I started out using Cakewalk when it was only midi, I don't remember the year.  Over the years i would make huge leaps in the versions for upgrading. I never participated much on the forums, as you can probably tell.  I know i had Pro Audio 3 and think i waited till Pro Audio 9 and then Sonar 3 and keeping current with the X3 series.  I recently went back and found some old bundle files from 1999, not sure what version they were from, but the first year i started backing stuff up. I opened them up in X3 with no problem, all midi and audio data was there and useable.  Of course i don't have the same hardware/software for the midi sounds so have to use the new gear and some tweaking but as can be guessed, it's mostly an improvement. the audio is just as i recorded it for better or worse.  Now with the new mixing/editing capabilities things sound much better on some very mediocre music lol.  Anyway, it's nice to be able to use the old files and bring them into a new era and to find out how compatible everything still is.  :)

Totally agree. I have wrk files that Sonar X3 opens just fine. This is a major point and feature that doesn't get near as much press as it deserves.
 
CW have made an effort to be sure of backward compatibility. I know of no other DAW that has done the same.
 
I'm glad you posted about it.   

yup . . . more praise here, I have Cakewalk projects spanning the decades that still open, and can be interpreted into the X3 version. Always nice to see how far we've come with digital audio, especially the ability to be reworking old recordings with the new plugins and technology of today's Sonar.
 
I'm able to open old .bun, .wrk, .cwb files from ancient CD burns without a hitch, with the software prompting me to update to my current midi and audio systems . . it just works, and I hope Cakewalk never abandons this approach in future versions.
 
I wasn't aware (as John points out) that Cakewalk may be one of the few DAWs who offer this long term backward compatibility . . . after all "Art is never finished, only abandoned" (Leonardo Da Vinci)
 

Thank you for using our software for so many years. Yes SONAR supports loading very early project files.
Perhaps more impressive than backwards compatibility is forwards compatibility - for the most part you can open even brand new projects in earlier versions of the software dating back to 10 years ago. The newer feature content is discarded but the main clips and envelopes etc should load fine.

I just opened a old backed up Audio folder I had. The clips in it were from a song I did on CWPA 9. I was able to drag and drop the audio files into X3 and they acted just like any other clip.

So yes, this is something I take for granted. I thought all DAWs did this. Oh well, to bad for them. Must be a PITA!

jimtzu
I started out using Cakewalk when it was only midi, I don't remember the year.  

 
Yup, more praise from me.  I also have archived files from the 90's that have been opened in X3 and saved with no problems.  And I also started using Cakewalk as a MIDI solution on our IBM PC-AT.  Also, with the upgrades that I did buy, there was the famous MIDI dongle cable to hook up to my SoundBlaster card. 
 
Thanks Noel and the entire company for such great products, support, forums and users over the last 30 or so years.  And it's OK to think about the past today as it is New Years Eve.  Happy New Year to Cakewalk and its customers.

Noel Borthwick [Cakewalk]
Perhaps more impressive than backwards compatibility is forwards compatibility - for the most part you can open even brand new projects in earlier versions of the software dating back to 10 years ago. The newer feature content is discarded but the main clips and envelopes etc should load fine.

The first time I noticed this, it blew my mind because just about every program throws an error message along the lines of "This was created in a newer version, you need to upgrade." The forward and backward compatibility have made collaborating with other SONAR users a piece of...uh...cake.
 
And let me add my heartfelt thanks to all the people at Cakewalk. As any forum regulars know, I was using SONAR by choice long before the Gibson acquisition. I of course realize that different people have different needs, but for me, SONAR's strength is that it can handle such a wide variety of projects - I do narration, songwriting, audio-for-video, remixing/groove, live performance, library creation, and just regular ol' recording -  SONAR can deal with all of them.
 
No product is perfect and there will always be room for improvement. What I like most about Cakewalk is that the company is constantly striving to make those improvements. Just seeing the difference in stability and functionality between X1 and X3 speaks for itself.

I started with Cakewalk with the Cakewalk Express program, year was about 1997. Sadly I quit using it about a year later because it was too difficult to do new music. Then I bought Music Creator 5 and used it a little while and then got the X1. Then I took a long break from music making again until I returned to it again about a half year after. Then I got the guts to join these forums which was a good move. I have been happy with Cakewalk's software.

I've mentioned this before on my other account, which I lost on a board transfer.  I had Cakewalk running on a Commodore 64.  I just opened up my earliest file (.wrk) that I could find which was dated in 1992, looks fine.  I know I can find some 5.25 (c-64) floppies if I try hard enough.  My previous discussions was about copying those files from various old media.  I told everybody there are people out there that make Floppy USB drives, even for non DOS formats.  I got one for my Ensoniq Mirage.  ...I don't feel like a fossil...   tee hee hee. 

I was using Cubasis lol it came free with a midi keyboard. I was getting fed up of it as some functions worked others didnt and the plug ins werent too good. So although I thought Cubase was good I didnt think that it was for me. I used some free ones then one day I walked into PC World and they had Sonar 4 and I purchased it. I used it but at first I was thinking oh no what have I purchased. Learned it for what it was worth...when I heard about the upgrades I thought ok let me try this to cut along story short I stuck with it.
 
Now its just my baby and I appreciate what the guys have done. I have no problems with it whatsoever so I guess its good for me and X series was a bold step but the best step for Sonar.