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[Vocalpoint]

Morning,

Now that V14 is starting to firm up into a solid version - I am getting closer to pulling the trigger on an upgrade - but before I do that - can anyone confirm:

1. Is v14 being tested properly in-house with Windows 7 RTM
2. Will Windows 7 appear as an official "system requirement" for MC on the website?
3. Where can I find the listing of official system requirements?

Cheers!

VP

[JimH]

MC14 works on XP and above.

Win7 isn't out yet, so you can expect minor changes in the future (both Win7 and MC).

A lot of the development recently has been done on Win7, so it works well now.

[glynor]

I've been using MC14 (and MC13 before it) extensively with Windows 7 since the first Beta build, of both the 32-bit and 64-bit flavors.  I'm currently running Windows 7 RTM (64-bit) on all of my machines at home except one, and I still have the RC 32-bit build on my laptop.  While early-on there were a few 64-bit related idiosyncrasies as MC14 matured, it currently works absolutely fine.

The "official requirements" is a tough one.  There is a list on the Wiki here: http://wiki.jrmediacenter.com/index.php/Installation_%26_Removal

However, that is a bit on the "light" side, as you'll see.  MC doesn't have very steep system requirements on it's own (it will try to run on just about anything you can get Windows running on).  Of course, with better hardware, you'll see better results.

Either way, if you run the trial on Vista, it'll run similarly (but a touch faster) on Windows 7.

[Vocalpoint]

Either way, if you run the trial on Vista, it'll run similarly (but a touch faster) on Windows 7.

Well - a big one for me (actually critical) - is seamless iPod integration - and v13 (which I currently love) works flawlessly with Vista - but v13 with Windows 7 for iPod synching - has definite issues.

Jim (et al) have identified the issue and the fix is in - but only for v14. As a v13 user - no fix will ever be coming so it's either - hold onto v13 and move back to Vista until Oct 22 - and then maybe make the move after that time.

That's why the questions - I am not prepared to upgrade and find out that there are more issues with v14 and Win 7...if that's the case - maybe I should just stay put?

FWIW - For the new user (and upgraders alike) - especially in this time of a confusing number of OS choices - I find the lack of a definitive "System Requirements" heading on the webpage - a tad frustrating. It would be beneficial to get a definitive answer on what's recommended from JR Dev rather than simply stating that "a lot of dev is being done on Windows 7". That has as much meaning as saying "a lot of dev is being done on Win 2000".

With no real requirements - are we to assume that MC is supported under any OS issued in the last 15 years?

?

[JimH]

That's why the questions - I am not prepared to upgrade and find out that there are more issues with v14 and Win 7...

That's what the trial period is for.

[glynor]

The wiki page I listed does have a specific list of "Software Requirements".  It is currently:

Software Requirements
Windows 98/ME/2000/XP/Vista
Microsoft Windows Media Player
RealPlayer, QuickTime and Microsoft DirectX are required to play certain proprietary files through Media Center.

As Jim indicated above, any kind of "official" support for Windows 7 won't be available until after the public availability of the OS.  So, I'd consider Windows 7 support currently Beta, but it does work.

And, again, you can install MC14's trial side-by-side with MC13 and you have 30 days to figure out for yourself if it will meet your needs.  Installing MC14 will not uninstall or "upgrade" MC13.  You can have them both and they will work independently (they just don't recommend you run them simultaneously).

[Vocalpoint]

And, again, you can install MC14's trial side-by-side with MC13 and you have 30 days to figure out for yourself if it will meet your needs.  Installing MC14 will not uninstall or "upgrade" MC13.  You can have them both and they will work independently (they just don't recommend you run them simultaneously).

What about library compatibility? I have a complex arrangement here with MC on three different workstations...the entire library, views, playlists are all being copied nightly to different places on the network etc etc...That is all working perfectly and I really do want to compromise any of that during a v14 test

If I introduce v14 into this - will it alter my library files? Will it screw up my iPod - that is definitely dialed into a v13 database format etc etc...if a v14 synch dies - can I resync to my v13 library without issue

So sure - the trial is generous but with all these questions - it's not as simple as just installing and gettin' down to it

Appreciate any further insights here.

Cheers!

VP

[glynor]

I have a very similar setup, with 4 different machines and a few different libraries.

The Library format is different in MC14 and is not backwards compatible.  My suggestion would be to do a limited initial roll-out on one machine, with a copy of your MC13 library.  Do not point it at your "production" MC13 library, but point it at a copy of it stored elsewhere.  MC14 will upgrade the library to the new format, but will import all of your existing View Schemes and data.

Test it out that way.  Test iPod syncing.  If something doesn't work, you can always open up MC13 again and re-sync the iPod.  Once you're satisfied, drop the money on the upgrade and THEN roll it out to your full network.  In the meantime, keep the other machines using MC13.  When you're ready to do the roll-out, just delete your MC14 testing library and point MC14 at the MC13 library locations (after making a backup) and proceed from there.

Make sure to keep a backup copy of your old MC13 library in a ZIP file, just in case.  You won't need it, but that's just good sense.  That's the way I upgrade my library to each new major version of MC.  I believe if I look through my archives, I still have the copy of my MC9 library in a ZIP file, accurate up to the last time I ever opened MC9 up, and so on and so forth up through the last build of MC13 I ever used.

[Vocalpoint]

I have a very similar setup, with 4 different machines and a few different libraries.

The Library format is different in MC14 and is not backwards compatible.  My suggestion would be to do a limited initial roll-out on one machine, with a copy of your MC13 library.  Do not point it at your "production" MC13 library, but point it at a copy of it stored elsewhere.  MC14 will upgrade the library to the new format, but will import all of your existing View Schemes and data.

Test it out that way.  Test iPod syncing.  If something doesn't work, you can always open up MC13 again and re-sync the iPod.  Once you're satisfied, drop the money on the upgrade and THEN roll it out to your full network.  In the meantime, keep the other machines using MC13.  When you're ready to do the roll-out, just delete your MC14 testing library and point MC14 at the MC13 library locations (after making a backup) and proceed from there.

Make sure to keep a backup copy of your old MC13 library in a ZIP file, just in case.  You won't need it, but that's just good sense.  That's the way I upgrade my library to each new major version of MC.  I believe if I look through my archives, I still have the copy of my MC9 library in a ZIP file, accurate up to the last time I ever opened MC9 up, and so on and so forth up through the last build of MC13 I ever used.

Yep - I suppose a "closed" test is a much better scenario. Will give it a shot and see what shakes down.

Thanks!

Cheers!

VP