •iMac 5K, 27" 3.6Ghz i9 (2019) • 16" M1 MBP(2021) • 9.7" iPad Pro • iPhone 13

Offline Mayo

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Planning for the catastrophe
« Reply #6 on: October 14, 2007, 02:53:03 AM »
I just used Apple's Migration Assistant to move data from a SuperDuper! bootable cloned volume on an external FW drive to a white 24" iMac. A half-dozen or so out of a zillion drivers, haxies and preference files didn't make it (my Macs are far from stock configurations). It took no more than an hour to make things right and the new iMac is humming along nicely. It would have taken the better part of a day to do it without Migration Assistant.
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Offline pendragon

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Planning for the catastrophe
« Reply #7 on: October 14, 2007, 06:11:16 AM »
In the FWIW department…

I have only used Migration Assistant once, and that was to migrate the data from a PPC DP/800 to an Intel 24” iMac core 2 duo (2.33 GHz).

While the procedure was not, in absolute terms, flawless, it was sure close to it. A few applications needed to be reinstalled and in a few other cases, serial/registration numbers needed to be reinput. Aside from that, all was perfect.

In a subsequent discussion with an Apple Genius, he (unofficially) suggested doing an Archive and Install (while saving settings of course) immediately after using MA. That way, you can ensure there is no damage to the OS as a consequence of using MA. How valid that argument is, I dunno. Maybe your son can check that out.

And finally, when I first ran DiskWarrior on my new system, there was much to be fixed, even though I ran it just prior to using MA. Nothing major was found and all discrepancies were repaired according to plan. Still, ‘tis probably worth doing (IMNHO).

Enjoy!
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Offline Mayo

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Planning for the catastrophe
« Reply #8 on: October 14, 2007, 03:56:08 PM »
When I ran Disk Utility after all was said and done only a few permissions needed repairing, and it verified that the drive was OK. Good Enough For Me...   whistling.gif

I remember the pre-OS X days when it would take hours to configure a new Mac.  If you kept your computer pretty much stock then it wasn't a big deal but if you customized it at all then it could mean hours of installing and tweaking software, preference settings, etc.

It's things like Migration Assistant that sold me on OS X, at least when it had matured to version 10.3... I have NEVER looked back at OS 9 and earlier operating systems with nostalgia.  I know of Macs that have been smoothly running OS X for years with nary a hiccup, used by people who know little about computers and that don't need to know much about computers to keep on happily using their Macs. The same can not be said for the pre-OS X Macs.
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Offline Xairbusdriver

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« Reply #9 on: October 15, 2007, 09:33:56 PM »
Too bad I didn't plan all this a few weeks earlier! blush-anim-cl.gif From what Ken, Paddy and Mayo state, my fears/worries were for naught!

Unfortunately, I've spent a good deal of the day cleaning up loose ends around the house and other places for our week away. I don't think anything of significance will fall completely apart while we're gone! eek2.gif But it just seemed I didn't have the time to make this all happen. So my Grandkids will pay the price for my lack of confidence! sad.gif

OTOH, they should be coming through here for Thanksgiving and the new hardware will have been well broken in by that time (negating even using the external drive with the MA). Hooking up the iGloo with their other hardware should be easy enough, the younger one is almost an electronics expert! She takes after her uncle! smile.gif Only hiccup might be the driver for their printer, that is finding that disks that have the driver! HA!

So, hopefully, this thread will be of some actual help to those who follow! Great reports of how great the MA is and another round of accolades for a well designed OS! clap.gif
« Last Edit: October 16, 2007, 08:36:53 PM by Xairbusdriver »
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THERE ARE TWO TYPES OF COUNTRIES
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