I recently updated two Mac computers to MacOS 10.15 Catalina, and the transition has been good. There are some things I think you’ll want to know about the transition, and so this blog entry is a brief description of what to expect when it comes to the changes and new features in this system software update.
- How to Update – Apple changed the process for initiating the update in the last system software; Mojave. So, if you’re using something older than Mojave, you’ll go to the App Store > Updates section to initiate this update. If you’re using Mojave currently, you’ll open the System Preferences, and click Software Update to initiate the update. This is the new method, because it’s more consistent with the steps to run updates on the iPhone/iPad.
- Dark Mode – Once Catalina has been downloaded and installed, a brief setup process will make you aware of a couple new features by way of a few questions before your Mac boots up the startup screen. The first one relates to a new display mode called Dark Mode, which reverses the color scheme of your Mac from black text on white background to white text on black background. Dark Mode is much easier on the eyes if you like to work late at night. Dark Mode was actually introduced in Mojave, but now you’ll be presented with an option to have Dark Mode on Auto, which means that your Mac will turn On Dark Mode in the evening automatically.
- Screen Time – The other feature that’s new is something that first arrived on the iPhone last year; Screen Time. Screen Time is designed to report to you the amount of time that you spend on your screen so that you can at least be aware, and possible so that you can set limits for yourself, or others, or restrict certain apps or content on your device. Your Mac may also ask a few other questions during the startup process, depending on what version of the software you were using before updating to Catalina.
- iTunes – The BIG news with Catalina is the discontinuation of iTunes. Apple’s long-standing music app is now broken up into a few smaller apps; Music, Podcasts, TV. This is a good thing… iTunes had become a behemoth application, archiving medias of all types, and housing the digital storefronts for all those same media types. It was too much, and iTunes had become super clunky. As it already is on your iPhone, the Mac now reflects the same approach for different media types to have their own app.
- Relocated Items – Kind of a weird thing… once your Mac is updated to Catalina and you work your way through the setup screens, you’ll come to your Desktop and find a new folder there called Relocated Items. Catalina will locate some settings and preference files that are no longer compatible with the new system software. For whatever reason, Apple didn’t feel comfortable just deleting these files on your behalf, so they put them in a folder called Relocated Items. What should you do with them? You could tuck these files away for safe-keeping, but here’s my thought… The folder on your Desktop is actually a shortcut, it’s not the actual folder, that’s what the tiny arrow in the corner of the folder indicates. The real folder is located in your Shared folder, which is already tucked away out of sight. I would just delete the Relocated Items folder shortcut present on your Desktop, which won’t delete the actual Relocated Items folder that’s tucked away out of sight. If this year goes by and you never need those little preference files, we’ll delete them completely at that point.
- 32 bit apps – Apple is now (and has been) using 64 bit technology in Mac computers that allows the various apps available to your Mac to be more dynamic and powerful. Apple has been phasing out 32 bit apps for almost 10 years. What does this mean to you? Some apps that you might be using may not work after you update to Catalina. This could happen to old apps, apps developed by individuals (as opposed to big companies), niche apps, etc. What do I do if I discover an app that won’t work in Catalina? The first thing to do if you discover an app that won’t open is to visit the website for the company that developed the software. If you don’t know that information, try doing a Google search for the name of the app and see if you can get yourself to the website of the developer, where you might be able to download a new 64 bit version of the same application. You may need to contact the app developer and ask if they have a new version coming. It’s also possible that a software developer may have sent you an email a few months ago letting you know that a 64 bit version of their app is on the way. If that rings a bell for you, that’s the developers way of saying, “I’m working on a new version of my app, but I’m a little behind, so don’t update to Catalina quite yet.” I would take their advice and wait for further instruction from them. If all you’re doing on your Mac is surfing the Web, checking email, and working with Photos, you won’t have anything to worry about. If you are using some specialized apps, I recommend checking with the developer to see if updating to Catalina will create any problems. It’s not easy to downgrade, so please be cautious and attentive to this matter!
There are more changes and features in Catalina, but the 6 issues mentioned above are the most important to discuss. The Reminders app has been redesigned, the Photos app has a new layout for displaying photos, and there is more. But I’ll let you discover the rest!