Tire(d) Mac OS
Tire(d) Mac OS
Dec 17, 2018 As a result, Apple’s focus on the Mac waned: the hardware didn’t receive an update for over four years, and then OS X, once regularly updated with interesting features, now only receives the scraps from iOS. If you want to see this in action, check out iMessage on Mac: the flagship feature of iOS, iMessage stickers, barely works on Mac. If you’re using a Mac desktop without a T2 chip (such as an iMac), switch it off, unplug the power cord and wait 15 seconds, plug it back in, then turn on your Mac. If your Mac has a T2 chip. As a result, Apple’s focus on the Mac waned: the hardware didn’t receive an update for over four years, and then OS X, once regularly updated with interesting features, now only receives the. If your Mac is using an earlier version of any Mac operating system, you should install the latest Apple software updates, which can include important security updates and updates for the apps that are installed by macOS, such as Safari, Books, Messages, Mail, Music, Calendar, and Photos.
Update: For those joining in late 2017, I've been hunting for a laptop with limited success. Read on for what I've settled on, or discuss on HN.
If you ask anyone who knows me, I’m probably the biggest Apple fan they know. Ask for a suggestion of what computer to get, and I’ll almost certainly either tell you the MacBook Pro, or to wait, because Apple is about to update its hardware finally.
But recently, I realized I’d gotten tired of Apple’s attitude toward the desktop. The progress in macOS land has basically been dead since Yosemite, two years ago, and Apple’s updates to the platform have been incredibly small. I’m a developer, and it seems to me Apple doesn’t pay any attention to its software or care about the hundreds of thousands of developers that have embraced the Mac as their go-to platform.
Take a look at Sierra: the only feature of note is Siri, which is half-baked as it is, and the things that did get ported over from iOS are half-done too. On the developer side? Nothing, unless you use XCode — the same story it’s been for years.
The only reason it’s still even viable as a platform for web developers at all is because of the incredible work the open source community does on the Mac toolchain (take a look at how easy it is to use Node, npm, Yarn or any of the other relatively new tools out there).
Bloomberg reported in late 2016 that Apple had dismantled the Mac team, rolling it into the iOS team, and it shows. The new MacBook Pros, released in late 2016, where interesting, but something of a half-hearted shrug in the direction of users: they’re okaymachines, but they sure aren’t interesting at all. Their hardware is underpowered, focusing on thinness and a gimmicky touch bar rather than power or functionality, the previous tentpoles of the Mac.
“In another sign that the company has prioritized the iPhone, Apple re-organized its software engineering department so there’s no longer a dedicated Mac operating system team.”
To tell the truth, I’m a life-long Windows user that grew to be disillusioned by Microsoft after Windows Vista. It was obvious the company had no strategy or vision, and while Windows 7 smoothed things over a little, Apple’s side had something I wanted: everything worked together nicely.
You could send iMessages from your computer or phone, answer calls wherever you were, and throw files to other devices with ease — and so I was tempted away in early 2013 when Apple released its second-generation 15' Retina MacBook Pro.
That machine was my first real taste of Apple’s world, and I loved it. Everything was designed nicely, and worked well together. Apple’s deep roots in Unix meant I actually finally picked up web development for the first time, learnt how to use the terminal deeply, and even gave back to some open-source projects.
But, about the time I joined Apple’s world, the company’s attention pivoted. The Mac was no longer important, as the iPhone, iPad and then the iPad Pro became the focus of the company. The message was simple: why do you even need a computer when a tablet and phone can do it all anyway?
As a result, Apple’s focus on the Mac waned: the hardware didn’t receive an update for over four years, and then OS X, once regularly updated with interesting features, now only receives the scraps from iOS. If you want to see this in action, check out iMessage on Mac: the flagship feature of iOS, iMessage stickers, barely works on Mac.
You started seeing this in almost everything: Airdrop, Apple’s much-touted feature that lets you easily beam files between computer and phone was my first taste of the company’s “just works” mentality — about 30% of the time it worked every time, and the rest of the time you couldn’t connect at all. Then there was handoff, the heralded feature that let you work on one device, then seamlessly move to another. I don’t know if I ever got it to work with any sense of reliability.
I'm out of apologia juice for defending Apple going with 4 USB-C ports on the new MacBook over a useful mix and keeping the MagSafe. 🍎👎
— DHH (@dhh) October 28, 2016
Meanwhile, Microsoft had licked its wounds inflicted by Windows 8, found a passionate new CEO in Satya Nadella, and started doing something interesting with Windows 10: it actually started listening, and implementing, features people wanted.
I mostly ignored the Windows world until late last year when Microsoft introduced the Windows Linux Subsystem — basically a way to use a Linux terminal natively in Windows — which made me realize that development on Windows might actually be pleasant eventually. I wrote back then that even this was enough to tempt me back to Windows, and it was a game changer:
“At its core, Bash support on Windows is both exciting and an incredible feat of engineering. As a front-end developer, I’d now consider buying a Windows machine to replace my Macbook, where I wouldn’t have in the past.”
After waiting eagerly for the MacBook Pro refresh, then being utterly disappointed by what Apple actually shipped — a high-end priced laptop with poor performance — I started wondering if I could go back to Windows. Gaming on Mac, which initially showed promising signs of life had started dying in 2015, since Apple hadn’t shipped any meaningful hardware bumps in years, and I was increasingly interested in Virtual Reality… but Oculus dropped support for the Mac in 2016 for the same reasons.
Then, in October 2016, Microsoft unveiled the next version of Windows: Creators Update out of nowhere. It brings dedicated gaming features, full OS-level VR support, color customization, a people bar for quick chat and a lot more in a free update.
I watched the event with my mouth open (it was the first time I’d tuned in to any Microsoft event in years), wondering how Microsoft was suddenly shipping awesome features out of nowhere.
This, and seeing all the progress Microsoft was making with the Linux subsystem, as well as Apple’s lack of any meaningful progress, made me decide to make the jump back. I’m not a hater, I’m just tired of not being able to get a machine worth using.
“Those complaining about Apple’s current Mac lineup are not haters, they’re lovers. They’ve spent 10+ years and 5+ figures on Macs.”
Tire(d) Mac Os Update
It took me months to convince myself to do it, but I spent weeks poring over forum posts about computer specs and new hardware before realizing how far ahead the PC really is now: the NVIDIA GTX 1080 graphics card is an insane work-horse that can play any game — VR or otherwise — you can throw at it without breaking a sweat.
I realized I’m so damn tired of Apple’s sheer mediocrity in both laptops and desktops, and started actually considering trying Windows again.
So, in February 2017, I found myself building a computer from scratch. I sold my 15' MacBook Pro (I now use a 12' MacBook for on-the-go productivity), and invested in building a desktop workhorse that would fit my needs and last for a long time.
I’ll spare you too much detail, but if you’re interested in my build you can see what parts I ordered here - the machine is a bit of overkill, but given I want to learn how to develop for VR, it seemed to be a good balance of power and price for the long haul.
Now I’ve been on Windows for about six weeks, and while I was expecting to hate it, I’ve found myself impressed. It’s not perfect, but it’s clear Microsoft is sweating the details for the first time in recent memory. I’ve got my development environment set up just the way I liked it on Mac, thanks to the Linux subsystem — everything from Jekyll to Gulp works exactly how I’d expect.
I’d been worried about Microsoft’s high-density display support, since it was unusable in Windows 8 and even the original release of Windows 10, but Creator’s Update seems to be able to finally handle 4K displays without things just getting weird.
On top of that? I can play recent games without the PC breaking a sweat, and I’ve started experimenting with VR. The HTC Vive is an incredible device, and I’m just at the start of figuring out Unity so I can actually create my own things for it.
The experience hasn’t been all roses — I had forgotten drivers were a thing, and the quality of apps on Windows, while far better than I remember, is sorely lacking. This seems to be getting addressed quickly thanks to Electron apps: Slack, Nylas, Hyper and Visual Studio Code are awesome, and stand out in the Windows world for being fantastic.
Tire(d) Mac Os Download
I don’t say this lightly, but Windows is back, and Microsoft is doing a great job. Microsoft is getting better, faster at making Windows good than Apple is getting better at doing anything to OS X.
There’s a few things I sorely miss: Sketch, which I use a lot for quick design work, iMessage so I don’t need to keep pulling out my phone and a handful of other things… but it’s easy enough to live without them.
It’s clear to me from Apple’s language and sheer focus — cough killing the Airport cough — that all Apple cares about is iOS, and the iPhone. Maybe they’ll ship something awesome out of nowhere that really brings back its “productivity” play, but the company is busy trying to convince people that its ham-fisted iPad Pro is good for work.
Over the coming weeks I plan to write about the great parts of Windows, how I got my development environment set up, the apps I use, and, of course, the bad parts. I’ll be honest, I can’t bring myself to leave Mac at work yet, because I’m not convinced there’s a good enough Windows laptop yet… but maybe that will change over time.
If you’re a Mac user sitting, waiting for Apple to maybe release a real workhorse computer so you can actually do your work, stop what you’re doing and take another look at Windows.
It’s awesome, and now you’ll be able to get something with incredible power for a great price that’s actually worth using.
Update 11/10: For the last few months I've been looking for a laptop that can replace my trusty MBP and it's been more difficult than expected.
I tried the Razer Blade but the fan noise was a little much - but I've settled on the Dell XPS as a excellent replacement and will post more soon (subscribe here to keep in the loop).
After using Macs for about fifteen years, I switched to Linux as my main operating system in July of 2018 and I’m enjoying it. Here’s an introduction to Linux that may help you if you too are looking for a change.
Why switch from Mac to Linux?
My latest MacBook was four years old and was starting to feel a bit bloated and slow. It felt like a time to get a new one.
My previous three laptop purchases were all MacBooks but somehow this time it wasn’t that tempting. I felt ready for a change, something different and something more aligned with my current needs.
I wasn’t too locked into the Apple ecosystem. I don’t have an iPhone so the integrations were not necessary for me. I didn’t use iCloud, FaceTime or Siri either. If all of these are key to you, switching to Linux may not be worth it.
I used Windows before purchasing my first MacBook but returning was not in my considerations due to the state of that OS with inbuilt ads, bloat and privacy concerns.
I’ve never used Linux but the open source world is close to my heart. One of the tools I spend most of my time on for content publishing is WordPress and I love the passionate ecosystem it has. Linux seems very similar.
My old MacBook wasn’t too compatible with Linux so I purchased a mid-range Windows machine to give Linux a try (you can even get a Linux laptop). And I got hooked fast.
The idea was to take baby steps and split my time between Mac and Linux but I quickly stopped turning on my MacBook. So it got handed down and I turned to Linux full time. I’ve now been running Linux exclusively for just over a year.
What are Linux distros and desktop environments?
Linux is a world of abundant choice. This can give you the freedom to do whatever you wish but it can be paralyzing to a newbie.
Linux distros
When you start learning about Linux you quickly hear all these different names that people recommend and rave about. MX, Manjaro, Mint, Ubuntu, elementary, Solus and so many more.
These all are Linux distributions (distros) or in other words, they are the different Linux operating systems. Linux, unlike Windows and Macs, doesn’t only have one single OS.
There are hundreds of distros and many of them have very vocal fans explaining why such and such distro is the right one for your situation. It’s amazing to have access to such a passionate community and ecosystem.
I’m here to save you some time and energy by telling you that the distro you pick doesn’t matter that much. The differences are overblown, are more technical and not something you as a newbie should worry too much about.
You simply want to get your feet wet and start using Linux rather than worrying about which of the hundreds of options is the optimal one.
Linux desktop environments
A more practical difference to think about are the different desktop environments (DE) or in other words graphical user interfaces. These differ a lot in terms of aesthetics, usability, workflow and the apps they are integrated with.
There are many desktop environments too. You may hear people recommending KDE Plasma, XFCE, Cinnamon or window managers such as i3.
This means that the most important choice you have at the start of your Linux journey is to determine the desktop environment you want to try rather than what distros to run.
A look into Linux Gnome desktop environment
I’ve tried several desktop environments (and several distros too) and in my opinion, the Linux desktop environment people coming from macOS are most likely to enjoy and feel comfortable in is Gnome.
There are other macOS like Linux desktop environments such as Pantheon and Deepin but Gnome is the most used one and with the most resources behind it.
Gnome is the most popular Linux desktop environment and it is the default choice in most of the big distributions such as Ubuntu, Debian and Fedora.
The individual distros may do some minor alterations to Gnome. The screenshots in this post are from Debian but it will look close to this in Ubuntu, Fedora or Arch too with the only visible exceptions being the default background image and the preinstalled apps.
Here’s a look at Gnome and how it works. This is pretty much how Gnome looks like after you log in:
So what do I like about Gnome coming from macOS?
It’s very clean, minimal and modern. There are no distractions. There are no desktop icons. There’s no visible dock. The top panel is the only thing visible other than the background image.
The panel consists of “Activities” on the left, time and date at the center which at the same time is your notifications center and the tray icons for the network, Bluetooth, VPN, sound, brightness, battery and such on the right-hand side.
Gnome gets out of your way, it’s very keyboard-centric and it just works. You’ll notice some similarities with macOS such as window snapping and seeing previews of documents by hitting the space bar (exactly like Quick Look).
Gnome Activities Overview is like Mission Control and Spotlight Search in one
Dragging your mouse icon to the top left, or clicking on the “Activities” in the top panel or pressing the “Super key” on your keyboard (Apple key or Windows key) presents you with the “Activities Overview”.
Activities Overview is kind of like having the macOS Mission Control and Spotlight Search on one screen.
Activities Overview gives you an overview of all the open applications and windows at the center.
On the left-hand side, you see the dock which features all your favorite applications. The dock gives you the indicator under all the open applications.
On the right-hand side, you see the different spaces.
At the top center, you see the search box. As soon as you start typing the focus is on that search box. It searches applications installed, it searches the contents of the different files you have on your computer, it does calculations and so much more. Pretty much like Spotlight.
You simply start typing what you’re looking for and then press enter to open the application or the file.
Preinstalled Linux applications
You can also see the list of all the installed applications (pretty much like Launchpad on Mac). Click on the “Show Applications” icon in the dock or press Super key + A.
What can you expect in terms of applications available? You’ll have a file manager (like Finder on a Mac), you’ll have a text editor, you’ll have a document viewer and you’ll have a music player.
The default browser in most Linux distros is Firefox. The default office suite for documents, spreadsheets and presentations is LibreOffice.
Some apps may differ from distro to distro. Debian, for instance, installs some games by default as you can see in the screenshot above.
In general, Linux is very lightweight and takes very little disk space compared to macOS. Unlike macOS, it’s also possible to delete any of the preinstalled apps that you don’t want or need.
You’ll have access to a software center too.
Gnome software center for additional apps
To update the operating system or to update, delete and install applications, you use the Software Center. There are thousands of applications available in the Software Center of your Gnome install.
For instance, there’s Deja Dup which is like Time Machine and can do easy backups.
There’s the Artha dictionary which allows you to quickly lookup words within apps the same way you can on a Mac.
There’s GUFW which is a simple and easy to setup firewall.
You may be familiar with VLC from Mac already and it’s one of the most popular media players on Linux too.
Flatpak for proprietary apps
Note that many Linux distros care about free and open-source software (see for instance Debian’s Social Contract and Fedora’s Mission and Foundations) so if you cannot find some of your favorite closed source tools in the software center by default, I recommend you add Flatpak.
It’s a quick process to add it to your software center. It will allow you to search for and install proprietary applications such as Spotify, Slack, Zoom, Skype, Steam and others directly from the software center.
Pro Tip: It’s a good idea to double check if your must-have apps are available on Linux or if there are adequate or better alternatives. Search for options on your favorite search engine or search here for applications available in Debian by default and search here for applications you can add using Flatpak.
Things you can change using Gnome settings and tweaks
Gnome preferences are split into two different sections. The main options are in “Settings” and you have some additional options in the “Tweaks” tool.
You get the majority of the same options as you have on macOS. It’s simple to decide what notifications get to be shown on your screen, energy saver options are pretty much equal, and it’s simple to turn off things such as location services. There’s also a section for keyboard shortcuts that are easy to create and edit.
Here’s a look at some of the settings you have access to such as to automatically empty trash, set the Night Light to make the screen warmer at specific points in a day and trackpad where you can enable things such as tap to click:
“Tweaks” tool allows you to change the look of Gnome from the default light mode to the dark mode. It also allows you to change the fonts and add any application to be launched at the startup.
There’s also a world of Gnome extensions to add additional features and more customization options to your Gnome. There’s, for instance, an extension to auto-hide the top panel when not in use.
Tire(d) Mac Os X
Download a Linux ISO and give it a try on your hardware
My advice to you coming from macOS is to explore Gnome using either Debian or Fedora. They are large and community run distros. Either of them is a good starting point and a great introduction to the world of Linux for a Mac user.
Simply download the ISO image file from the official website. Here are the exact links for Fedora and Debian (look for the debian-live-10.X.0-amd64-gnome+nonfree.iso file in the Debian list).
Flash the ISO image file on a USB drive using Etcher (free tool available on macOS) and boot from it to try it on your computer.
On a Mac, you press the “Option” key when the computer starts to boot using a USB. On most Windows PCs such as those from Dell, Lenovo or Acer, you press the F12 button at startup. Then you select the USB device from the boot menu.
Pro Tip: Your MacBook’s hardware may not be compatible with Linux. Do try and run Linux using the USB on your hardware and see if things such as the trackpad, sound, network and webcam work before actually installing Linux. Like me, you might need to try it on a non-Apple machine.
How to install Linux Gnome using a USB
If everything works well and you’re happy to go all-in Linux, the installation process is quick. Here’s how to install Gnome on Debian but you will have a similar process on Ubuntu, Fedora and other distributions too:
In your “Activities Overview”, launch “Install Debian”.
Mac Os Download
This will get you to the “Welcome” page of the Calamares installer for Debian. Select your language and click on the “Next” button.
On the “Location” step, you can select your region and zone.
On the “Keyboard” step, you can select your keyboard model.
On the “Partitions” step, you should encrypt your new system to make it more secure.
Mac Os Versions
Pro Tip: Note that by choosing the “erase disk” option Gnome will be installed and whatever OS you used to have on your computer will be completely removed. Do not do this unless you’re sure Linux is something you want to use as your daily driver.
On the “Users” step, you can create your user account and password. There’s also the option to log in automatically without asking for a password.
You can now review the “Summary” page and if you’re happy with everything and want to go ahead, click on “Install”.
The install process will take few minutes and you will then be asked to remove your USB stick and restart your computer into the brand new world of Linux Gnome.
When you get more comfortable with Gnome or if you want to explore further, there’s a big world of additional desktop environments and window manager opportunities out there for you. Most distros can actually run any of the desktop environments available.
Or you may just stick to Gnome if it fits your workflow, works the way you want and does what you need. It does for me. Have fun!
Tire(d) Mac OS