Office 2011, El Capitan, Big Sur

[rlm45]

I am considering a new iMac, or iMac Pro to replace my 2014 iMac which has been a great machine.

Frankly, I am tired of Apple so quickly changing OS's so I am still using El Capitan, works great.

Do the new iMac's come with Big Sur installed?
I understand the Big Sur will not run 32 bit apps! What about the previous OS's?

Office 2011 will not run on Big Sur, and I am not going to pay Microsoft a yearly fee for another Office License.
I already own multiple copies of Office.

This also raises my concern about other El Capitan apps not working on Big Sur.

Is it possible to use my Time Machine backups to load El Capitan on the new iMac.

I think Apple forgets about all their customers who will have migration difficulties with all their OS changes.
El Capitan, Sierra, High Sierra, Mojave, Catalina, and now Big Sur, this is really annoying.
Personally, I see no advantage in changing OS's because Apple wants to sell more machines.
In fact, with every new Apple OS they take something away, like USB faxing, gone forever.

Ideas and comments appreciated before I spend more money with Apple.

 

[chscag]

Do the new iMac's come with Big Sur installed?
I understand the Big Sur will not run 32 bit apps! What about the previous OS's?

Every new Mac you buy will come preinstalled with the latest version of macOS. So yes, Big Sur will be installed. And you are correct, 32 bit apps will not run in any version of macOS after Mojave. Mojave was the last version of macOS to be able to run 32 bit apps.

Is it possible to use my Time Machine backups to load El Capitan on the new iMac.

No, it won't work.

Office 2011 will not run on Big Sur, and I am not going to pay Microsoft a yearly fee for another Office License. I already own multiple copies of Office.

Microsoft has stated they will publish a stand alone (non subscription) version of Office. Probably Office 2021. However, I would not hold my breath for that since Apple has moved to new silicon Macs. MS will likely publish any new version for the new Macs only.

 

[rlm45]

Thanks,

I was not aware on the new silicon Mac. What are all Apple's current users going to do, trash their apps, their systems, their data. In my opinion, Apple has very little regard for their customer base.

 

[chscag]

Most of the apps that are being developed are coded to work on both Intel and Apple silicon machines. And any app that is not written that way will be translated to Intel code via Rosetta 2.

This of course brings back memories of the days when Apple switched from the PPC to Intel. Only this time they are switching away from Intel.

 

[pm-r]

I am considering a new iMac, or iMac Pro to replace my 2014 iMac which has been a great machine.

Frankly, I am tired of Apple so quickly changing OS's so I am still using El Capitan, works great.

Your question about Apple's Mac OS Big Sur has been answered, but I would ask you..."Why do you want to get a new Mac???

I agree with some of your comments, but you could do as I do and that was to go back to mainly using Mavericks v. 10.9.5 on my 2011 27" iMac. It suits me just fine and I have a lot of the Mac OS features that I always used that seems to have disappeared in later versions.

Just a thought...


- Patrick
=======

 

[rlm45]

Thanks for your thoughts. You are right. I will just keep using what I have. However, something new is always exciting. Apple does not make it easy for their customers. I have a 3.5GHz Core i7 iMac as loaded as you could buy at the time and Apple's trade in was a pathetic $300. I always worry about when these things might die. I still use PPC G5's classic for a financial app so I am used to older vintage machines.

Thanks

 

[pm-r]

I always worry about when these things might die. I still use PPC G5's classic for a financial app so I am used to older vintage machines.

That's why having a good working backup is always suggested and such a good idea and there will probably always be an older used machine in good working order available somewhere that you could use. And that would be exciting as well!!!

BTW: I think that iMac of yours might be a 2013 model going by the specs you gave as there doesn't seem to be an i7 listed for 2014:

All Apple iMac Specs (1998-Current): EveryMac.com

Tech specs for all Apple iMac from the original to the latest (1998-Current). Dates sold, processor type, memory info, storage details, configuration options and more.

everymac.com

But don't forget that your current iMac Is still able to run your MS Office 2011 if you keep things compatible, and you only miss the excitement of purchasing a new machine and all the new application updates you might need.



- Patrick
=======

 

[rlm45]

Yes, late 2013.

 

[Randy B. Singer]

Office 2011 will not run on Big Sur, and I am not going to pay Microsoft a yearly fee for another Office License.
I already own multiple copies of Office.

We've mentioned this several times before here on this list, but you might want to try this FREE office suite that is extremely similar to Microsoft Office:

FreeOffice (free)

www.freeoffice.com - FreeOffice for Windows, Mac and Linux

FreeOffice, the full-featured free Office suite for Windows, Mac and Linux

www.freeoffice.com

FreeOffice may be all that you need. It handles Office file formats extremely well and is very easy to use if you are used to using MS Office.

This also raises my concern about other El Capitan apps not working on Big Sur.

Here is a list of which software is compatible with Big Sur, and which isn't:

Big Sur - Working / Not Working Apps

Please click EDIT below to add your working or NOT working app. Please try to add it alphabetically. Feel free to also comment in a reply any additional details you would like to share. Working 1Blocker 1Password 3D Slicer 4K Video Downloader 4th Dimension (4D) 18.4 (LTS) and 18r5 A Better...

forums.macrumors.com

If you are contemplating upgrading to Big Sur, or buying a new Mac which will naturally have Big Sur installed, possibly the most important thing to check on first is to see if there are updated Big Sur drivers for your older peripherals (i.e. printer or scanner).

 

[pm-r]

Here is a list of which software is compatible with Big Sur, and which isn't:
...
If you are contemplating upgrading to Big Sur, or buying a new Mac which will naturally have Big Sur installed, possibly the most important thing to check on first is to see if there are updated Big Sur drivers for your older peripherals (i.e. printer or scanner).

Another site to check for compatible apps:

Application Compatibility Table — RoaringApps

Crowd-sourced application compatibility for macOS, iOS and Windows.

roaringapps.com

And that is a very valid point regarding checking on printers and peripherals updates and/or compatibility.


- Patrick
=======

 

[exncite]

rim45, I have similar issues with moving to Big Sur. It was suggested to me here on mac-forums to partition the hard drive. Great suggestion and Apple has confirmed that this will work fine. Depending on what I want to do, I can switch back and forth from one partition to another. Working with Apple Support to get this done. Have a slight glitch that they are trying to figure out. My bluetooth mouse and keyboard stop working when booting in recovery mode, so haven’t actually tried the partitioning yet. Will let the forum know how it ends up. Might be a suggestion that solves your issues also.

 

[Rod]

If, and its a big if given the year of your device you have enough storage to partition your drive as exncite suggests you are just inside the cutoff for compatibility with Big Sur so I'm not sure I would suggest doing that but Mojave, which can still rum 32bit apps is a possibility I might consider.
Alternatively you could use an external SSD drive but why bother?
If your iMac does what you need it to do on El Capitan then stay with that. My only proviso would be to ensure that your data is backed up.
If in the future you need to replace your primary device you may run into some issues. You may need to consider downgrading a later model to a MacOSX that will run your older 32bit apps then upgrading when ready. So long as you have a solid Time Machine backup of your existing data that can be done.

 

[exncite]

If, and its a big if given the year of your device you have enough storage to partition your drive as exncite suggests you are just inside the cutoff for compatibility with Big Sur so I'm not sure I would suggest doing that but Mojave, which can still rum 32bit apps is a possibility I might consider.
Alternatively you could use an external SSD drive but why bother?
If your iMac does what you need it to do on El Capitan then stay with that. My only proviso would be to ensure that your data is backed up.
If in the future you need to replace your primary device you may run into some issues. You may need to consider downgrading a later model to a MacOSX that will run your older 32bit apps then upgrading when ready. So long as you have a solid Time Machine backup of your existing data that can be done.

Yes, sorry, I’m running Mojave and a late 2015 IMac with 1TB hard drive. In the shop with the frozen mouse issue at the moment as Apple Support and their engineering weren’t able to diagnose the problem.

 

[exncite]

Update. iMac has been partitioned with one remaining Mojave and the new one being Big Sur. Once again Apple Support was great in getting this done. Will be copying some files to an external drive and then moving them to the Big Sur partition. Big Sur will take some getting used to, but it seems this a very workable solution to my 64 bit and 32 bit issue. Also a big thumbs-up to the forum for suggesting it.