My wife has and older MacPro that cannot update to the new macOS. What will happen when iTunes is no more? Will she be able to get the 3 replacement apps on high Sierra?
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What happens with old macs with iTunes demise
- Thread starter allan53
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Don't think I've seen anything yet, but guessing should be ok for now. Seems like new "iTunes" is going the iOS route ala Maps, News, etc on Mojave: iOS apps using the underlying framework (Catalyst) to have cross platform compatibility. Seeing that Windows is still out there running iTunes, unless Apple comes up with a compatibility layer for that...
Worst case, old iTunes will live on for a couple of years for older systems.
Or, can get a 3rd party app like iMazing to handle old iTunes-like functions.
(Don't see Apple pulling iTunes plug completely for a while, primarily to deal with enterprise-y environments where upgrades might take a while)
ADD: nothing in this about older Macs, but, Windows iTunes will continue to live for now, so assuming older Macs will be ok for now.
https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/201...nes-questions-old-libraries-windows-and-more/
Worst case, old iTunes will live on for a couple of years for older systems.
Or, can get a 3rd party app like iMazing to handle old iTunes-like functions.
(Don't see Apple pulling iTunes plug completely for a while, primarily to deal with enterprise-y environments where upgrades might take a while)
ADD: nothing in this about older Macs, but, Windows iTunes will continue to live for now, so assuming older Macs will be ok for now.
https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/201...nes-questions-old-libraries-windows-and-more/
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There is no law saying you have to update the OS.
If security updates stop, just learn to play careful, get secure software, or give up on the internet.
My Macs on High Sierra now. I wish I'd stopped at Yosemite. I'm just not seeing any advantages in updating since 2014 or 2015. Now that we're all 64 bits, most apps should function fine for years. Apple may block you from streaming, but that is less than a loss.
If security updates stop, just learn to play careful, get secure software, or give up on the internet.
My Macs on High Sierra now. I wish I'd stopped at Yosemite. I'm just not seeing any advantages in updating since 2014 or 2015. Now that we're all 64 bits, most apps should function fine for years. Apple may block you from streaming, but that is less than a loss.
For now, word is that everything will stay bundled together in iTunes on older OSes. I have every expectation they'll be updating "iTunes" for years to come, on both Mac and Windows.
Apple wants us to keep spending money, whether the app where we spend it is called iTunes, Music, TV, Books, etc. So, there's going to be a working store for older versions of macOS and Windows, no matter what name/shape it takes. Further, since iTunes is also the repair tool for iOS devices... they want as many computers as practical to be capable of getting an iPhone up and running again.
For example, my 11-year-old iMac runs El Capitan (two versions prior to High Sierra), and they released updates that support iOS 12.x devices on El Capitan. Windows 7 machines can also run a current version of iTunes. So, figure you're good with up-to-date iTunes for at least 10 years from the manufacture date of your Mac.
I think there are good, technical reasons why they won't split on older OSes, but the explanations get pretty muddy, pretty fast. Suffice it to say, splitting into three (or more) pieces on the surface argues in favor of shared, OS-based support for certain commonly-needed features under the hood. Again, it's not the kind of change they make to old OSes.
iTunes for Windows is maintaining support. Those apps on older Macs will still function as normal, but the app scheme is different going forward. Your software will not break. 