Do I *Really* Want To Update My Old Kron?

[johnneumann]

Hi Guys,

I have an original Kron and I want to know if there will be any downsides to updating to the new OS.

The specs on my Kron currently are as follows:

Current OS: 4.1c
CPU: AMD K6-III+
Memory: 256 MByte
Hard-drive: 74.5 Gbyte

My outcome is to be able to add the external hard drive for backup purposes and also to have access to the cool new features of the new OS like reading DVDs back into the storyboard and burning CDs.

In Mac computer world, (I'm a Mac user), you can't really install the newest OS on an old machine because the size and demands of the OS will tax the old computer to the point of it either running painfully slowly, or even just not being able to run the new OS at all. The latest OS upgrades can tell what kind of Mac they are being installed and will give you an error message letting you know your machine is too old/slow/whatever to load the OS onto.

Are there any downsides at all to updating my old Kron to SE8?

Will my Kron now run more slowly because it's handling the more advanced OS?
Will any of my old software no longer run under SE8?
Would I have to upgrade anything else to make it work? (I installed a brand new burner just this week.)
Would DVD-Arabesk 2 still work just fine?
Will I lose an appreciable amount of hard drive space to the OS?
Any issues anywhere of any type? Do I lose or compromise anything?

And finally, is there anyone on the forum who would say strongly about SE8, "Never buy the .00 version of anything. Wait until SE 8.1 to bypass bugs and glitches." (That's a common superstition/fact in upgrading computer software.)

So I'm wondering if there are any downsides of upgrading such an old machine to the newest OS.

Any advice?

-JOHN

ps. No, buying a new machine is not an option.

pps. Geez, I was all proud of myself for starting to understand the benefits of SE8...now there's this "Bogart" product. What the heck is that? Do I have to read another 40 paragraphs to know whether I want that over SE8?

[PaulBusta]

I had one if those John, it was fast (550 mhz) for it's day but now??? It depends on what you want to do with your machine, hobby stuff or make money. OS 8 is to new to really tell anything about how well it works but they wouldn't have released it if it wern't ready to go. As in computers, bugs and fix's will always be with you no matter what you do, they'er just part of the game if you want to play. You will get a boost in the HD you'll be able to use, which is always welcome and most if not all your old SW will work with OS8, not sure which won't. Your leap from 4.1 to 8.0 is huge so I need help answering the other questions, anyone??

John, the Bogart OS is only for the new high end S4000 series machines like mine, OS 8 is for all the other machines, you couldn't use it even if you wanted to so you can relax. But the OS 8 manual is just as big. But if you've worked with your Kron for this many years the OS 8 manual will be VERY easy reading, the new features will be the hardest parts.

[JPaul]

Hi John,

I can't speak about SE 8 but I do run SE 6 on my Kron+ with no problems. I can import a Casablanc dvd into the storyboard. All my software works fine including Arabesk 2 & 3. I have ample power for processing SD but would never attempt to use it with HD. Perhaps most importantly for you is that SE 6 allows you to hook up an external hard drive and save all your work in 2 modes: DV (like saving to tape) and DVB (saves many storyboard features but not all).

You must have 256mb ram to run SE5 and above, but you have that. Don't know the difference in processors between Kron and Kron+.

[PaulBusta]

JPaul, Kron is 550 mhz and Kron+ is 1gig.

[CKNewman]

I think you have an original Kron. You could probably call Boulder with the serial number to confirm that.

I have a Kron+ and only installed Smart Edit 8 today so I can't answer too many of your questions. I don't remember complaints about previous versions (5 and up) of the OS with the Kron. I know they did some optimizations to increase rendering speed with an earlier version but Macrosystem was vague on which systems benefitted. Here's a link to some useful info - http://www.macrosystem.com/se8/SE8-Rele ... s-Full.pdf It says that Spice Rack won't work but Ultimate Spice Rack will.

You could ask your dealer what he or she thinks. I would go to the Macrosystem website http://www.macrosystem.de/e/expansions.html and read the release notes on 5, 6, 7, and 8 to get an idea of how many features have been added. I'm not sure you have anything to loose but you do have a lot to gain. I don't think that the new OS operating system takes up that much more room than version 4. I don't know how many projects you want to work on at once, but I believe that one gig of storage equals 5 minutes of DV footage, so you might want to consider a larger hard drive. I think you will need to upgrade with a Smart Card.

[johnneumann]

Whoa! Great answers, guys. Thank you.

Paul, thanks for the quick clarity on Bogart.

JPaul, good to hear that you can still use Arabesk 2 on your Kron. I hope someone will post who can authoritatively tell me if any of my software, including Arabesk 2, will be unusable on my Kron under SE8.

By the way, yes, it's an original Kron, not a Kron Plus.

Thank you again, all of you who responded.

Any knowledgeable takers on the question of software that may no longer work?

-JOHN