Copy old system to new machine

[peter boardman]

I’m just about to replace an old Mac with a new machine (another
Mac, of course...). What’s the best way to move all the relevant data
from the old Mac to the new one (assuming the two are connected)?

By relevant here, I mean of course the four users’ directories, the
(non-Apple) contents of the old Application folder that won’t be on
the new machine, and other files that get added to the system. (I’m
thinking for example of things added to /Library, such as software
licences...).

I’m assuming that it’s not a good idea to copy an old system over a
brand new installation, because there will be newer versions of
things on a new machine that shouldn’t be overwritten by older
versions from an old machine.

I’m also assuming that you can’t just copy the four users’ folders
and expect these users to appear magically on the login window?!

I’m  happy to be wrong with these assumptions...!

Thanks for any advice

Pete