I thought for sure this was a mistaken April's 1 joke, until I read the comments and realized it is real. Not in favour of it myself. It just reeks of a lack of proper direction, OS wise, IMO.
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No iOS 19: Apple Going Straight to iOS 26
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First impression after reading - "what on earth are they doing?" But hear me out. I think for most of us it gets harder to remember the software version number, for me I keep on forgetting which iPhone was already released. So making it by year makes perfect sense. The only thing I do not agree with is that it should be named after the year of announcement, not the following year. So it has to be iOS 25. Unless I don't understand something?
As a software developer, this makes no sense. It is just marketing.
What design overhaul? Slapping a random number on transparent icons isn't considered an overhaul. None of this can detract from the elephant in the room-missing Siri AI upgrades that were promised and won't be ready for another 10 years.
What it means is that they are more concerned about the annual refresh revenue stream than the quality of the software.
Software has major and minor version numbers to denote substatual architectural changes or major feature, and point releases as minor enhancements.
Putting the year as the version number artificially dictates and locks in a new (not better, not major) version every year.
The natural evolution of software should drive versioning, not some annual refresh revenue stream.
I’m sick of all of us being treated as fools for the last decade getting conditioned that we need a new phone and now even a computer every year. 20-30 years ago that would be insane. Imagine buying a brand new gaming console annually.
Apple is being beyond dumb.
Apple should have gradually worked up to this over several years, by doubling or tripling the decimal point increment added to the version number for updates to each major OS release.
Especially the iPad because there are four different products in multiple sizes that aren’t all updated at the same time.
With the design overhaul that's coming this year, Apple plans to rename all of its operating systems, reports Bloomberg. Going forward, iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, watchOS, and visionOS will be identified by year, rather than by version number. We're not going to be getting iOS 19, we're getting iOS 26.
iOS 26 will be accompanied by iPadOS 26, macOS 26, tvOS 26, watchOS 26, and visionOS
Changing the name of the operating systems will introduce consistency across the lineup, rather than having several disparate numbers that don't match up. Apple is using vehicle-style numbering for operating systems and choosing the number of the upcoming year, so it'll be iOS 26 instead of iOS 25 because the update will be available across both 2025 and 2026.
The names will reflect a new effort by Apple to provide a more unified design across operating systems on different devices. The refreshed visionOS-like design update is coming to iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, and watchOS.
Apple plans to announce the new naming scheme at the Worldwide Developers Conference that's set to begin on Monday, June 9.
Article Link: No iOS 19: Apple Going Straight to iOS 26
[snip]
With the design overhaul that's coming this year, Apple plans to rename all of its operating systems, reports Bloomberg. Going forward, iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, watchOS, and visionOS will be identified by year, rather than by version number. We're not going to be getting iOS 19, we're getting iOS 26.
How are they going to address the Y2100 Problem?
(Seriously, though, it’s about time for this.)
It started with applications quitting by the way of the close window button; decades ago. (Not all apps do this, but most do.)The Microsoft-ication of Apple has set in
Windows 95, 98, and 2000 were all released earlier in the year, so it made sense to use the current year.
Either way, Microsoft has been using the next year's number for their last few Server OSes...just like Apple will be doing.
- Windows Server 2019 was released in 2018 (October)
- Windows Server 2022 was released in 2021 (August)
- Windows Server 2025 was released in 2024 (November)
Oh no, I foresee a Y2K problem in 2099.
With the design overhaul that's coming this year, Apple plans to rename all of its operating systems, reports Bloomberg. Going forward, iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, watchOS, and visionOS will be identified by year, rather than by version number. We're not going to be getting iOS 19, we're getting iOS 26.
iOS 26 will be accompanied by iPadOS 26, macOS 26, tvOS 26, watchOS 26, and visionOS 26 instead of iPadOS 19, macOS 16, tvOS 19, watchOS 12, and visionOS 3.
Changing the name of the operating systems will introduce consistency across the lineup, rather than having several disparate numbers that don't match up. Apple is using vehicle-style numbering for operating systems and choosing the number of the upcoming year, so it'll be iOS 26 instead of iOS 25 because the update will be available across both 2025 and 2026.
The names will reflect a new effort by Apple to provide a more unified design across operating systems on different devices. The refreshed visionOS-like design update is coming to iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, and watchOS.
Apple plans to announce the new naming scheme at the Worldwide Developers Conference that's set to begin on Monday, June 9.
Article Link: No iOS 19: Apple Going Straight to iOS 26
This is a good first reaction to this news. I am dismayed, as a Mac Geek from the early age of Apple's rise, that Cook and Co. are capitulating to a standard that came from a blood-competitor. It was little things like the window controls on the opposite side of the window were sources of pride, however small, in the days of the PC Wars. I took pride in instructing people on the virtues of MacOS (OS X), back in the day, with little things like this as means to showcase the superiority of Mac over Windows.The Microsoft-ication of Apple has set in
The more mature side of me, now that I am old, tells me that my true fear comes from how Apple labels incremental updates throughout the year. I pray that they find an Apple-esk way to make it their own.
Bloody hell
I really hope we also see them ditch all the separate platform branding and just go with AppleOS given they all get updated every year and have features that run across them.
Yes I know technically there may be differences which necessitate different version numbers but from a marketing perspective at least this makes a lot of sense.
AppleOS 26, coming to every device
I really hope we also see them ditch all the separate platform branding and just go with AppleOS given they all get updated every year and have features that run across them.
Yes I know technically there may be differences which necessitate different version numbers but from a marketing perspective at least this makes a lot of sense.
AppleOS 26, coming to every device
What about it baffles you? Unless of course you have both "current" and "vintage" (apple's nomenclature, not mine) devices that aren't supported by Apple any more. that would be baffling, but no more baffling than trying to keep track of the changes to the various OSes.
Other than that, what's in a name? An OS by any other name would work the same. And were it not, still it would.
https://theonion.com/****-everything-were-doing-five-blades-1819584036/
do you mean iOS 25? Anyhow, this is a very common versioning pattern and makes a ton of sense. Watch Google follow. Actually Android is going to numbers from deserts. But watch them follow this. Guaranteed.
I would assume it was because almost 26 years ago they started Mac OS X, but atleast they decided on a single number across all platforms and far enough away from current version numbers to make it more confusing. this isn't really confusing, its a reset in their direction and singularity and probably continuity and parity across the platforms to an extent. which would be perfect now there is so much going on with their OS platforms.
It would equivalent to renaming them to X1, X2, X3, so I dig it.
It would equivalent to renaming them to X1, X2, X3, so I dig it.
In 2016 they renamed OS X to macOS for naming consistency.
In 2025 they will skip several versions for version number consistency.
Samsung has done better when 2020 arrived, they jumped straight to S20 from S11. Apple should have done the same back then.
In 2025 they will skip several versions for version number consistency.
Samsung has done better when 2020 arrived, they jumped straight to S20 from S11. Apple should have done the same back then.