The pro and con of Apple annual major OS update

[coolbreeze2]

I love that Apple keeps modernizing macOS annually with a major update. However, I can't enjoy new features on all my Macs because 3rd party software that is critical for me is not compatible. I have some music production software that I can't simply work without that is not certified to work in Big Sur let alone be ready for Monterey. I updated my iMac anyway but was later forced to roll back to Catalina. It appears I will be stuck with Catalina on my iMac even after Monterey is released. I know that's not a world crisis. I'm just venting.

 

[ArPe]

You’re not forced to upgrade unless you want to and you can dual boot. I have computers with system 7.5.3 and system 9.2.2 😝

 

[coolbreeze2]

You’re not forced to upgrade unless you want to and you can dual boot. I have computers with system 7.5.3 and system 9.2.2 😝

Hmmm I didn't think about a dual boot of Catalina and Big Sur or Monterey! Splendid idea! I will check into this. Yippeee!! if this can work. I have a super fast 1TB external SSD. Can I place Big Sur or Monterey on it and keep the computer's drive as Catalina?

 

[blindpcguy]

Hmmm I didn't think about a dual boot of Catalina and Big Sur or Monterey! Splendid idea! I will check into this. Yippeee!! if this can work. I have a super fast 1TB external SSD. Can I place Big Sur or Monterey on it and keep the computer's drive as Catalina?

ya that would work great. In the past when i had a Imac i did that id keep the current OS on the internal and big sur betas on the external and it ran great. You can even move that external between diffrent macs if you want to.

 

[ArPe]

Hmmm I didn't think about a dual boot of Catalina and Big Sur or Monterey! Splendid idea! I will check into this. Yippeee!! if this can work. I have a super fast 1TB external SSD. Can I place Big Sur or Monterey on it and keep the computer's drive as Catalina?

Apparently Monterey only installed on external Thunderbolt drives not USB. I’m waiting for confirmation.

You can install every macOS your computer supports on different internal drives volumes/partitions. Always been like that since the 80s.

 

[ArPe]

. You can even move that external between diffrent macs if you want to.

wait I don’t think that is possible anymore since Catalina. Your macOS install is now tied to your T2 or M1 chip. So a portable external install has to signed out of iCloud and the computer deleted from your account in order for the external drive to be used with different Macs. Someone confirm?

 

[IceStormNG]

wait I don’t think that is possible anymore since Catalina. Your macOS install is now tied to your T2 or M1 chip. So a portable external install has to signed out of iCloud and the computer deleted from your account in order for the external drive to be used with different Macs. Someone confirm?

Even then it won't work. macOS has to be "personalized" to the mac you want to boot it on. This is true for macs with T2 and with M1. No matter if you're logged into iCloud or not. It will re-personalize it on every boot.
I'm just not sure about the side-effects of that process yet.

 

[coolbreeze2]

ya that would work great. In the past when i had a Imac i did that id keep the current OS on the internal and big sur betas on the external and it ran great. You can even move that external between diffrent macs if you want to.

Thank You!!!!!!

 

[ArPe]

Even then it won't work. macOS has to be "personalized" to the mac you want to boot it on. This is true for macs with T2 and with M1. No matter if you're logged into iCloud or not. It will re-personalize it on every boot.
I'm just not sure about the side-effects of that process yet.

Thought so. Before Mojave or Catalina I was always able to take my test drive and boot it on different Macs. But those were not T2 or M1 Macs obvs because they didn’t exist yet.

 

[Apple_Robert]

I love that Apple keeps modernizing macOS annually with a major update. However, I can't enjoy new features on all my Macs because 3rd party software that is critical for me is not compatible. I have some music production software that I can't simply work without that is not certified to work in Big Sur let alone be ready for Monterey. I updated my iMac anyway but was later forced to roll back to Catalina. It appears I will be stuck with Catalina on my iMac even after Monterey is released. I know that's not a world crisis. I'm just venting.

As long as you aren''t Prosser, feel free to vent some.

 

[dukebound85]

I really wish Apple would adopt a 2-3 year OS release schedule that do not change machine requirments

It would be nice if they offer point release for stability and performance, ie snow leopard or high Sierra in the middle of these bigger OS changes

I feel these annual releases speed up the dropping of support of otherwise capable Macs (as seen by the unsupported Mac threads)

 

[Apple_Robert]

ya that would work great. In the past when i had a Imac i did that id keep the current OS on the internal and big sur betas on the external and it ran great. You can even move that external between diffrent macs if you want to.

No can do on new machines.

 

[fisherking]

I really wish Apple would adopt a 2-3 year OS release schedule that do not change machine requirments

It would be nice if they offer point release for stability and performance, ie snow leopard or high Sierra in the middle of these bigger OS changes

I feel these annual releases speed up the dropping of support of otherwise capable Macs (as seen by the unsupported Mac threads)

they're a business, they need to keep things in motion; since the OSes are free, the hardware sales become important.

either way, no one is forced to upgrade every year, and people can use what suits them (at least, until they need a new mac, or they need something in a newer OS).

 

[dukebound85]

they're a business, they need to keep things in motion; since the OSes are free, the hardware sales become important.

either way, no one is forced to upgrade every year, and people can use what suits them (at least, until they need a new mac, or they need something in a newer OS).

I get that

I just stated what I would like to see.

Didn't realize I have to share Apple's mentality in a thread on the pros/cons of a 1 year OS cycle.

Jeebus

 

[fisherking]

I get that

I just stated what I would like to see.

Didn't realize I have to share Apple's mentality in a thread on the pros/cons of a 1 year OS cycle.

Jeebus

easy, no harm meant; was also just making an observation, not attacking you personally...

 

[DesertNomad]

As a developer since 1986, it was certainly easier when new OS versions got released when they were ready rather than when the calendar dictated.

 

[fisherking]

As a developer since 1986, it was certainly easier when new OS versions got released when they were ready rather than when the calendar dictated.

can you explain exactly when that changed? every version of the OS has had incremental updates; it seems (to me) that any OS is always a work-in-progress. and if apple wants to do yearly upgrades, that's their prerogative. then, we have the option to move to a new OS... or not.

 

[macdos]

Cons:

• useless restylings, that are in essence circular in nature (square → round → square → round ad infinitium)
• introduction of many new bugs, that are never resolved
• ever more bloated and locked down with useless apps and crap
• planned obsolescence
• really no useful features
• slower
• more memory foot print

Pros:

 

[fisherking]

Cons:

• useless restylings, that are in essence circular in nature (square → round → square → round ad infinitium)
• introduction of many new bugs, that are never resolved
• ever more bloated and locked down with useless apps and crap
• planned obsolescence
• really no useful features
• slower
• more memory foot print

Pros:

you forgot to fill in the 'pros':

• new look, rather than maintaining a dated, boring look

• resolution of bugs, other fixes (and, sigh, introduction of new bugs... as always)

• new features, options

• utilitizing the new capablilities of new architectures, improved OSes

• useful new features (whether one chooses to use them or not), improvements and enhancements

• better speed (or similar speeds); at least, for most users


we can take turns making lists, but really... apple will continue to move forward, and obviously, not everyone likes that. whatever issues i have with the OSes, am happy we don't live in a static world, and there are new options, features... and challenges. makes life fun & interesting 👍

 

[KoolAid-Drink]

can you explain exactly when that changed?

10.0: March 2001
10.1: September 2001
10.2: August 2002
10.3: October 2003
10.4: April 2005
10.5: October 2007
10.6: August 2009
10.7: July 2011
10.8: July 2012
10.9: October 2013
10.10: October 2014
10.11: September 2015
10.12: September 2016
10.13: September 2017
10.14: September 2018
10.15: October 2019
11.0: November 2020
12.0: ?

 

[guzhogi]

Never cared for the "change for the sake of change" features. If you need a change, fine. If you just get boring with a look, meh. Kind of wish Apple had a built-in appearance editor system. That way, if you want icons or windows to look different, you can choose it. I'm dating myself, but something like the old Kaleidoscope app.

After Big Sur, and pretty much always with iOS/iPadOS changing the X.Y.Z version numbering scheme. Used to be X was for major overhauls of the system (Think Mac OS 6 → 7 → 8 → X), Y was for major new features, but still fairly the same, and Z was for bug fix updates. Now, we have version X.Y.Z supplemental updates 1, and two, plus security updates 1-6, etc.

I'd like to see Apple wait maybe 2-3 years for a new major release (with bug fixes in. between). In that time, update all the frameworks and then the OS & apps to Swift & SwiftUI.

 

[fisherking]

10.0: March 2001
10.1: September 2001
10.2: August 2002
10.3: October 2003
10.4: April 2005
10.5: October 2007
10.6: August 2009
10.7: July 2011
10.8: July 2012
10.9: October 2013
10.10: October 2014
10.11: September 2015
10.12: September 2016
10.13: September 2017
10.14: September 2018
10.15: October 2019
11.0: November 2020
12.0: ?

wait; so you're saying that every version of OS X and now mac OS was released before being ready, but the 'classic' era was all good? ok then...

 

[KoolAid-Drink]

wait; so you're saying that every version of OS X and now mac OS was released before being ready, but the 'classic' era was all good? ok then...

I’m not saying anything. I’m simply listing the month/year of each OS X/macOS release to give you an idea of the length in between each OS release.

 

[fisherking]

I’m not saying anything. I’m simply listing the month/year of each OS X/macOS release to give you an idea of the length in between each OS release.

what;s the value in that? this is what you said: "it was certainly easier when new OS versions got released when they were ready rather than when the calendar dictated"... and i asked you when that was; a list of release dates doesn't address your statement, in any way....

 

[w0lf]

what;s the value in that? this is what you said: "it was certainly easier when new OS versions got released when they were ready rather than when the calendar dictated"... and i asked you when that was; a list of release dates doesn't address your statement, in any way....

I think their point was that form. 2003 - 2011 they were on a release cycle closer to every 2 years vs yearly form 2012 onwards.

Theoretically, something developed over 2 years can have more polish than something developed in half the time.

The problem with that outlook is thinking that each new feature is thought up and developed in one year in the yearly release cycle. It's likely that has probably never been the case, and depending on the complexity a feature may be worked on over the corse of several years or only a few days/weeks/months if it's something small. A feature is then bundled in with the OS when it is deemed ready or if it coincides with a hardware upgrade.

Another problem with that outlook is that the major version change means anything. It's literally just for marketing and so they can force users to buy new hardware every 7 years when they remove support for the computer.

-----

As for the OP's question

PROs :

• New features every year means in general your computer gets better over time

CONS :

• More bugs and less polished products with a rapid release schedule
• Apple loves to depreciate things so less popular features are around for less time. If you happen to use a failed feature you have to move on quickly
• UI Refreshes are common, especially as most core features reach a point where there is nothing new to add. This means you have to be comfortable with adapting to new UI paradigms quickly.