Apple released macOS Catalina (10.15) today, 7 Oct 2019. Assuming your hardware is compatible with it, should you go ahead and upgrade right away?
Reunion For Mac Catalina 2017
MacOS Catalina's iPad apps for the Mac are here, but the story is just getting started. Catalyst has been slow to take off on MacOS 10.15, but here's a look at the state of tablet apps migrating. MacOS Catalina brings iPad apps to the Mac. Catalyst should be huge for everyone, whipping Mac apps into shape. D uring my time with macOS Catalina, I didn't see any iPad apps available in the App. Nov 29, 2017 Like most modern Mac apps, Reunion 12 has a cleaner 'flatter' appearance (buttons, lists, and such). However, if you prefer the more 'rounded' look of Reunion 11 and earlier versions, there's a button in the Family View Preferences that will revert to the older appearance.
- Oct 31, 2019 I waited before doing my MacOS Catalina review because reviewing an OS on day one isn't always the best thing. This breaks down Catalina's all-new features and what you need to.
- Oct 12, 2019 Apple’s latest Mac update, macOS Catalina, was released earlier this week, and with it came a flurry of complications both minor and major. For one, this update is the first for Apple to drop 32.
Unless a major OS release contains a critical security patch, I always recommend that people hold off upgrading until at least the first dot one release containing bug fixes. Let the early adopters find the bugs that the beta testers missed. But for genealogists, there’s another important reason to hold off: 32-bit apps will no longer run in Catalina, and many apps, especially older genealogy apps, are 32-bit. For example, here are the 32-bit genealogy apps I use and their status, if known:
- Ancestral Quest 15 – uses CrossOver, which is being updated to 64-bit
- Family Tree Builder 8 – uses CrossOver
- Genome Mate Pro – uses the Xojo development tools, which does not yet support building 64-bit apps
- Reunion 11 – replaced by Reunion 12, which is 64-bit
- RootsMagic 7 – will be replaced by RootsMagic 8, which will be 64-bit
How can you find out which of your apps are 32-bit? You could look in System Information, but the easiest way is to download and run the 32-bitCheck app by The Electric Light Company.
Be aware that some apps in the list may be apps within apps (every Mac app is actually a package, or special folder, containing several files). For example, Adobe Lightroom 6 is a 64-bit app that contains a 32-bit app called Adobe QT32 Server; while most of Lightroom 6 should work on Catalina, the parts requiring the QT32 Server will not.
Reunion For Mac Catalina Bay
What can you do about 32-bit apps you still need? Obviously the first step is to check the app publisher and see if they’ve released a 64-bit version and upgrade to it (which may cost you something, but most publishers provide upgrade discounts). If there’s no 64-bit version yet, contact the publisher/developer. If it looks like there will never be any 64-bit version, you could simply not upgrade to Catalina, but eventually Apple will stop supporting older versions of macOS and you’d miss out on important security patches. Another option would be to go ahead and upgrade to Catalina (after 10.15.1 is released) and then install Mojave in a virtual machine using something like VirtualBox. This is a bit more technical solution but still feasible.
Until 64-bit versions of your essential 32-bit apps are released, you can still get your machine ready for Catalina by removing unneeded applications, updating the apps you keep (I recommend an app called MacUpdater for this purpose), and, as always, backing up regularly and often.
Reunion For Mac Catalina Beach
What 32-bit genealogy apps are you using? Let us know in the comments. How do i update iphoto for el capitan iphone.