I think when we make a big move from one operating system to another (or just apply a major update), it's inevitable that some programs will not function as we're used to, or not at all. Most programs have substitutes that will work nicely for what we need to do, and of course they run the gamut from totally free to shareware to subscription to one-time outright purchase. It's good to do some online searching and read reviews of programs one is thinking about trying out.

I have not yet retired and all my daily work is done on my home office computer. I recently moved most of my daily computing from my older 'workhorse' win7 desktop tower to a new win10 laptop.  In the process I decided to leave behind certain 'old reliable' programs I depended on for years, and start fresh with different ones.  Yes it meant days (weeks?) of methodical online reading and research, but by putting in that initial effort I've saved many hundreds of dollars.  It forced me to update my knowledge about managing my computer setups better and how things actually function. A refresher course of sorts. I was also very happy to avoid today's overpriced software subscriptions, even if it meant a learning curve on new programs.
I hate spending so much time scouring the web for software and hardware info in advance, but now it's starting to pay off - I feel like I have a handle on things... at least for a few years until it needs doing all over again.  I guess once i retire I can get a bit lazier about updating my system. 

I moved away from Windows a long time ago and run Linux Mint on a couple of my computers.  I still have Windows 7 on one because, I have some music software that only runs under Windows.  I'm hoping that Wine will develop to the point that I can run the Windows programs under it some day.  I agree that The Gimp is just as good if not better than Photoshop and I use Libre Office to design my business cards and post cards as well as write songs.  It's good to know that there is an alternative to Mac and Windows and as you said, it's free.  It also runs faster than Windows.  I can't comment about Mac because, I've never owned one but, it seems like Apple and Microsoft are traveling down the same road and turning people away.

Thanks Strumelia! You are a fabulous source of knowledge for many things!

blackdogbess, Barb

Follow simple instructions to see which apps currently on your Mac are 32 bit and will not function in Catalina:   https://www.macobserver.com/tips/how-to/macos-find-32-bit-apps/

@black-dog-bess : keep your eye on this Webroot support forum thread: https://community.webroot.com/webroot-secureanywhere-for-macs-18/product-update-webroot-secureanywhere-for-macos-catalina-340620
It looks as though you might have a Catalina-compatible Webroot version available by mid November.  You should be able to get your remaining paid subscription applied when you update your WR version.

Good advice! I lost my antivirus programs to Catalina. I could not open Webroot which was supplied with the new Mac I bought from Best Buy. I thought, oh well, back to Norton but Norton products are incompatible too! Thank goodness Clean My Mac has some protective features. I think what surprised me is that these programs are well known, how could Apple have gone ahead with it's upgrade without even thinking about compatibility with the rest of the world? 

Barb

I've used linux 20+ years and I dual boot Ubuntu/Win 10.

You might try these on tefview:  

www.banjohangout.org/archive/223939

Thirty-two bit support is pretty much on the way out, across the board, on all fronts, not just Apple.

I think I've bought my last Apple machine. After being assured this new computer would open all my old Apple documents by two different Apple employees, I got it home and discovered it wouldn't. 20 years worth of work.  

The main problem with Catalina is that it no longer supports 32bit programs, only 64 bit. Many apps, including printer drivers, are 32 bit and many of them won't be updated to 64 bit soon if ever. I'm glad Phroedrick could go back to Mojave, but if you haven't backed up your computer, you could really be out of luck.

We'd gotten an email from Noodlesoft about the Apple glitches so plan to hold-off on our upgrade to Catalina.  I'm sorry that happened to you, Phroedrick, and all can be set right soon!