Apple Puts 32-Bit macOS Apps On Notice

As far as Apple is concerned, it's a 64-bit world. It already evicted 32-bit apps from iOS starting iOS 11 and it has begun the process to do the same on its macOS desktop operating system. Users will now be greeted by an ominous warning when the start a 32-bit app in the latest macOS High Sierra 10.13.4. But there's no reason to panic as the app will continue to work as normal, at least for now.

What happens is that Apple wants to users to know that they are potentially using an outdated or even not properly maintained software. Unfortunately, there's nothing the user can really do since it's really the responsibility of the developer. Well, they can at least contact the developer and let them know that the end is near. At least Apple isn't going to nag users and will only pop up the warning once for each 32-bit app.

There is technically no reason for Apple to be unable to support both 32-bit and 64-bit apps at the same time. It is, however, going to turn into a maintenance burden for Apple. The company, however, is painting it as a way to ensure that apps are able take advantage of the latest Apple technology. Its Metal graphics framework, for example, only works for 64-bit apps.

But there's another reason why Apple is putting out the call to cutoff 32-bit apps. It's the same unspoken reason it had on iOS. It is a way to weed out apps that have not been updated or maintained over the years. In short, it's practically an artificial way to kick out old apps.

But while that may have been fine for iOS, it may be a bit of a problem for macOS. There are old apps out there that still work perfectly fine and are still in popular use. Developers may not have had any reason, other than this, to update their apps to a 64-bit world. That said, Apple hasn't yet given a deadline anyway, so there's still lots of time before the door closes on these 32-bit holdovers.

VIA: The Loop