Kathe Roth:
The big sticking point for me, who hates change, is what may happen with upgrading from System 8.5.1 to System 9.0.4, and that is where I have questions. My main programs are Word 98, Eudora 4.3.1, and Netscape. I assume that Word 98 and Eudora 4.3.1 are no problem (there must be patches available, if necessary, to adapt to System 9). A newer version of Netscape comes on the computer.
I also use some older stuff that's extremely important to me professionally, and I'm wondering if System 9 will make it impossible for me to use these things. (Upgrading from System 7 to System 8 did not cause problems.) The most important is Termium. I have a 1996-vintage CD-ROM, and I would happily update it except that the Translation Bureau no longer makes CD-ROMs for Mac, and the expensive alternative is to subscribe to the Web service for $25 a month--in the long run, an expensive proposition. I also use the Oxford-Hachette French-English dictionary CD-ROM. This may be less of a problem, as I can probably find a newer version.
I can most unhappily report that there will indeed be problems with Termium, none with Word 98 (unless you use the French version, for which you will need a patch). To get more details about Termium, as this is pretty specialized, call me if you wish, I'm also from the Montreal area (450 621-2743 on business hours, 450 621-1273 in the evening). We're a French-speaking household, not that it matters.
Finally, if it is deemed by those much more knowledgeable than me that this is a good idea, I have a further, really stoopid (TM) question: Would I have to reinstall Word 98 and the other programs from scratch, or could I transfer them to my external hard disk as is, change the computer, and then just drag them back to the internal hard disk of the new computer (i.e., not lose settings, preferences, address books, etc.)?
IMHO, it would be better to doboth, i.e. install applications from scratch
BUT transfer your Preference files, Normal model, etc. As to address books,
they're in a file somewhere, so you simply copy the file to the new
computer.
The G4 is on reserve until Friday 5:00 EST, so I'd love to hear opinions before then!