Updating to TRS 2019 SP2 using a Mac and an older mac 0S

[dangavel]

I imagine that unless you are a mac user you won't be able to help me with this issue.

I'm one of the very few people using a 2010 hex core xeon Mac pro with a RX580 8gb card to run Trainz 2019, the build is the very first version 98569, the OS being High Sierra, which is an old system.
I use it because I have a lot of expensive 32bit legacy software that may not run well ( or at all ) on a newer version of mac 0sx. This was no problem until a week or so ago when I wanted to add a new route of mine on the DLS and an asset that used to be built in gave issues which meant it was unknown, even tho installed on the dls.

To cut a long story short NV3 support has told me they no longer will help me with any issues that occur with my TRS2019 install as its too old and they have told me to update the install to another version of trainz, which they would support ( although given sp2 is now ancient in computing terms they probably wont support that either

The problem is, unless I update my osx to Big Sur ( which is possible, but complex and may end up with a broken os, so I'd have to install it on a separate hard drive which means shelling out a $100 or so on a new ssd ) I cant install any newer version of TRS 2019 than SP2 , which from memory , was less than a stellar success . Also if I go past SP2 I have to update the os and I wont be able to run my legacy 32 bit software.

My big questions are:
Given I don't have any major issues with my current install of TRS 2019 other then they wont support it , is it worth updating to SP2 given that it had a number of problems ?
Can I even do this as I cant see a copy of it to download on the My trainz site
Is the current mac installer online sp4 or sp 5 ? . when I attempted to download , nothing happened so I suspect its not compatible with my current OSX

 

[1611mac]

Yes, I had the same issue lately but not due to worrying about Trainz... I just needed to update my Mac OS in order to run some updated apps I needed to use. I ended up getting a Mac Mini M1 for my new setup. So I now have two old iMacs (2011, 2009) , the new M1 Mini, an old MacBook Pro (2013) and a brand new MacBook Air. For my simming I bit the bullet and built a windows gamer. There was one sim I wanted to run which is for Windows only and I didn't want to run a windows VM on any of my Macs.

I don't know much about your Mac Pro config but if you are happy with the TRS19 version you have I'd certainly not "experiment" with a new version. Especially on the Mac. On Windows I'm using the latest '22 beta and I sometimes wonder why I'm not just foregoing all this beta stuff and not sticking with older releases such as the original '19.

I know you are a route builder... I'd wait until that day in the future when you decide you want to give '22 a shot with the new Surveyor 2.0. And at that I'd certainly wait for a good while for a known stable release.

The ultimate answer would be to build a Win machine for your gaming like I did. But I fully understand there are issues in doing that. Money, space, desire, etc. In my case I really needed the Win machine for select user tasks anyway so that was a good solution for me. That opened up a lot more possibilities here as to what versions of what to run.

I likely didn't help you at all but just thought I'd share. I guess whether to follow N3V Support's suggestion or not depends on how much you need their support. I rarely contact support myself so that wouldn't be an issue for me. Perhaps it would help others answer too if you mentioned the type of support you need from them. Just an idea.

P.S. Thank you for your Uintah route.

 

[dangavel]

Yes, I had the same issue lately but not due to worrying about Trainz... I just needed to update my Mac OS in order to run some updated apps I needed to use. I ended up getting a Mac Mini M1 for my new setup. So I now have two old iMacs (2011, 2009) , the new M1 Mini, an old MacBook Pro (2013) and a brand new MacBook Air. For my simming I bit the bullet and built a windows gamer. There was one sim I wanted to run which is for Windows only and I didn't want to run a windows VM on any of my Macs.

I don't know much about your Mac Pro config but if you are happy with the TRS19 version you have I'd certainly not "experiment" with a new version. Especially on the Mac. On Windows I'm using the latest '22 beta and I sometimes wonder why I'm not just foregoing all this beta stuff and not sticking with older releases such as the original '19.

I know you are a route builder... I'd wait until that day in the future when you decide you want to give '22 a shot with the new Surveyor 2.0. And at that I'd certainly wait for a good while for a known stable release.

The ultimate answer would be to build a Win machine for your gaming like I did. But I fully understand there are issues in doing that. Money, space, desire, etc. In my case I really needed the Win machine for select user tasks anyway so that was a good solution for me. That opened up a lot more possibilities here as to what versions of what to run.

I likely didn't help you at all but just thought I'd share. I guess whether to follow N3V Support's suggestion or not depends on how much you need their support. I rarely contact support myself so that wouldn't be an issue for me. Perhaps it would help others answer too if you mentioned the type of support you need from them. Just an idea.

P.S. Thank you for your Uintah route.

yeah its a bit of a dilemma , I hardly ever use support as most issues can be solved by forum members and I guess I'll be moving to silicon and trainz 2022 within two years and yes the present 2019 I use is stable , so why change ?
I was pricing up a windows unit that will play trainz as well as the mac studio ought to and it works about the same price, $3600, I could then use turf fx, but is it worth that money to use turf fx? , it excludes all mac users and a route made in turf fx looks appalling without the turf ..... I will probably wait until the next mac mini will arrive to see if that will work better with trainz than the mac pros, i do have a windows laptop that is tolerably good on trainz 2019 , it has a 1660t1 , but it is lacking photoshop and I use that an awful lot in trainz asset making
Hope you enjoy the Uintah, I very much doubt I'll ever turf fx it , could take years to replace all those grasses !

 

[CaseyBerg]

Been there and it is a dilemma.
Here are my thoughts. A large investment in legacy apps like Photoshop vs an evolving Apple OS and Trainz demanding increasingly higher hardware specs. Something has to give. I let go of photoshop and replaced it with Gimp without any lasting regrets.


My addiction to Trainz is such that legacy versions would simply not cut it. N3V can’t help me, but so far, any issues with past builds have been resolved with subsequent releases. Currently running 116493 without issues.


On the legacy hardware side, the decision is to upgrade the Mac Pro (free) or fork out for a Mac Mini with a fixed GPU. I went with the free Mac Pro upgrade and Big Sur. Installing the Open Core patcher for Mac Pro, by Martin Lo, is easy. The one time firmware upgrade is the scariest part.


Will there be issues? Maybe. The OpenCore forums, much like the Trainz forums, are filled with posts about issues. Doesn’t necessarily reflect the experience of the majority.


Eventually this upgrade path will end with an Apple OS version for which there is no workaround for legacy Macs, then it will be time to go shopping.