MOTUnation.com

Yes I've read that my late 2008 MacBook Unibody cannot be upgraded to Sierra.

Is there a site that lists what Macs can "really" be upgraded to Sierra?

http://osxdaily.com/2016/06/14/macos-si ... lity-list/

Just hit Google.

There is a hack. I'm neither recommending nor saying to stay away. Have a recent Time Machine backup or two before attempting.
http://www.trustedreviews.com/news/inst ... older-macs

Noticing you have a 2008. Installing an SSD into these is very easy.

If you have never replaced the battery, it's a really good idea. When my daughter' s went bad, it took about 10 minutes to destroy her 2008 MBP. My Apple engineer son-in-law couldn't get it apart fast enough to limit the damage.

Thanks guys. Don't think I want to risk a hack. Seems like Yosemite is the last OS for my particular MacBook. I know it will run El Crapitan but don't want to go there.

My wife's late 2009 MacBook Pro will run Sierra, so I think I will install Sierra on that machine.

Not on my 2003 MP 8-core either. Well that sucks!

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/78 ... Count=true

mikehalloran wrote:If you have never replaced the battery, it's a really good idea. When my daughter' s went bad, it took about 10 minutes to destroy her 2008 MBP.

Destroyed in what way? What happened to it?

bayswater wrote:

mikehalloran wrote:If you have never replaced the battery, it's a really good idea. When my daughter' s went bad, it took about 10 minutes to destroy her 2008 MBP.

Destroyed in what way? What happened to it?

It's a common problem. The battery will swell to about many times its size, breaking the motherboard, keyboard and sometimes the screen. The case can deform and break—in the worst instances, the battery bursts making a nasty mess. Sometimes, the swelling is mild and the only symptom is that it doesn't close quite right. According to my son-in-law, this can happen to iPhones and iPads but that is rare.
https://www.tekrevue.com/swollen-battery/

Five years seems to be about when this is likely to occur. As the article indicates, it can happen sooner.

I always thought this took awhile but, in our case, it was swelling as he was trying to take it apart—10 minutes from when my daughter first noticed a problem. Steven had never heard of one growing so fast before but having a battery ruin a laptop overnight is not unusual. I sold the case and screen for $50 on eBay but the rest of it was ruined.

mikehalloran wrote:

bayswater wrote:

mikehalloran wrote:If you have never replaced the battery, it's a really good idea. When my daughter' s went bad, it took about 10 minutes to destroy her 2008 MBP.

Destroyed in what way? What happened to it?

It's a common problem. The battery will swell to about many times its size, breaking the motherboard, keyboard and sometimes the screen. The case can deform and break—in the worst instances, the battery bursts making a nasty mess. Sometimes, the swelling is mild and the only symptom is that it doesn't close quite right.

Are referring to the main battery that powers the computer or the small one inside that keeps settings active? I've had the swelling problem with an old macbook but it was when the batteries fit into an opening used to access RAM and drives so it was pretty obvious.

Are referring to the main battery that powers the computer or the small one inside that keeps settings active?

Those with the battery built in do not have a separate NV RAM battery. It's redundant when you think about it. This is the main battery I'm talking about.








Older ones with a removable battery often did (and they were expensive). The clamshell and a few others used a charged capacitor designed to keep the PRAM alive just long enough to change the battery.