Here’s hoping they update that Gridlee app with the MAME emulator hidden inside… I bought one of those mini arcade cabinets for an iPad with a good joystick and buttons… those were the days
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PSA: Apple is Updating Old Apps With Latest Signing Certificate Ahead of iOS 14.5
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To be honest, this is a pleasant surprise, given Apple's historically extreme disdain in general for apps that aren't updated anymore.
I mean, sometimes an app already does exactly what it needs to do, and doesn't need to be updated anymore. Sometimes a developer drops out of the app store because they're not working on the platform anymore, but their apps still work fine. There's no reason why these old apps shouldn't keep working indefinitely.
It's nice to see them do something to keep old apps working for a change, rather than just let them break like they did when they dropped 32-bit support.
I mean, sometimes an app already does exactly what it needs to do, and doesn't need to be updated anymore. Sometimes a developer drops out of the app store because they're not working on the platform anymore, but their apps still work fine. There's no reason why these old apps shouldn't keep working indefinitely.
It's nice to see them do something to keep old apps working for a change, rather than just let them break like they did when they dropped 32-bit support.
I think this fix only applies to reasonably old apps, like 6+ months old apps.
You wouldn't be wondering that if you had read the first 10 words:
"Users may notice that a number of very old apps..."
"Developers of affected apps do not need to re-sign their apps themselves, since Apple will issue the update and new signing certificate itself."
Hi everyone, @stroughtonsmith, thank you for posting a screenshot of that, it would of course not be seen by the public otherwise. Can I ask, in your view and others, what the consensus or leading reactions are among developers? In other words, what is the leading theory or perhaps even informed Apple-provided explanation for this? I believe I know with a high degree of certainty why they are issuing this, this is part of a ripple of consequences and reactions by Apple over an event maybe a year ago. If I am right, or at least to continue to test my theory, it's very helpful to know the messaging given to the public, versus messaging given to developers, versus other audiences. Developers especially. Btw I used to be a Mac programmer at a small company way back, we put out the first Quicktime application on the market. I hope they treat their loyal developers better these days. Those were bad times when I was programming, but Apple devs back then were not cut and run types, for better or for worse. Anyone who knows what I am alluding to or has similar interests, please connect! I love meeting new folks. I'm on LinkedIn. Legal Labs moniker will get you to me. Best, Gene
Lately, I've become increasingly turned off to a lot of Apple's App Store practices (particularly ones that mandate updating of apps), but them taking care of this for developers seems to be uncharacteristically nice of them.
Apple does this because they are retiring an old certificate that was used in the signing process of apps up to some years old. I don’t think it is exactly same as the issue with signing last time, as that seemed to be caused by certification that had expired (by date).
Get rid of all the Old apps the developers don’t update or haven’t for years if the developers not interested in doing anything then why should they stay just get them off the App Store as they’re just junk searching through hundreds of apps that aren’t updated for years is a waste of time instead of updating them they should be deleting them.
Oh surprise (for me), one of my old app that was pulled by Apple 4 years ago doesn’t work in iOS 14.5 anymore. It worked in iOS 12, 13, and until iOS 14.4. Granted, it’s functionality has mostly gone ever since. But now I am the one who is technically impacted. Gotta say such “no compatibility move” is good for everyone but customers.
I disagree, there are a lot of old iOS apps that I still love and have been using for many years (and many feel the same way). Just because it annoys you doesn't mean you should ruin it for those who use these old "legacy" apps. Instead, Apple should improve their very outdated app store user interface so when you search for things, you can find the kind of apps that you're looking for, maybe add better search filters? Apple's app store UI has been nearly the same for a decade, the app search is terrible and they always show the "most popular apps" in the front... so they need to improve it, removing old apps is not the solution and it doesn't fix the problem. The most annoying thing is they don't filter out the apps that are not compatible with your iOS version (it says "this app is not compatible with your device"), so why not just hide all incompatible apps? You see Apple's app store sucks and it needs to be improved.
So I don't want old apps removed because I use them still and I very much enjoy it still (some even have a nostalgic aspect to it). Bigger app selection is better than small. It's possible that the app developer is no longer alive to update the app anymore, I think it's better to leave the app alone and let folks download it as they please and respect the person's creation. It's also possible the app developer has nothing new to add to the app and that's why they don't update it. You also need to realize some people still use old iPhones and iPads which only could install old apps because new apps are not compatible, if you removed all old apps, then these people will have no app they can install, these are mostly low income people who can't afford a new iPhone model. I suppose you could separate the old apps on the app store from the new apps, but Apple would be too lazy to even do that.
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WTF do we have to spend time, energy & BWidth to download GBs of the same App. Cant they just send a Diff/Delta?
Only if the certificate is created UNIQUELY by HASHING each App.
Why do that for EVERY APP for EVERY ONE? Talk about ECO Energy Waste..
It’s funny because of the Suckerturd vs Apple battle and how the privacy changes in iOS 14.5 have Facebook spending millions to tell you why you shouldn’t have any privacy.
This is the very reason why iTunes 12.6.5.3 is needed.
I can download the apps once and then sync to all the devices instead of downloading all the apps over and over.
Some of us have capped data even at home!
I can download the apps once and then sync to all the devices instead of downloading all the apps over and over.
Some of us have capped data even at home!
RIP old apps, sad day with iOS 14.5 now released to the public. 
Apple killed a lot of apps when 32bit support was removed in iOS 11 and now it happens again because of a certificate.
I wasn't expecting this in a point release, they could have waited for iOS 15 at least.
Apple killed a lot of apps when 32bit support was removed in iOS 11 and now it happens again because of a certificate.
I wasn't expecting this in a point release, they could have waited for iOS 15 at least.
I know. I keep a copy.
Crap! What if one stays on older iOS? They are not wiping them off the AppStore I hope?
I hated that.RIP old apps, sad day with iOS 14.5 now released to the public.
Apple killed a lot of apps when 32bit support was removed in iOS 11 and now it happens again because of a certificate.
I wasn't expecting this in a point release, they could have waited for iOS 15 at least.
What if one stays on older iOS? They are not wiping them off the AppStore I hope?