Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Which macOS to choose?

W

whiteboard

Suspended
Original poster
Jun 3, 2021
71
6
Up North
Hello. First time poster here.

I have an older retina MacBook Pro running macOS Sierra, and I am thinking it's time to upgrade.

I tend to be a "late adopter" and don't believe the "newest" == "best".

Which macOS would be a good one to switch to, that is drama-free and stable, but that will also last me for a couple of years considering how disruptive it is to have to upgrade?

Also, something that isn't a vast departure from how macOS Sierra works would also be good. (I thought I heard that Apple was trying to make all computers behave like iPads? God I hope that isn't the case!!)


Here are some stats on my rMBP...

- MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Early 2015)
- Processor: 3.1 GHz Intel Core i7
- Memory: 16 GB 1867 MHz DDR3
- Graphics: Intel Iris Graphics 6100 1536 MB
 
W

whiteboard

Suspended
Original poster
Jun 3, 2021
71
6
Up North
Apple_Robert said:
I think you would like Mojave. It is fast and stable. You could also try Catalina.
Click to expand...

A few reasons that I am looking to upgrade include:

- I cannot for the life of me connect to the local library's free wifi. (I cannot get the "splash-page" to appear to accept their "Terms & Conditions" and am thinking maybe it is an OS-compatability issue?)

- I suppose it is better to have a newer OS from a security standpoint.


Questions:
1.) How old exactly is my macOS Sierra? (I'm guessing it's pretty ancient at this point, right?)

2.) What is the latest version of macOS?

3.)Why do you think Mojave would the a good fit?
 
Apple_Robert

Apple_Robert

Contributor
Sep 21, 2012
35,671
52,514
In a van down by the river
whiteboard said:
A few reasons that I am looking to upgrade include:

- I cannot for the life of me connect to the local library's free wifi. (I cannot get the "splash-page" to appear to accept their "Terms & Conditions" and am thinking maybe it is an OS-compatability issue?)

- I suppose it is better to have a newer OS from a security standpoint.


Questions:
1.) How old exactly is my macOS Sierra? (I'm guessing it's pretty ancient at this point, right?)

2.) What is the latest version of macOS?

3.)Why do you think Mojave would the a good fit?
Click to expand...
Sierra was released in 2016. Mojave was released in 2018. Neither of those releases are actively supported (re: new general OS updates and improvements) although both still get security updates from Apple. The latest version of MacOS is Big Sur which was released late last year. Your Mac is capable of running Big Sur.

I suggest Mojave because it is fast and stable and wouldn't be too much of a learning curve compared to Sierra. You should be able to load and properly access webpages with Mojave.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ElectronGuru, whiteboard and MacCheetah3
Apple_Robert

Apple_Robert

Contributor
Sep 21, 2012
35,671
52,514
In a van down by the river
iHorseHead said:
What's wrong with Big Sur?
Click to expand...
Nothing really. In my opinion, for someone used to Sierra and not concerned about using the latest OS all the time, Big Sur could be a big deal. Given the OP's personal preference pattern with OS, it may be good to go to Mojave and then later on Big Sur. That would be a much easier transition, in my opinion.
 
  • Like
Reactions: macsound1 and MacCheetah3
B

Bandaman

Cancelled
Aug 28, 2019
2,005
4,091
Your Retina book will run perfectly fine on Big Sur and you'll be getting all the latest updates and security patches. Big Sur is finally stable enough to actually recommend. It was a huge dumpster fire when it first released.
 
GSWForever8

GSWForever8

macrumors 6502a
Apr 10, 2021
530
498
whiteboard said:
- I cannot for the life of me connect to the local library's free wifi. (I cannot get the "splash-page" to appear to accept their "Terms & Conditions" and am thinking maybe it is an OS-compatability issue?)
Click to expand...
Have you tried captive.apple.com?
 
  • Like
Reactions: Starfia
glenthompson

glenthompson

macrumors demi-god
Apr 27, 2011
2,983
844
Virginia
whiteboard said:
I cannot for the life of me connect to the local library's free wifi. (I cannot get the "splash-page" to appear to accept their "Terms & Conditions" and am thinking maybe it is an OS-compatability issue?)
Click to expand...
Do you have a VPN running? It should be off when first connecting. Try going to neverssl.com as a first page so it’s not trying to make a secure connection.

Do you run any 32 bit apps? If so then don’t go any higher than Mojave. Catalina and Big Sur only support 64 bit apps.
 
W

whiteboard

Suspended
Original poster
Jun 3, 2021
71
6
Up North
Apple_Robert said:
Sierra was released in 2016. Mojave was released in 2018. Neither of those releases are actively supported (re: new general OS updates and improvements) although both still get security updates from Apple. The latest version of MacOS is Big Sur which was released late last year. Your Mac is capable of running Big Sur.

I suggest Mojave because it is fast and stable and wouldn't be too much of a learning curve compared to Sierra. You should be able to load and properly access webpages with Mojave.
Click to expand...

@Apple_Robert if you had to guess, do you think my problem with not being able to get a "splash page" at the library so I can accept their Terms of Service and thus use the lobrary's free wi-fi could be related to the fact that I am indeed running a pretty ancient version of macOS?

Or could it be something else like a hardware issue?

That is main reason I am looking to update my macOS, although I suppose security is a concern too.
 
W

whiteboard

Suspended
Original poster
Jun 3, 2021
71
6
Up North
Apple_Robert said:
Nothing really. In my opinion, for someone used to Sierra and not concerned about using the latest OS all the time, Big Sur could be a big deal. Given the OP's personal preference pattern with OS, it may be good to go to Mojave and then later on Big Sur. That would be a much easier transition, in my opinion.
Click to expand...

What exactly would be the changes in Big Sur that would make it a "big deal"?

I was able to find a bootable USB drive with Mojave on it last night in storage, so that is a plus for trying Mojave for now. Especially since I am away from home and the only Internet I have would be free Wi-Fi somewhere.

I was worried about trying to download a 5-6 GB file some place like a public library or hotel - especially since it might take forever, or the connection might drop, and maybe the connection could get hacked?

My end goal is to just be able to use the local library's free Wi-Fi.
 
Boyd01

Boyd01

Moderator
Staff member
Feb 21, 2012
7,952
4,888
New Jersey Pine Barrens
Apple_Robert said:
Sierra was released in 2016. Mojave was released in 2018. Neither of those releases are actively supported (re: new general OS updates and improvements) although both still get security updates from Apple.
Click to expand...

Are you sure about that? AFAIK, Sierra has not gotten a security update since 2019. Maybe you were thinking of High Sierra?

Apple security releases - Apple Support

This document lists security updates and Rapid Security Responses for Apple software.
support.apple.com support.apple.com

macOS 10.12 Sierra - End of Life - SCS Computing Facilities - Carnegie Mellon University

eol, mac, macos, el, sierra, 10.12, end, of, life, support, scs, scscf, apple
computing.cs.cmu.edu computing.cs.cmu.edu
 
W

whiteboard

Suspended
Original poster
Jun 3, 2021
71
6
Up North
glenthompson said:
Do you have a VPN running? It should be off when first connecting. Try going to neverssl.com as a first page so it’s not trying to make a secure connection.

Do you run any 32 bit apps? If so then don’t go any higher than Mojave. Catalina and Big Sur only support 64 bit apps.
Click to expand...

I do use a VPN with a kill switch, but I turned that off before trying to connect.

When I was traveling earlier this week, I was able to connect to the free Wi-Fi of a diner at a truck stop and I was outside like 100 yards away. So that says to me that the VPN isn't the issue.

This library now is near where I grew up and it is sorta going to be my home base for a while.

I have a mobile hotspot on my iPhone, but some some reason the coverage sucks where I'm at, so I get "LTE" on my phone or "4G" and only one bar.

(It took me 2+ hours to even be able to log into my AT&T account to make sure I wasn't over my data limit. I thought they might be throttling my account, but I had only used 0.5GB out of a 15GB limit.)

It appears the issue is one of two things...

1.) The library's network set up is a fubar and their software is outdated or maybe has an expired SSL certificate or it isn't set up properly. (Ironically, the library does not provide any tech support to patrons, and says that the city is in charge of setting up their Wi-Fi. This is in a metro area of over 1/2 million people, and that is such a crazy response!)

2.) Because my OS is pretty old, maybe the library's Wi-Fi login software doesn't support macOS Sierra? Even though I haven't had any issues connecting to other free Wi-Fi's, that doesn't fix my problem now.

I am out of work, and this is a very nice library, and it has become a great place to look for work and take care of business, and it would be sooo much easier to have FREE Wi-Fi considering my $80/month AT&T mobile plan seems to be useless in this area - plus I want to save my data for emergencies.

All too often I have seen things break online because you use the wrong browser, or an outdated version, and while it will be a total PITA to update my Mac, I am hoping it might fix my library connectivity issue.

HTH.
 
Apple_Robert

Apple_Robert

Contributor
Sep 21, 2012
35,671
52,514
In a van down by the river
Boyd01 said:
Are you sure about that? AFAIK, Sierra has not gotten a security update since 2019. Maybe you were thinking of High Sierra?

Apple security releases - Apple Support

This document lists security updates and Rapid Security Responses for Apple software.
support.apple.com support.apple.com

macOS 10.12 Sierra - End of Life - SCS Computing Facilities - Carnegie Mellon University

eol, mac, macos, el, sierra, 10.12, end, of, life, support, scs, scscf, apple
computing.cs.cmu.edu computing.cs.cmu.edu
Click to expand...
Yea, I was thinking of High Sierra. Sorry bout that.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Boyd01
E

EAGuitars

macrumors newbie
Jun 4, 2021
5
1
Though you can go up to the current OS with that MacBook Pro, the very last is the first since Mojave to offer anything that was of practical value, IMO. The rest was facelifts and keeping up with technologies. My MacPro (2009 Cheesegrater upgraded to keep up with the latest MacPro got stopped at Mojave and I'm just fine with that. The only thing the latest one added was that you don't have to (as I recall) go into Security settings every time to tell it to allow unknown software sources. That's handy when you use it for DAW but more basic users are probably using software with a valid signature anyway (or should be, for safety.). So as at least one other advised, Mojave is a very good resting point.
 
P

pmiles

macrumors 6502a
Dec 12, 2013
812
678
To the OP,

You'd be better off starting a new thread because you detailed your own thread. Basically your issue is with connecting to a local library's free-wifi... not about whether Big Sur or whichever OS you are running is the culprit.

First, I'd contact the library in question and get the full details as to what you need in order to access it. Odds are pretty good the service is slow because everyone and their brother is tapping into it. Imagine your own home wifi with 100 people using it... it would be slow as a dog as well.

If your machine is the issue, it would have issues on any wifi it attempted to access, not just the local library.

And for the record, newer OSes tend to add more load to older systems, not the other way around. They don't care about old architecture because they aren't written for old architecture. They assume you are running the latest hardware and are written to maximize that.

Your solution isn't a newer OS, or newer hardware, it's a paid wireless plan.
 
  • Like
Reactions: CoastalOR
E

EAGuitars

macrumors newbie
Jun 4, 2021
5
1
MacCheetah3 said:
Because I didn’t see it mentioned… Have you tried a browser other than Safari? Nothing generally against Safari but not all pages are WebKit or otherwise Safari-friendly.

The latest version of Firefox, for example, is compatible back to Sierra.
www.mozilla.org

Download the fastest Firefox ever

Faster page loading, less memory usage and packed with features, the new Firefox is here.
www.mozilla.org www.mozilla.org
Click to expand...
I've found some issues with incompatibility with Firefox, and the cool extensions generally run on Chrome too, so... even though it's google... ;/
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom