how to upgrade from 2014 macbook air to newer version without compromising anything stored in the former computer

gabriel_gomes wrote:

• i own a macbook air with os x version 10.9.5 since summer 2014. i used to store documents, photos, videos, audio, and the like on it. i used to install various programs on it. but in the recent years, i've been using it to mainly edit photos and videos with imovie. up until now, everything with imovie seemed alright. when i started to use the macbook air this year, imovie suddenly disappeared. i had uninstalled other programs that were obsolete and started to take up space, but i never even thought about uninstalling imovie. when i found that imovie was suddenly gone from my macbook air, i tried my best to reinstall it and i looked everywhere for the last compatible versions i could possibly use. but nothing seemed to work. i tried installing similar video editors, but it's apparent this macbook air model cannot even accept any form of video editing software anymore. i understand completely that this means i may have to upgrade to a different computer, but sadly, i do not want to delete or compromise whatever credentials, documents, accounts, media, programs, or settings/preferences i still have left in the macbook air i have now.

You can keep the old MacBook Air until it stops working – but any upgrade is likely to involve adjustments.

If you're running OS X 10.9.5 (Mavericks) now, it's very likely that many of the applications you use now contain 32-bit code – in which case, they won't work on a new or recent Mac at all. (Apple dropped 32-bit support in Catalina.). Mavericks is 10 major versions behind Sonoma, so even applications that contain all 64-bit code might have some other incompatibilities with current versions of macOS.

i used this macbook air for everyday life since 2014, but now it is unable to accept any video editing software. There are other programs that still work on the 2014 macbook air. I use mozilla firefox as my current internet browser.

The last version of Firefox for Mavericks is Firefox 78 ESR, which stopped getting security updates in October 2021. The current version of Firefox (which requires Catalina or later) is 122.0. If you have current versions of Safari – and of Firefox – you'll be in a much better place for Web browsing than you are with those old Mavericks versions.

I am able to import photos and videos to iphoto.

Apple discontinued iPhoto some time ago, replacing it with Photos.

i have so many unanswered questions about whether or not i should just get rid of everything about this macbook air and start everything all over with a newer model.

what types of payment plans will have to come, if any, with relocating everything from the 2014 macbook air?

• how much will it cost to start with when relocating everything i used in that macbook air just to upgrade?

I don't know what applications you are using, and therefore how much you would have to spend on new / upgraded applications. Some software vendors have gone to a "subscription" (rental) model – Adobe has for just about all of their programs except Photoshop/Premiere Elements, and Microsoft seems to encourage customers to subscribe to Microsoft 365 (the new name for Office) instead of buying a one-time-purchase version (still available).

But Macs come with Pages/Numbers/Keynote/Photos.

As far as migrating data, Macs come with a tool called Migration Assistant to help you with that.

Transfer to a new Mac with Migration Assistant - Apple Support

The easiest way to migrate is probably by making a Time Machine backup, or bootable clone backup (Carbon Copy Cloner, SuperDuper!) of your old Mac's startup drive, on an external drive with a USB interface. Then when you set up. the new Mac, you attach that backup drive to the new Mac, and point Migration Assistant at it. Migrating over Wi-Fi is theoretically possible, but I have seen many warnings on these forums against it.

I would strongly suggest keeping backups of your Maverick system and data until you are sure that a migration is successful.

• i dont know if i have to start everything over in terms of setting up e-mail accounts, cloud accounts, device registrations, configurations, etc.

Migration Assistant can pull over much of that stuff for you, but it's not terribly hard to reconnect e-mail accounts.

• i will probably need an upgrade that still accepts plug-ins from the larger usb plugs when trying to import media from anywhere else

There are lots of ways to connect devices with USB-A plugs to USB-C ports. Apple has a USB-C to USB adapter, but you can also find small plug adapters, simple USB-A hubs (with multiple USB-A ports) that plug in via USB-C, USB-C docks, and Thunderbolt docks.

gabriel_gomes wrote:

• i own a macbook air with os x version 10.9.5 since summer 2014.

Do you know the model name and year? You can find this information in About This Mac in the Apple () menu.

A MacBook Air from 2013 or 2014 can upgrade as far as macOS 11 (Big Sur), but no higher. While Big Sur is no longer one of "the most recent three" that get security updates, or the most love from application vendors, it is much more recent than Mavericks.

How to download and install macOS - Apple Support

Note that if you upgrade to Catalina or Big Sur,

• 32-bit applications will break
• iTunes will go away, replaced by separate applications: What happened to iTunes? - Apple Support
• You will be able to run the current versions of Firefox and LibreOffice
• Your version of macOS will probably still be too old to run programs from the likes of Adobe and Microsoft

Before doing any upgrade, I would suggest making at least one bootable clone backup of your current system. It isn't clear that it's wise to count on Internet Recovery (of old OSes) working these days if something goes wrong.

Some additional thoughts: I faced some of the same problems and, at the time, I decided on a compromise. In 2020, I bought an Apple refurbished iMac from 2017 which was loaded with the then current OS. Since Sierra and High Sierra were the last versions that the best iMovie version and iDVD would run, I asked the Genius Bar folks to wipe it and reinstall the original OS (Sierra). They did. WhenI got home, I immediately made a bootable clone on an external drive. I have since updated to Mavericks which is the highest a 2017 machine can run. I no longer do as many movies, but when I want to, I can boot into the external and use iMovie, iDVD, Final Cut, etc. However, there is a downside as I have reached the highest OS version and will need to replace this sooner or later.

So, in order to both update and keep using older apps, you'd have to buy a refurbished machine which can run whatever older apps. Otherwise, you need to check into newer versions of your apps while you also need to decide which computer to buy. Do check out the refurbished section of the Apple store. Remember that Macs cannot run an OS older than what it came with.