macOS 10.12 "Sierra"

sdevine89

Picture in Picture is an utter game changer imo.

maximum12

Performance wise, is this going to be a problem on older macs ?

IamMetaldave

My Air is 4 years old next Feb and it is having no issues what so ever. In fact, after the initial indexing issue I had I would say it is faster and it freed a huge amount of space!

laoisfan

Just updated on my MacBook Pro (November 2011 model) which has SSD. Took the best part of 90 minutes to download & install. Still as fast as the date I bought it. Sira is on it...turned it off straight away. All in all haven't noticed much difference though haven't really played with it yet.

maximum12

Good summary of the new features: http://help.apple.com/macOS/Sierra/WN/#/intro-WN

Doodah7

I'm finding the new integrated iCloud Drive functionality really useful. Really handy to have access to all my Mac files on my phone and iPad.

faceman

Indexing really slowed my iMac down and even now after its done machine still runs slower than last OS. Particularly MS office and Adobe products. Safari is slow to respond too.

Any tips?

Sad Professor

Try clearing Safari's cache. Adobe/MS usually need an update to work properly with new versions of OS X.

Also are you sure it's not still doing something in the b.g.? Photo scanning, iCloud uploading, etc. Have a look in Activity Monitor to confirm.

Zapp Brannigan

Don't have the option to unlock using my Watch. On an early 2013 MBP Retina 15" which according to the website should be supported.

The Black Oil

Installed it on my 2015 refurbished iMac. Took about 30-40 minutes. I don't know if it's a gesture I'm doing by accident, but occasionally something happens when I'm browsing and the font size reduces by about 3 levels. It's a little annoying.

Zcott

Zapp Brannigan wrote: »

Don't have the option to unlock using my Watch. On an early 2013 MBP Retina 15" which according to the website should be supported.

Make sure you have two step authentication turned on.

whiterebel

Won't unlock with the watch for me, as its a 2012 MBA. Bugger.

Zapp Brannigan

Zcott wrote: »

Make sure you have two step authentication turned on.

Yeah it is. Still not working.

BreadnBuddha

Running on my 2015 Macbook 12, mid 2015 MBP 15 and 2014 Mac Mini with no issues. Using MS Office, FCPX and AutoCAD, all working perfectly.

Quick and simple upgrade with no issues.

Pickpocket

I recently restored my mid-2012 MBP to factory settings and just started from scratch. So I'm back on Snow Leopard but it feels so responsive. It's like a new machine. These days it's only for casual use so the older OS doesn't bother me. However, I sure do love free stuff so I can't help but be tempted by Sierra. However am I asking for trouble? Surely my four year old machine will start to feel sluggish with a brand new OS?

Sad Professor

My 2011 Air is running Sierra fine. A gradual slowing down will happen over the course of OS updates. It will affect different models differently but it's inevitable unfortunately.

Snow Leopard is no longer supported with security updates so continue to use it your own risk. Especially Safari.

Pickpocket

Sad Professor wrote: »

Snow Leopard is no longer supported with security updates so continue to use it your own risk. Especially Safari.

Well that's that answered. Sierra it is.

Thanks!

The Black Oil

Machine seems to wake more quickly than it did on El Capitan.

The Black Oil

Netflix was acting up in Safari earlier.

Where do I see external drives in Finder? I'm trying to copy a file and the drive isn't showing up? If I remove it manually it complains I've not ejected it properly, yet I can't eject it the normal way because it's not listed. I've used this drive before.

Sad Professor

Anytime I disconnect my (iPhone) headphones either iTunes starts playing or Siri activates. Anyone else having this problem?

The Black Oil

Some of the criticism I occasionally read over at MacRumours has been Apple's lack of emphasis on the Mac. Dunno if this is specific to Apple events or overall product development.

Sad Professor wrote: »

My 2011 Air is running Sierra fine. A gradual slowing down will happen over the course of OS updates. It will affect different models differently but it's inevitable unfortunately.

Snow Leopard is no longer supported with security updates so continue to use it your own risk. Especially Safari.

It's a Win XP stage now, yeah? I've a 2007 Macbook with SL, but at this stage I only turn it on about once a year.

Sad Professor

Just don't use Safari as that's the main risk.

Re: the Mac, a lot of the moaning is because new MacBook Pros are overdue. Intel is part of the problem and Apple is probably preparing to dump them, but tbh it was the same old crap with Motorola. Apple needs to just put out whatever's available and be done with it instead of holding back.

The Mac Pro is a joke, though. 3 years and no refresh. They need to kill it. The Mini too. And their notebook line-up needs serious streamlining.

IamMetaldave

Sad Professor wrote: »

Apple needs to just put out whatever's available and be done with it instead of holding back.

Sound like the note 7 rush

BreadnBuddha

Sad Professor wrote: »

Just don't use Safari as that's the main risk.

Re: the Mac, a lot of the moaning is because new MacBook Pros are overdue. Intel is part of the problem and Apple is probably preparing to dump them, but tbh it was the same old crap with Motorola. Apple needs to just put out whatever's available and be done with it instead of holding back.

The Mac Pro is a joke, though. 3 years and no refresh. They need to kill it. The Mini too. And their notebook line-up needs serious streamlining.

It would be foolish to kill the mini. Affordable entry point for PC/windows migrants and a perfectly useable hardware spec for many users/uses. I've no complaints about mine. Running FCPX primarily and it does perfectly fine, despite all the moaning you'd read online. Also have a 2015 15" MBP, Macbook 12 and a two week old 13" MBP on the go so I'm well equipped to make comparison.

I don't see why so many people are hung up on waiting for an MBP refresh. If you need one, just buy one and get on with your life. It's not like it will suddenly turn into a turd whenever a replacement is released.

Sad Professor

The reason people get annoyed about delayed refreshes is because of Apple's static pricing model. Another manufacturer would decrease the price of a 1 year old machine, but Apple continue to sell it at the same price while collecting an ever growing margin. It's better value to buy near the start of a product cycle than at the end of it when you could end up paying full price for a 1 year old laptop only for Apple to release a substantial upgrade for the same price (or less) a week or month later. In the case of the the Mac Pro and Mini, which haven't been updated in 2-3 years, well only a sucker would buy them at this stage. This kind of pricing model is fine but it depends on regular updates otherwise users rightly start to question Apple's commitment to said product.

BreadnBuddha

Sad Professor wrote: »

The reason people get annoyed about delayed refreshes is because of Apple's static pricing model. Another manufacturer would decrease the price of a 1 year old machine, but Apple continue to sell it at the same price while collecting an ever growing margin. It's better value to buy near the start of a product cycle than at the end of it when you could end up paying full price for a 1 year old laptop only for Apple to release a substantial upgrade for the same price (or less) a week or month later. In the case of the the Mac Pro and Mini, which haven't been updated in 2-3 years, well only a sucker would buy them at this stage. This kind of pricing model is fine but it depends on regular updates otherwise users rightly start to question Apple's commitment to said product.

Only a sucker? See here's the thing. If you want to buy a machine to do a job, buy it and do the job. Then don't torment yourself looking at what everyone else is buying.

I needed a replacement for a 3 year old Lenovo work laptop, wanted a Macbook Pro, went and bought it and get on with doing what I wanted it for in the first place. What happens next month, next year of thereafter is irrelevant.

The only time something like this truly matters is when the thing you need isn't available. Then, product release and availability matters. The secondary consideration some might have would be resale value, where they're worrying about depreciation. To be fair, that's not how most people who need a new machine should be thinking, and if you are, you're kidding yourself spending the price of a Mac in the first place.

For ease of use, I've gone full-blown-apple. Two apple phones, apple TV, Mini, Macbook, MBP's. They work seamlessly with each other using my iCloud account etc. Where I wanted a non-laptop machine to run a 32" display for non-professional video work, the mini made perfect sense. Only a sucker would 'do without', waiting and whinging, depriving themselves of the ability to get on with doing the things they want to do for the sake of having the latest and greatest, all-singing all-dancing machine, not yet announced or available on the market just because they want it.

It's the same with cars, phones, cameras. I understand that. I understand you think it should be discounted as it comes close to replacement, but that's not reflected by peoples buying choices in the real world. If you need to buy something and the price is what it is, you buy it and move on. Apple aren't going to devalue their product just because somebody wants to keep up with the Joneses. Especially when there are plenty of people who buy based on their needs and a valid value assessment instead of wanting the new one because it will be X amount better spec'd, nearly always far beyond ones needs in any case.

Paulw

BreadnBuddha wrote: »

Only a sucker? See here's the thing. If you want to buy a machine to do a job, buy it and do the job. Then don't torment yourself looking at what everyone else is buying.

I understand you think it should be discounted as it comes close to replacement, but that's not reflected by peoples buying choices in the real world.

But, it is totally reflected in the real world. Sales of Apple machines are going down and down. http://www.macrumors.com/2016/10/11/mac-sales-continue-to-slide-amid-lack-of-updates/

I'm hanging on for an update, because I don't want to pay over the top for old hardware.

The Black Oil

10.12.1 is out.

Sad Professor

Anyone else have problems with the Spotlight keyboard shortcut (CMD-space)? It's occasionally unresponsive for me and earlier stopped working altogether requiring a restart but I was still able to open Spotlight from the menubar. I wonder if the new Siri shortcut (hold CMD-space) has screwed it up?