Best Friend Mac OS

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Best Friend Most Likely To Questions

VLC Media Player for Mac. Compatibility: Mac OS X 10.7.5 or newer. VLC Media Player, an uncluttered, open-source and cross-platform program, supports DivX and MPEG streaming. It can play DVDs, CDs, VCDs, network streaming protocols, and various types of video files. The best video player Mac offers playlist for viewing multiple videos one after.
My friend's mid 2011 iMac (2.5 i5 with 16GB of ram) is still on 10.8. I know that I could install 10.13 on it, but is it optimal? Sometimes newer OSes are slower on older machines. So, what's the best OS for such an iMac? (My friend doesn't need the new bells and whistles, nor the incredible emojis of the latest OSes.) Thanks Loa.

B.FRIENDit Not Only Want to Be Your Best Friend, But Also Hope to Be Your Best Backlit Mac Wired Keyboard. Especially Designed for Mac OS user. 108 Keys Full Size Mac Wired Backlit Keyboard With Numeric Keypad & Multimedia Keys, Low-profile keys Make You Enjoy the Comfortable and Whisper Quiet Typing Experience. This indie darling is best known in remade form on Xbox 360 and PS Vita, but its origins go way back to 2008 on Windows. This download is an unofficial Mac take on that first version. Subscribe to my friends channel!

Which Mac operating system is the best is a topic of numerous debates among Apple fans.

Since the mission of this blog is to refute myths and legends around Macs, it’s time for me to provide my 2 cents about the issue on hand. While everything below is just my opinion, as a long-time Mac user and veteran software engineer, I hope my opinion worth something.

The best Mac OS version is the one that your Mac is eligible to upgrade to. In 2021 it is macOS Big Sur. However, for users that need to run 32-bit apps on Mac, the best macOS is Mojave. Also, older Macs would benefit if upgraded at least to macOS Sierra for which Apple still releases security patches.

How to Tell Which macOS You Are Running

To find out which macOS is currently running on your Mac, follow these steps:

Click on Apple logo in the top left corner of the menubar
In the dropdown click on the first item: About This Mac
The first line in the Overview tab is the name of the current OS.

What Version of OS Can My Mac Run?

Not all Macs can be upgraded to the latest OS version. For instance, old Macs powered by PowerPC CPUs cannot run OS intended for Intel-based computers. Also, some versions have hardware limitations.

For instance, Mojave cannot be installed on MacBook Pro earlier than Mid 2012 model.

Check below to know exactly what version of OS your Mac can run.

Which OS is Best for my Mac

Anytime someone asks me which OS is best for them I always suggested going with the latest. Things have changed recently, however.

Should I Upgrade to macOS Catalina or Big Sur?

While personally I like macOS Big Sur and have it installed on my MacBook Pro, it comes with serious breaking changes.

The first issue is compatibility.

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Big Sur is a transition OS which is designed to help Apple to move from Intel processors to their own chips on ARM.

After I installed Big Sur on my MacBook Pro mid 2020 (pre-Silicon), most of my apps, including Microsoft Office, were working as expected.

However, my VMWare Fusion 11 does not start anymore, so I have to purchase a new license if I want to keep using it (or roll back to Catalina). Luckily, I took a full backup before the upgrade.

The second breaking issue is the lack of 32-bit app support.

macOS Catalina and Big Sur can only run 64-bit apps.

If you wondering whether you should upgrade to macOS Catalina or Big Sur, first verify that you don’t have any 32-bit apps. But first, take a back up, so you can go back in case something breaks after the upgrade.

For instance, I had to remove uTorrent after upgrade. And I didn’t know that uTorrent is 32-bit!

How to Know If App is 32-bit or 64-bit

To find out whether the app on your Mac is 32-bit or 64-bit follow these steps:

Click on Apple logo in the top left corner of the Mac screen
Click on About This Mac option
Click on System Report button in Overview tab (first one)
Scroll down to Software -> Applications
Find the app and check Kind

Which macOS Should I Use

If you have an older Mac which is not eligible to upgrade with some latest software or hardware, I’d suggest upgrading at least to Sierra (or better High Sierra) for the following reasons:

Sierra is still supported by Apple, and it gets security updates
APFS file system is available
It supports Siri
Significant security improvements

The most important point when choosing the best OS is the ability to get security updates. While Apple generally does not announce the OS end of life dates, it is possible to know when they stop releasing security updates from this page.

For instance, according to the page, the last security update for OS X Yosemite was released on September 12, 2017. The last update for OS X El Capitan was in July 2018, and Carnegie Mellon University confirmed that El Capitan’s end of life date was August 2018.

Snow Leopard Myth

I know that some users on forums believe that the best OS version for Macs was Snow Leopard. But that is a myth. And I know how such myths get created.

Once I worked in the company, which was selling a 20-year old product. And customers were still using and didn’t want to switch to new versions, because the old one was rock solid.

I then talked to the engineer who worked on the project, and he revealed that the product was a total disaster when it was first deployed. Engineers had to work on-site for almost a year in order to fix all bugs.

After five or so years of polishing the product, it becomes virtually bug-free, and nobody now remembers how bad it was when it was first rolled out. A similar thing happened Snow Leopard, and it was recognized as best mac os version after some time.

How to Update to the Latest Version

There are two ways to update to the latest OS version on Mac:

From the Software Update section in System Preferences
Use a download link

Using Software Update

This is by far the best option, but it only available if you have Yosemite, or later OS installed already. If you enabled automatic updates, then Mac will inform you that the next macOS is available.

Just open System Preferences, go to Software Update and click on the Upgrade Now button.

This method is also best if wondering how to check if you have the latest version of OS installed on your Mac. Only the version compatible with your hardware will appear here.

For instance, my the latest version for Mac Mini 2012 is Mojave, I can’t install anything newer than that.

If you are having problems with updates or having issues post-upgrade check my post about troubleshooting macOS.

Using download links

For older systems or in case you need to downgrade, you have to download a standalone installer in DMG format. DMG stands for disk image, similar to ISO, just different formats.

After downloading the installer, just double click on it and follow instructions. Again, do not forget to take a backup before the upgrade.

Mac OS Comparisons: Requirements, Features, Compatibility, Download Links

Following is a high-level description of all Mac operating systems as early as Mountain Lion.

You can refer to those descriptions when deciding which operating system is best for your iMac, Mac Pro, Mac mini, or MacBook.

With each OS description, I included a list of Macs supported. However, you can use Mac OS compatibility checker for more detailed information.

macOS 11 Big Sur

macOS v11 (codename Big Sur) is the latest version of the operating system for Apple computers.

Release date: October 13, 2020

Hardware Requirements: RAM requirement 4GB. Big Sur is the first OS to support new Macs using ARM technology (in the future).

Features

The biggest design refresh since macOS X.
Support for new ARM processors.
Safar improved performance and power consumption.
Time Machine supports backup to APFS volumes.
One-click translation for 7 languages.
Redesigned maps

Software Compatibility Issues

Only 64-bit apps are allowed to run on Big Sur.

How to install

There are two ways to install Big Sur: enable automatic updates in System Preferences or download by using the following link.

Or check my post with tips on installing macOS on unsupported devices.

List of Apple computers compatible with macOS Big Sur

MacBook (2015 and later)
MacBook Air (2013 and later)
MacBook Pro (2013 and later)
Mac mini (2014 and later)
iMac models (2014 and later)
iMac Pro (2017 and later)
Mac Pro (2013 and later)

macOS 10.15 Catalina

Release date: October 7, 2019

Hardware Requirements: RAM requirement increased from 2GB to 4GB.

Features

Introduced Sidecar, which allows for Macs to use an iPad as an external display.
iTunes was replaced by separate apps: Music, Podcasts, and TV.
Find My Mac and Find My Friends have merged into one app.

Software Compatibility Issues

macOS Catalina is the first Mac operating system that does not support 32-bit applications. Only 64-bit apps are allowed to run on Catalina.

How to install

There are two ways to install Catalina: enable automatic updates in System Preferences or download by using the following link.

List of Apple computers compatible with macOS Catalina

MacBook (Early 2015 or later)
MacBook Air (Mid 2012 or later)
MacBook Pro (Mid 2012 or later)
Mac mini (Late 2012 or later)
iMac models (Late 2012 or later)
iMac Pro (All models)
Mac Pro (Late 2013)

macOS 10.14 Mojave

Release date: September 24, 2018

Hardware Requirements: 2GB RAM and 18.5GB free space on disk

Features

The main feature of Mojave is “Dark Mode”
FaceTime adds group feature which allows chatting with up to 32 people
News, Stocks, Voice Memos, and Home apps were ported from iOS to Mac.

How to install

If your Mac is eligible to update to Mojave, then the easiest way to install it is by enabling automatic updates. Downloading a standalone Mojave installer could be a little tricky.

List of Apple computers compatible with macOS Mojave

MacBook (Early 2015 or later)
MacBook Air (Mid 2012 or later)
MacBook Pro (Mid 2012 or later)
Mac mini (Late 2012 or later)
iMac (Late 2012 or later)
iMac Pro (All models)
Mac Pro (Late 2013 and 2010-2012 models with upgraded GPU)

macOS 10.13 High Sierra

Release date: September 25, 2017

Hardware Requirements: 2GB RAM and 14.3GB free space on disk

Features

APFS (Apple File System) becomes the default file system in High Sierra. It’s a significant upgrade from the older HFS+ in terms of speed, size, and security
iCloud support of Messages which allows sync messages of the account across multiple devices
Mail app uses 35% less storage space due to optimizations

List of Apple computers compatible with macOS High Sierra

MacBook (Late 2009 or newer)
MacBook Pro (Mid 2010 or newer)
MacBook Air (Late 2010 or newer)
Mac mini (Mid 2010 or newer)
iMac (Late 2009 or newer)
Mac Pro (Mid 2010 or newer)

How to install

Here is a High Sierra download link.

macOS 10.12 Sierra

This is the first macOS version. Previous OS versions for Macs were called OS X (X stands for 10).

Release date: September 20, 2016

Hardware Requirements: 2GB RAM and 8GB free space on disk

Features

Siri was introduced to Macs
Optimized storage with iCloud sync
Auto-lock feature allows unlocking MacBook with paired Apple Watch
APFS preview available
Disk Utility can manage RAID sets again
Significant security improvements

How to install

Here is a Sierra download link.

List of Apple computers compatible with macOS Sierra

MacBook (Late 2009 or newer)
MacBook Pro (Mid 2010 or newer)
MacBook Air (Late 2010 or newer)
Mac mini (Mid 2010 or newer)
iMac (Late 2009 or newer)
Mac Pro (Mid 2010 or newer)

OS X 10.11 El Capitan

Last OS X version.

Release date: September 30, 2015

Hardware Requirements: 2GB RAM and 8GB free space on disk

Features

System Integrity Protection – a security feature that protects even when the root user executes the process
Performance improvements: open PDF files four times faster, Mail is twice faster, launching apps 40% faster
Notes app similar to the app in iOS

Macs compatible with OS X El Capitan

same as OS Mountain Lion.

How to install

Here is El Capitan download link.

OS X 10.10 Yosemite

Release date: October 16, 2014

Hardware Requirements: 2GB RAM and 8GB free space on disk

Best Friend Most Likely To Questions

Macs compatible with OS X Yosemite

Same as OS Mountain Lion.

Features

Major user design overhaul
Introduction of Handoff and Continuity features
Photos app replaced iPhoto and Aperture

How to install

Here is Yosemite download link.

OS X 10.9 Mavericks

First free Mac OS. Previous OS versions vary from $19.99 to $129.

Release date: October 22, 2013

Hardware Requirements: 2GB RAM and 8GB free space on disk

Features

Compressed Memory feature automatically compresses inactive apps when approaching maximum memory capacity
Timer coalescing is a feature that reduces CPU usage by up to 72 percent
App Nap puts apps that are not currently visible to sleep

Macs compatible with OS X Mavericks

Same as OS Mountain Lion.

How to install

OS X Mavericks installer is not available on Apple Site. Follow instructions here to install Mavericks.

OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion

Must be purchased. Fixed many bugs introduced in OS X Lion.

Release date: July 25, 2012

System Requirements: 2GB RAM and 8GB free space on disk

Features

New apps: Notification Center, Notes, Messages, Game Center
AirPlay mirroring allowed to mirror Mac screen to Apple TV
Application updates automatically install from the App Store

List of Apple computers compatible with OS X Mountain Lion

iMac (Mid-2007 or newer)
MacBook (Late 2008 Aluminum, or Early 2009 or newer)
MacBook Air (Late 2008 or newer)
MacBook Pro (Mid/Late 2007 or newer)
Mac mini (Early 2009 or newer)
Mac Pro (Early 2008 or newer)
Xserve (Early 2009)

How to install

Mountain Lion installer is not available on Apple Site. Follow instructions here to install OS X Mountain Lion.

List of older Mac OS Versions

Following Mac OS versions are still running on older Macs, but Apple does not support them anymore, and there is no point to upgrade (or downgrade) to them:

OS X 10.7 Lion
OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard
Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard
Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger
Mac OS X 10.3 Panther
Mac OS X 10.2 Jaguar
Mac OS X 10.1 Puma
Mac OS X 10.0 Cheetah

This page lists some of the best software for the Classic Mac OS – System 6 through Mac OS 9.2.2 – in my admittedly biased opinion. Listings are alphabetical, and some programs have OS X versions as well as classic ones. Many links are to archived files in my Dropbox.

Freeware

Classilla is the most up-to-date browser for the Classic Mac OS and Classic Mode in Mac OS X up to 10.4.11. It’s based on the old WaMCom port of Netscape/Mozilla. Classilla is PowerPC only and works best with Mac OS 9.x, but it is pretty compatible with Mac OS 8.6 if that’s what you happen to have. To speed up loading, version 9.3.0 and later appears as a mobile device when visiting websites. The Classilla FAQ tells you how to disable that if you want full versions of websites.

DaylightSavingsTime is a control panel that automatically changes your system clock and toggles the DST bit when daylight savings time starts and ends. Not necessary with Mac OS 8.5 or later, it’s a great thing to have with older versions of the Mac OS.

Disinfectant 3.7.1 is a free antivirus program for the Mac. It does not handle any macro virus or deal with the AutoStart Worm. There will be no future updates.

Eudora (freeware) is an excellent email program, although I prefer Claris Emailer. The Light mode is feature limited, the sponsored mode displays ads, and the $50 paid mode is full featured, ad free, and includes SpamWatch.

Pre-6.x versions were available on the Old Eudora Installers page, and Really Old Eudora Installers are also available for Eudora Lite on System 6 and 7, but these links now go to Thunderbird.

Eudora Lite 1.3.1 supports System 6.0.x.
Eudora Lite 3.1.3 requires System 7.0 or later and will work on a Mac Plus or better.
Version 4.3.3 requires Mac OS 7.6 or later and a PowerPC processor.
Versions 5.0.1 and 5.1.x require Mac OS 8.1 or later and a PowerPC processor. The OS X version supports 10.0 and later.
Version 5.2.x is available in both Classic and OS X versions. The classic version requires Mac OS 8.6 or later and CarbonLib 1.6 or later. The OS X version supports 10.0 and later.
Version 6.x requires Mac OS 9 with CarbonLib 1.6 or later or OS X 10.0 or later.
Eudora for OS X uses Thunderbird as its foundation.

iCab, the perennial beta browser from Germany has been developed for Mac OS X, the classic Mac OS, and even 680×0 Macs. The 680×0 version supports Mac OS 7.1 through 8.1. The PowerPC version supports OS 7.6.1 through 9.2.2. iCab 3.0 requires Mac OS 8.5 through 9.2.2.

Macjordomo (Leuca) is a remarkably easy to use mail list manager. The program is under constant update. I recommend running it on a separate computer from your mail server, since bad subscriber commands can occasionally lock it up. Because it runs a Mac Plus, you won’t need a lot of power to do this. I used it to manage several email lists in the past.

NetPresenz 4.1 (Stairways, free) lets you use your Mac as a web server, FTP server, and with Gopher (whatever that is). Running it on my vintage Mac II, it served pages about 50% faster than MacHTTP. Requires System 7 through 9.2.2.

Netscape Communicator 4.8 (Netscape) used to be my favorite Web browser. Not as svelte as Navigator 3.0, but you don’t have to (or want to) install all the options. (Netscape Navigator 4.0 is too stripped down – it can’t even send email!) Firefox is available to OS X users, and TenFourFox is a port of Firefox to PowerPC Macs running OS X 10.4 Tiger or 10.5 Leopard.

PopChar Lite v2.7.2 gives you a pulldown window displaying the entire character set in your current font. Much easier than remembering some of those obscure keystrokes. Requires System 7 to 9.x. Also a download link on Pure Mac.

SIMS 1.8, the Stalker Internet Mail Server (Stalker) is faster than EIMS (Eudora Internet Mail Server). Better yet, it offers spam filtering – essential in the era of junk email. The latest beta adds support for multiple spam blocking lists.

Microsoft’s free TrueType fonts are nice, but they are no longer available for separate download. Just install Internet Explorer 4 or 5 (which Microsoft has also made hard to find, so use your Mac OS install disc), and you’ll have them. For many years, Low End Mac was optimized for their Verdana font, which is more legible on screen than Arial or Helvetica.

Shareware

Address Book 4.2.4 (shareware, $30) is a great program for storing addresses, printing envelopes and address books, etc. (Jim Leitch, the author of Address Book, passed away in October 1996. Address Book was being handled by Jim Smith Software, but I am no longer able to locate jimsmithsoft.com on the Web.)

Default Folder 3.1.5 (shareware, $25, St. Clair Software) does what Boomerang and Directory Assistance used to, until Mac OS 8 broke them. Of course, it works with System 7, too, and tracks the various folder’s you’ve been working in. It also works beautifully in Classic Mode. I wish OS X had a way to make navigating as simple and powerful as this little Control Panel does.

GraphicConverter (Lemkesoft, shareware, $30 or $35) is a great, easy-to-use image editor that can work with more graphic formats than you can shake a stick at. Only drawback: It makes much larger GIF files than Photoshop (which means that after working in GraphicConverter, I run the GIF through Photoshop to reduce file size and use the Export For Web option). You could also try SuperGIF, which requires System 7.5.5 or later, but it’s $30 shareware. You could try the CompressNow website, which is a free service that reduces the size of GIF, PNG, and JPG files. I use ImageOptim (freeware) on my OS X Macs – the oldest version requires OS X 10.3 Panther, and there are versions for almost every OS X version since..

MenuChoice 2.1 (Kerry Clendinning, shareware, $15) is much faster and more flexible than Apple Menu Items. Requires System 7 to 9.x.

SmoothType 2.3.1 (shareware, $10) provides anti-aliased TrueType and Type 1 fonts, which can look just great on your screen. Be forewarned, this will make your Mac more sluggish. Try it to see if the improved look is worth it. (Alas, it didn’t work well with FrameMaker 5 and/or Mac OS 8.1 on my Power Mac at work.) Recent versions of ATM and ATM Deluxe (much more expensive) offer anti-aliasing, but only with Type 1 PostScript fonts.

ramBunctious 1.6.2 (shareware, $12) allows you to create RAM disks. The RAM disk that you can create using Apple’s Memory control panel has two drawbacks:

To turn it on or off, you must restart your Mac.
It loses all data when you turn off your desktop Mac.

Since ramBunctious is an application, you can launch RAM disks as you need them. It can also mirror any change to your RAM disk to an image file on your hard drive or a removable media disk (Zip, SyQuest) of flash drive, making it easy to restore the contents of your RAM disk. Also available for OS X.

Remember? (Dave Warker, shareware, $20) is a helpful program to remind you of birthdays, anniversaries, and appointments. Version 3.4 supports System 7.x and later; version 4.2 requires Mac OS 8.0 or later and supports OS X.

Commercial

AppleWorks 6 (formerly ClarisWorks) is simply the best integrated software ever made. Period. For most users, it’s all the word processor and all the spreadsheet you’ll ever need. It’s a shame Apple hasn’t updated it in years and hasn’t updated it top run natively on Intel Macs. Version 6.2.x runs natively in Mac OS X and is written for PowerPC, and it runs just fine with Rosetta on Intel Macs through OS X 10.6.8 Snow Leopard.

For OS X users who have AppleWorks files but can no longer run AppleWorks on their new Macs, LibreOffice (free) opens AppleWorks word processing documents and most spreadsheets. Versions for OS X 10.4 and later.

Claris Home Page 3.0 (FileMaker, discontinued) is the easiest to use page design software I ever worked with, and it produces pages that display pretty consistently across browsers. This entire website was constructed using Home Page from 1997 until 2013, when we switched to WordPress. You can learn and use all the HTML tricks you want – but you don’t have to learn any.

Claris Emailer (Apple, discontinued) is an excellent email program, easily handling multiple accounts, offering sophisticated filtering, and very intuitive. A f ree 60-day trial version was available from Claris. Helpful review on MacSpectre.

FileMaker Pro (FileMaker, about $200) is easy and powerful, perhaps the best and most Mac-like database ever created. Version 4 even supports putting your data on the Web. (I’m still working happily with version 3.)

Speed Doubler 8, Copy Agent (Connectix, discontinued) provides smart file copying (only changed files are replaced), a more intelligent disk cache, and, for Power Macs, a better 680×0 emulator than Apple has. Speed Doubler works through Mac OS 8.6; Copy Agent requires Mac OS 8.5 or later and eliminates the disk caching and 680×0 emulation. Look for these on eBay.

QuicKeys (CE Software, under $100) lets you create macros and other shortcuts. I found it invaluable with the classic Mac OS, but I don’t use it under OS X. Version 5 requires Mac OS 8.5 or later.

RAM Charger 8.1 (Jump Development, $40-45) dynamically allocates memory as programs need it. I’d call that smarter than RAM Doubler, which it is compatible with. By launching applications using the minimum amount of memory they need, RAM Charger lets you run more programs.

Photoshop (Adobe, under $600) is the best image editor I’ve worked with. Hint: You can sometimes buy a good color scanner bundled with a full version of Photoshop for less than the cost of Photoshop alone or pick up an older version on eBay that has all the features you need for a lot less than the cost of a new copy. Even the Lite and Elements versions of Photoshop have plenty of power for most users.

PowerPrint and PowerPrint Pro (Infowave, discontinued) <see review> let you print to almost any parallel-port printer from your Mac with a DIN-8 serial port. PowerPrint is for a single user; the Pro version lets you put the printer on a network. Excellent with DeskJets, OfficeJets, etc.

Keywords: #classicmacos #classicmacsoftware

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