[kp4bjd]

I celebrate the features and specs of the just released batch of new Macs, but as of today I'd only buy one if I can install OSX Snow Leopard (i.e. replace the latest preinstalled OSX) on it. Question: will the firmware on a new Mac support OSX 10.6.8?

[bastion]

kp4bjd, on 14 June 2012 - 07:34 AM, said:

I celebrate the features and specs of the just released batch of new Macs, but as of today I'd only buy one if I can install OSX Snow Leopard (i.e. replace the latest preinstalled OSX) on it. Question: will the firmware on a new Mac support OSX 10.6.8?

Your last question is kind of backwards. It should really be: "Does 10.6.8 support the components and subsystems of the new machines?" The answer is that it almost certainly will not work on the MBP Retina. Better odds on the "traditional" model but still iffy.

[macnuke]

most (if not all) Macs will not take an OS build older than the build of the computer.
in other words....
if it came from the factory with Lion, it won't take Snow Leopard.

[kp4bjd]

Thank you kindly for your thoughts. I received an e-mail reply from Chris Breen at Macworld, and he said "Doubtful ... it's doubtful that Macs going forward will run Snow Leopard. Today's iMacs and Mac Pros might, but Airs certainly don't and my guess is that the new MacBook Pros won't. Apple has made it pretty clear that Lion and beyond, with its full support of iCloud, is the way forward. To underscore that, they're making it difficult-to-impossible to run Snow Leopard on modern machines."

[EGM]

You didn't say which of the new Macs you're interested in.

If it's a retina display, you're 99.99999% certain out of luck. No OS prior to the one that ships with those computers will support those displays.

If it's a non-retina MBP it MAY work, though it also may not. In theory, you can't do it. You can try this: do a full backup of the disk from your older MBP onto an external drive, start up the new one, switch the new MBP to use that external drive as its startup disk, restart from that external drive, do a full backup of the startup (external) drive to its internal drive and reset the new MBP to start up from its internal drive. Be sure to also do a complete backup of the new computer first, in case this doesn't work, or at least be sure you have everything you need to do a clean re-install of the system.

[Typhoon14]

Perhaps you should also tell the community why it is you feel that you need to install an OS that is (almost) two major releases out of date? We might be able to help.

[kp4bjd]

That's a reasonable question. There a a few reasons I consider important that deter my wanting to jump into the latest OS. To be brief: A new OS typically means additional chores; a lot of updates to replace software (utilities like OnyX, Snow Leopard Cache Cleaner, Ice Clean, Cocktail; necessary Apps like Quicken took a while to be upgraded for Lion … (see "incompatible with OS X Lion" at http://roaringapps.com/apps:table). Safeguards against unavailable software (like Rosetta) are no longer supported by Apple, albeit the folks that keep SheepShaver current (like John Rethorst) and allow me to still use WordPerfect for Mac and many OS9 programs I wrote in FutureBasic continue to provide an independent software safety net. BTW, I am still looking for a good Apple /// emulator to run lots of engineering programs (soil and rock mechanics) I wrote 40 years ago in Business Basic for it.

My time is limited, precious. I tend not to waste it checking every upgrade that shows up fixing this and that, after I consider the version I run is stable and fulfills my needs. I don't have the urgent need to check MacUpdate or VersionTracker every day. I come from a vintage era when I punched FORTRAN IV code into cards, then into an IBM 1180 mainframe feeder to be compiled into a tape that was run once a day. I've been trying to stay abreast of Cybernetics but have yet to embrace iOS because of deeply engrained habits. I adopted the Mac mouse and GUI immediately in 1984, but have yet to feel comfortable with iOS fingers on a trackPad (the latest trend).

My sweet wife (born and raised in Illinois) jumped into Lion as soon as it came out, and I had to help her struggle with the transition from Snow Leopard. She reminds me it's good business savvy for Apple to push the envelope, to 'improve' even when what we have still works (people who design and develop these improved systems need a job, the economy needs them). Evolution is a force I respect, but I choose not to spend too much of my time in endeavors that keep me from addressing my urgent priorities. I don't apologize for wanting to hold on to tried-and-trusty and expressing concern when what I have been depending on runs of hardware that may be obsolete and therefore unavailable when my machines break down with no emulators available to rescue me. Gabe from San Juan, PR U.S.A.