MacOS Sierra: Please Tell me Why You Are Not Upgrading

[RumorzGuy]

I hope they can add support to Android File Transfer natively rather than having to download 3rd party applications, however that doesn't exist on any previous Mac OS X either so it's not an issue.

Hello, I know it is a bit off-topic, but I am glad that you brought that up.

You see, a while back, I purchased an Android hybrid tablet and carrying case on Amazon for my young granddaughter for around $125.

The idea behind the purchase was to give my granddaughter something to play with, so my daughter could do serious work on her MBP without interference.

I have no experience with Android whatsoever.

Then I discovered that I had to download that Android File Transfer app for my daughter, so she could transfer YouTube videos from her MBP to the Android tablet.

The last time I spoke to her about it months ago, she said that the app did not work.

The name of the device is "Goldengulf 7" Inch Latest Green 4.1 JellyBean Mini Android Laptop Computer". It has Android 4.4 on it.

I am not sure what the problem is, being as I have never tried to use the file transfer app myself, but can you offer any advice?

It is no biggie, because my granddaughter will probably get an iPad sooner or later, but if you have the time to respond, that would be great.

Sorry I can't provide more details.

Thanks.
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x Siri integration — Siri is usually more trouble than help
x Auto unlocking w/ Apple Watch — Don’t own an Apple Watch
x Apple Pay for web — Don’t use ApplePay on the iPhone
x Revamped Apple Music app — Rarely listen to music on our Macs
x New storage optimization — Don’t have enough ISP bandwidth to use iCloud drive
? New file system w/ native encryption — Not implemented yet
x "Memories" tab in Photos — Hopefully this can be turned off (unlike Faces)
• Cross-device copy and paste — May be useful if it supports my early 2011 MBP

That is a very interesting list.

Even though I have upgraded to the Sierra final on my iMac, I must likewise say with all candor that there is really nothing of real interest or of current use on that list for me either.

But then again, that is the thing about having such a large user base. There are all kinds of users with all kinds of varied needs and interests. So while I find nothing compelling in that list, someone else might like some of it, or even all of it.

In the end, to each his own.

Now, if Apple was still outright charging for OS upgrades, then it might be a different story.

 

[Tarek]

@RumorzGuy to be honest, I'd have to use the device myself in order to be able to diagnose the problem. What I suggest is enabling developer options and ticking on USB Debugging, and "Allowing connections" when connecting the tablet to the Mac.

Android File Transfer is not the most reliable application but I believe it is the only one out there, which is why we, Android users, are forced to deal with it. Sometimes I have to unplug and replug the phone in a couple of times before I get it to work.

So in short, try enabling USB debugging and accepting any notices that come up on the phone regarding the Mac.

If she still cannot get it work, try PMing me and we can try and workaround it.

By the way, is Android 4.4 the latest Android she can actually update to? I may be mistaken but I think that could be a reason as well because it is a fairly old OS.

 

[RumorzGuy]

@RumorzGuy to be honest, I'd have to use the device myself in order to be able to diagnose the problem. What I suggest is enabling developer options and ticking on USB Debugging, and "Allowing connections" when connecting the tablet to the Mac.

Android File Transfer is not the most reliable application but I believe it is the only one out there, which is why we, Android users, are forced to deal with it. Sometimes I have to unplug and replug the phone in a couple of times before I get it to work.

So in short, try enabling USB debugging and accepting any notices that come up on the phone regarding the Mac.

If she still cannot get it work, try PMing me and we can try and workaround it.

By the way, is Android 4.4 the latest Android she can actually update to? I may be mistaken but I think that could be a reason as well because it is a fairly old OS.

Thanks for taking the time to reply. Much appreciated.

Question: Is "USB Debugging" and "Allowing connections" on the Android tablet, or on her MacBookPro? As I said, I am not very familiar with either. I only work on an iMac, and have never used any mobile devices.

Yes, I wrote to the actual seller not long after I purchased the tablet on Amazon, and he informed me that the Android OS on the tablet cannot be updated.

I'll pass the info along to my daughter and see if she is even interested in doing this. As I said, I suspect that my granddaughter will move to an iPad in the not-too-distant future, so all of this would be rather pointless.

 

[MultiFinder17]

I'm holding off on a couple of apps that need to be updated, namely Karabiner and ShareMouse. After those, I will probably upgrade my 2010 Mac Pro.
I just updated my home server, a 2012 mini, to El Cap. I tend to keep my server one major version behind for stability.
I have a 2008 iMac that I use in my classroom that I will probably keep on El Cap. Not sure that unofficial updates are worth putting up with something that I rely on every day to run my classroom.
My main laptop is a 2011 11" Air with 2GB RAM, and I am debating upgrading it. Any advice on whether Sierra runs any heavier or lighter than El Cap?

 

[The Mercurian]

I never update before .1 or .2 release. Also my work said not to install iOS10 or macOS until they test and approve it - so I await that also.

New features don't interest me. This unlock by iphone/iWatch seems like a potential security hole for one thing. The one new feature that does interest me is oddly enough Siri. The fact that you can talk to Siri whilst doing something esel on the keyboard is novel (you can't do this up to now even with thrid party package AFAIK). This is a potential productivity boon. Those who have i installed - have you tried dictating to Word/Pages whilst doing something else with keyboard in another window ? How well does this work if at all? If I could write code, whilst simultaneously dictating notes/documentation on the code that would be amazing.

 

[blindpcguy]

yeah I'm with everyone sierra is stable to a great degree but there is not enough newness to justify the upgrade to 10.12 i miss the big days of huge features you watch the old apple keynotes and you can just feel the newness of it. i wish it was still that way .

 

[fisherking]

yeah I'm with everyone sierra is stable to a great degree but there is not enough newness to justify the upgrade to 10.12 i miss the big days of huge features you watch the old apple keynotes and you can just feel the newness of it. i wish it was still that way .

it's like everything else in the 'computer' world; advances are no longer giant steps, and... for a reason. we have most of what we need (within the limits of the technology), now we just need those things to improve; and they (mostly) do, just gradually.

meanwhile, sierra seems... faster, more stable, under the hood, at least here, on my two macs. that's what i care most about, the OS's stabilty, speed.

 

[blindpcguy]

yes that is a major point but theres no point buying a whole new mac for it. as 2 of my 23 macs can't run sierra. one a 1,1 mac pro unofficially running el cap perfectly fine the second a 09 MacBook pro. still probably install the patched version just since there is not a major deference and i rely on it for school. so until i get a new mac in the next year or so il pretty much b rocking elcap.

 

[m4v3r1ck]

macOS = OS X Rose Gold! Nuff said.

Cheers

 

[maflynn]

What does Sierra give me that 10.11 doesn't?
The features of 10.12 just don't really move me that much. I'm not worked up over Siri, or copy/paste from the phone to the mac, or having all sorts of "stickers" for iMessage.

My Mac is running well right now with 10.11. Perhaps I'll take the plunge, but at the moment I feel no compelling reason to upgrade.

 

[m4v3r1ck]

Just for the sake of testing my workflow applications I installed macOS 10.12 in a VM (Fusion 8.1 Pro / OS X 10.10.5)

Cheers

 

[Mr. McMac]

I see no reason to upgrade. I have zero interest in Siri, and have no iOS devices. Plus the fact I have no problems with 10.11.6

 

[mw78]

I normally wait 3-4 months after the official launch before upgrading to the latest OS.

Anyone else have the same habit and can you tell me your reasons?

Same here, since Apple always breaks something with every single major update. The largest one thus far that would hose me is the debacle with the Fujitsu scan snap line. If you haven't seen this issue yet, it's a doozy: http://scansnapcommunity.com/featur...n-macos-sierra-may-cause-permanent-data-loss/

 

[darkweather]

Because i can't: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/cant-install-macos-sierra.2000153/

 

[dogslobber]

I have a 2008 iMac that I use in my classroom that I will probably keep on El Cap. Not sure that unofficial updates are worth putting up with something that I rely on every day to run my classroom.
My main laptop is a 2011 11" Air with 2GB RAM, and I am debating upgrading it. Any advice on whether Sierra runs any heavier or lighter than El Cap?

Didn't think the 2008 iMac was supported for Sierra. FWIW, I find 4gb MBA 2010 swaps quite quickly when browsing half a dozen tabs in Sierra. Goodness knows what it would do to a 2gb machine.

 

[MacBAir]

What does Sierra give me that 10.11 doesn't?
The features of 10.12 just don't really move me that much. I'm not worked up over Siri, or copy/paste from the phone to the mac, or having all sorts of "stickers" for iMessage.

My Mac is running well right now with 10.11. Perhaps I'll take the plunge, but at the moment I feel no compelling reason to upgrade.

If you have iOS devices it's a no brainer.

For Android users like me, that also don't use Safari and photos.app, it provides no value, specially since El Cap will be the latest release of many macs and is rock solid (pun). We will get security updates for many moons to go. Then, I update.

 

[maflynn]

If you have iOS devices it's a no brainer.

I have an iPhone and an apple watch, yet I still don't see the need or desire.

 

[MultiFinder17]

Didn't think the 2008 iMac was supported for Sierra. FWIW, I find 4gb MBA 2010 swaps quite quickly when browsing half a dozen tabs in Sierra. Goodness knows what it would do to a 2gb machine.

It's not, but the Sierra patch tool works quite well

My 2GB Air certainly swaps a fair bit in normal usage, but it's nothing that seems to deeply impact its performance; my point of reference for performance is a 2010 Mac Pro Hex with 40GB of RAM and several SSDs. I don't run much on it at any given time, mostly productivity software. Still, it keeps up with my needs and has served me well thus far.

 

[flowrider]

https://forums.macrumors.com/thread...-sierra-on-day-1.1997429/page-2#post-23505646

Lou

 

[RumorzGuy]

Well, after a major incident yesterday morning with macOS Sierra 10.12.1 where my wireless keyboard, Magic Mouse and wired mouse all lost connectivity to my iMac -- and resetting the SMC, zapping the PRAM, booting in Safe Mode, booting in Recovery Mode, running Disk Utility, etc., did not fix it -- I have decided to move back to El Capitan 10.11.6.

The problems I began to encounter with Sierra just weren't worth it. I lost one important program that I use on a daily basis, which made my workflow more troublesome. Then some VirtualBox kext files broke my iSight camera. Then I lost connectivity yesterday and couldn't even log in. Enough is enough.

As I noted earlier, and as others here have stated, there are really no new features in Sierra which I need -- especially not Siri -- so why bother. I'm done with it until this almost eight year old machine kicks the bucket. Then I'll get Sierra -- or whatever comes after it -- on a new machine.

 

[poorcody]

I will probably hold off for a while... I usually wait for a time to let any latent issues work themselves out, unless there is a compelling reason to upgrade. Don't see anything particularly compelling at this point. Not that I'm really complaining about that -- just adding things for the sake of adding things gets old when they bring along bugs and complications.

Oh, and I use a ScanSnap so that will keep me away until that is fixed.

 

[KALLT]

3. El Cap will get the same security updates for many moons.

El Capitan will get some security updates, not all. Sierra also has other security enhancements that El Capitan will not get. I am not saying that Sierra is more secure by any measure, but El Capitan is kept up to date on a best-effort basis.

 

[AllStarCelica]

I did the upgrade but I rolled my system back to El Capitan. The animations were way too slow and buggy in mission control and Microsoft Word for Mac, which I have to use for work. It stinks because I played around with Siri on my MacBook air and it was fantastic and super smooth to use.

 

[Traverse]

El Capitan will get some security updates, not all. Sierra also has other security enhancements that El Capitan will not get. I am not saying that Sierra is more secure by any measure, but El Capitan is kept up to date on a best-effort basis.

This is true. I can't remember the source, but there was a major security vulnerability that was fixed in 10.10.3/4 that Mavericks did not get despite being only a year old because the fix would require too much programming. Old versions of OS X are update with security patches unless they are too severe. Best-effort basis is a good way of putting it.

 

[BLuRRnAWAY]

I upgrade the minute they release, have luckily never had an issue, knock on wood!