Best OS X version for Early Intel Macs?

[Wowfunhappy]

if you consider modern software:

10.9 is not very usable due to lack of software support.
10.11 can be used but also has software support issues.
10.13 functions as a near modern machine.

Thing is, most modern desktop software is just a Chromium wrapper anyway. As a result, I haven't had any problems since Chromium Legacy came into the picture.

I make heavy use of Chrome's app shortcut feature, which sounds stupid but really makes webapps like Slack and Figma feel like independent applications. (And indeed—the "official" Slack and Figma apps are just Electron anyway, so I really am getting the same experience.)

Obviously it's going to depend somewhat on what you use your computer for. But I'm perfectly happy.

 

[TheShortTimer]

Slap on a current Linux distro (or Windows 10, if need be) and you get all the modern [FOSS] software you can think of.

Alternatively, those Macs would work great with Snow Leopard. There's plenty of modern software being developed for free within this forum that's compatible with 10.6 - likewise with the PPC forum whose offerings can be enjoyed courtesy of Rosetta.

On reflection, from Snow Leopard to Mojave*, much of my software has remained static at the same version through the years and there's something to be said for that level of longevity in an industry which exerts the pressures of planned and forced obsolescence upon consumers in order to push them towards perpetually upgrading: regardless of whether the successive versions actually offer any tangible benefits over the predecessors.

*(It was only on my Catalina running MBA that I was forced to make a clean break, thanks to Apple severing compatibility with older software.)