Cant update Office for Mac 2011 as I'm running Mavericks

SallySunshine

I'm running Mavericks and also Office 2011 for Mac.
I've had a couple of updates from Microsoft, one classed as critical but can't install because
apparently Mavericks is too old!

Everytime i think of upgrading, I get a bit wary, some think Sierra is brilliant, others say stay with Mavericks and are of the school that if its working, leave it alone.

Any thoughts on this?

SouthUKMan

Hi. What type of Mac are you using and what year is it from? There is a reason for asking For example, if you're using a MacBook Pro...

If your MacBook Pro is Mid 2010 or newer, Apple will automatically upgrade it to Sierra (the Mid 2010 model is the oldest version that officially supports Sierra). You can not optionally pick and choose to upgrade to Yosemite or El Capitan. So in this case you might be 'upgrading' from a fairly pacey feeling version of OS X to one that feels a little sluggish on your machine.

If your MacBook Pro is from late 2009 or older (unless it is VERY old, like from 2006!) then Apple will automatically update it to El Capitan which isn't too bad in terms of taking system resources however it will still feel a little slower than Mavericks - not by much, but you will see a difference in boot and response times.

If you're a little bit techie minded and you have a friend who has a Mac running Yosemite or El Capitan then you can ask them to copy their installer onto a bootable USB, and you can use this to upgrade from Mavericks. Whilst not too demanding, this still isn't for complete novices.

Anyway, get back to us with details of the type of Mac you are running and the age, and let's see if we can help you more.

SallySunshine

It's an iMac late 2013 8gb came with Mavericks 10.9.5
By the time I'd thought about updating to El Capitan, Sierra was launched!
I'm quite happy with Mavericks but it was rather annoying to be told I couldn't download the Office2011 update because my system is not compatible.

I really wanted to know what the critical update was for, and if I should upgrade to Sierra, but is it worth it if it's just for Office2011 for Mac updates.

SouthUKMan

Given the specs you've provided, I would upgrade without hesitation! Your machine will very happily cope with Sierra. Plus you will have the added peace of mind of knowing that your Mac (and your personal data) will be protected by the latest software. Critical updates often plug security flaws that have been discovered in older versions of software.

SallySunshine

Thanks, I know I should and probably will, just plucking up the courage as I'm a bit of a pessimist and knowing my luck something will go wrong.
I've been waiting until the glitches etc have been sorted out.

SouthUKMan

Sierra is now a mature OS. I really wouldn't worry.