Xcode 14: High Sierra and Later
Xcode 14 Beta 2 Release Notes:
Xcode 14 supports building applications that target macOS 10.13, iOS 11, tvOS 11, watchOS 4, and later.
In other words, Xcode 14 is dropping support for macOS 10.9 through 10.12. Note also that Xcode 13 doesn’t run on macOS 13. There’s pressure from both sides to discourage developers from supporting macOS Sierra and earlier.
Yeah, this is really going to suck. Some of our users have old Macs that can’t update to Sierra (which dropped support for several computers :/)
All in all, it’s not a good year for those with older devices:
- macOS 13 doesn’t run on some Macs that were sold until December 2019.
- Stage Manager for iPad requires an M1.
- watchOS 9 drops support for devices that are still being sold.
Looking back to the previous transition, the first Intel Macs were released in 2006 and ran Tiger. Snow Leopard was released in 2009 and dropped support for PowerPC Macs. Lion was released in 2011 and dropped support for Rosetta.
Previously:
Update (2022-06-27): Howard Oakley:
Caught in the middle are Mac users, who won’t see Apple forcing third-party developers to drop support for those older versions of OS X, but will inevitably blame the developers instead. It’s thus a perfect management solution, as it reduces the cost of customer support but shifts blame for the consequences away from Apple onto third-parties.
[…]
As usual, Apple remains silent. Nowhere in its presentations at WWDC, nor in the list of Ventura’s new features, does Apple state that it’s pulling support for four versions of OS X/macOS up to Sierra, inclusive.
[…]
I’m afraid it’s simply not feasible for small developers to maintain two versions of their source code, building in two different versions of Xcode, on two different versions of macOS, especially when many of us are trying to migrate to Apple silicon for development.
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It’s not surprising that the Intel-to-ARM transition would cut off older Macs. PowerPC-to-Intel was similar. These architectures have significant differences so it’s understandable they’d want to minimize the time they need to support older systems. I wouldn’t want to write new OS features in 2022 that need to support Intel integrated graphics and spinning metal disks.
The open question is whether support timelines will lengthen again once Apple is fully on ARM. Time will tell.
Agreed, Tim. Microsoft is an example of another small company that just didn't have the resources to continue supporting x86 and mechanical HDDs after Windows on ARM released.
Odd comparison. At no point did Windows “transition” from Intel to ARM, as Mac OS did. Microsoft’s announced intention was to support two architectures going forward. Which they’ve done.
No owner of an Intel Mac can pretend they were promised full support of all new OS features that might be announced.
I agree with vintner, but then I despise planned obsolescence.
I find it hypocritical that Apple does this and simultaneously pretends to be green.
If the EU cares so much about reducing the number of proprietary chargers, perhaps it should also care about people throwing entire computers away because some large corporation makes it hard to support them.
It's got nothing to do with "Intel Mac owners" being promised anything, and everything to do with whether modern civilization is compatible with the environment on which it depends.
At this point, I believe only fear will restrain Apple's greed, so the EU needs to start punishing Apple so hard that Tim Cook reconsiders his priorities. Whereas Steve Jobs is remembered as the icon of good design, I believe Tim Cook will be remembered as the archetype of bland greed.
> I find it hypocritical that Apple does this and simultaneously pretends to be green.
I 100% agree with you. I salvage old Mac hardware I find and clean up and repair it out of fun and care. However I also realize it's a fairly logical outcome in a world where Apple execs have to manage the company in guidance with ESG criteria governed/calculated by mega-banks.
“All in all, it’s not a good year for those with older devices”
iOS is not in that list currently - it also drops support for many older devices.
