Barry,
I wouldn't worry about your learned codes and firmware upgrades.
I expect that the PC software will be available long before any firmware upgrades occur and therefore you will be able to "suck" all the config info out of your Pronto before doing any upgrades and then simply reload from your computer.
You can save as many config files as you like in the PC, including pulling configs from other people and "merging" them with any one you have, thereby providing the ability to "import" a set of device codes from someone else.
I hope this helps eliminate any fears of wasting time in relearning codes.