workaround for continuing to use Final Cut Pro Studio?

[Shane Ross]

[Dennis Roliff] “My question is, will a 2017 iMac running OS Mojave boot up from an external boot drive running Mac OS Sierra ( the last Mac OS that supports Final Cut Studio )?”

It should…because Mojave came out AFTER the computer was sold. Typically the OS that is out when you buy the computer is the earliest you can use. So you should be able to use one prior to mojave on that computer.

[Dennis Roliff] “If so, couldn’t I load the FCP Studio software onto that bootable drive and run it ‘remotely’?”

Sure…worth a shot.

But you have a completely compatible machine that will run it…that 2008 MacPro. WHy not keep using that for FCP? If you need to convert footage and need the power of the iMac, use that, but then cut on the machine that supports it. That’s why I have my 2008 MacPro

Shane
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[Dennis Roliff]

But you have a completely compatible machine that will run it…that 2008 MacPro. WHy not keep using that for FCP? If you need to convert footage and need the power of the iMac, use that, but then cut on the machine that supports it. That’s why I have my 2008 MacPro

Hi Shane,

Thanks for the input. I know that you are a highly respected member here and have years of experience so I appreciate it.
Yes, I am going to keep the 2008 Mac Pro tower. However, at the moment, there are problems with it ( extremely slow, spinning beachballs all the time, sometimes apps won’t even open, the machine even struggles to run Yosemite which I have on a separate internal drive. I finally reached the end of my rope and, in order to save what little hair I have left, I found a creative solution to fund this upgrade to the 2017 iMac, which I’m absolutely loving so far ).

While I research what the problems might be with the 2008 Mac Pro and then address them, I need an alternate source for editing video. While I don’t do a whole lot of video work, I do want to be able to jump right in and edit when a project comes my way. The transition process this past week ( which is still ongoing ) from old Mac technology to the new has been a ton of work and quite stressful but also very satisfying.

When I get into situations like this, initially I tend to overthink things and need to take a step back sometimes. This
is where input from pros like yourself comes in handy. To bring extra clarity to a situation.

As far as loading Mac OS Sierra onto an external drive, it is proving to be a bit of an ‘opportunity’ ( i always try to substitute the word ‘challenge’ with the word ‘opportunity’ in these cases ha ha ) to find the OS Sierra installer.
It seems that Apple typically doesn’t want their customers to go ‘legacy’ on them in any way shape or form Lol.
So, I’m sure I’ll be able to find the installer, it’ll just take a little digging. Even if I have to ask around to friends or go to Craigslist or my account on nextdoor.com to ask if anyone might have it stored.

Again, thanks for the encouragement to give, what may seem like a wacky idea, a try.

Best,

Dennis

Dennis Roliff Photography
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[Dennis Roliff]

Hi Dave,

Thanks for your input. I do plan on keeping my 2008 Mac Pro tower. Problem not so easily solved.
See my response to Shane above.

Best,

Dennis

Dennis Roliff Photography
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[Robert Withers]

Hello Dennis,
A few years ago I I decided on a simple solution to running FCP7 — keep my old Macbook Pro with the Mountain Lion OS 10.8.5 software installed (now I’m running Premiere CC 2013 on it) and buy a new machine to run newer software. (Inspired by Larry Jordan.) When Apple pushed Mojave I made a bootable USB drive for High Sierra, just in case. I use a backup software called Superduper! (yes with the exclamation point!) that makes bootable clones of all the my Macs. The Airbook running Mojave does run DaVinci Resolve even with just 8 Gb Ram and am thinking about that for new projects. Premiere seemed like the natural successor to FCP7, but I tired of it with its constant updates, user complaints about update glitches, and pricey rental system. Newer editing software has a conceptual difference from FCP7, in that both Premiere and Resolve keep edited files as internal proprietary “database” files instead of free-standing files that are worked on by the software.
This is not an answer to your sophisticated idea about an external bootable drive but it’s how I constructed a workaround, with my need to keep working on “legacy” projects without conversion.
Hope this helps a little.
Best wishes, Robert

Robert Withers

Independent/personal/avant-garde cinema, New York City

[Mark Suszko]

After seeing the “face-melting” demo of the FREE Resolve 16 today, I would leave seven and not look back. Leaving Seven no matter what in four days when they come to surplus my 8-core mac pro cheese grater. If your machine is capable of running Resolve, I would say it’s the way to go. Timeline choices that include a mode something like FCPX for speed cutting, or a conventional FCP 7 type timeline. But all the extra features that come along with it for effects and audio and color timing…