When will there be a forum for 'Intel Macs' like there is for PPC Macs?

[Nicole1980]

Just like the title says, with Intel Macs on the way out to pasture, how long will it be before Macrumors creates a special forum for us, just like there's a forum for PPC Macs?

Looking forward to hanging out there with my Intel stalwart buds

 

[mdgm]

Well Intel Macs are still current and receiving software updates.

 

[Nicole1980]

Well Intel Macs are still current and receiving software updates.

Ummm but theres also an 'ARM' Mac forum - and it doesn't get any more current than that.

 

[Yebubbleman]

Ummm but theres also an 'ARM' Mac forum - and it doesn't get any more current than that.

Give it time. The transition is still young yet!

 

[retta283]

The thing I think about with this is that when the Intel transition happened (from my recollection) there was just a "General Mac Discussion" and a "Mac Hardware" board, not boards for the individual machines like there are now. Since the names/designs of the machines have not instantly changed with the transition, it makes sense to continue using these boards.

Intel Macs board could come but it will probably be far down the road.

 

[maflynn]

Speaking as a member not as a moderator, my $.02 is there will be some sort of revamp. I'm thinking (guessing really) it will be fairly simple, in that the current Mac forums will gain Intel and ARM prefixes to identify the platform. Having different sets of forums will be confusing and just contribute to overall forum bloat, i.e., do we really need two sets of iMac forums, one for intel the other for ARM?

The PPC was different because it was both a new platform (intel that is), and new Mac models, Powerbook -> MacBook Pro Plus there was a clean cessation of the PPC line, where as Apple is still selling intel Macs and it appears that will be true for the near future.

 

[retta283]

Speaking as a member not as a moderator, my $.02 is there will be some sort of revamp. I'm thinking (guessing really) it will be fairly simple, in that the current Mac forums will gain Intel and ARM prefixes to identify the platform. Having different sets of forums will be confusing and just contribute to overall forum bloat, i.e., do we really need two sets of iMac forums, one for intel the other for ARM?

This is easily the best way to go about it in the future. PPC -> Intel saw a lot of name changes, no more iBook, PowerBook, Power Mac, only iMac and Mac mini stayed the same. Now it's appearing they will all stay the same.

 

[theluggage]

in that the current Mac forums will gain Intel and ARM prefixes to identify the platform.

I wonder if that is even needed?

The existing sub-forums are based solely on branding rather than hardware features - look at the number of different machines already under the "MacBook Pro" umbrella - or the two almost unrelated lines under "MacBook".

For less-techy users, "if it says MacBook Air on the box put it in the MacBook Air forum" passes the KISS test... There are already a lot of posts about ARM machines turning up in the "Air" and "Mini" forums (and nothing to say that they shouldn't), so it might be hard to put the toothpaste into a new tube...

If it ain't broke - or, at least, if it hasn't been a problem for 15 years - maybe don't fix it.

Then, what do you call the new forums? "ARM" is not even wrong, but will trigger the pedants revolt - and is unlikely to ever appear in an Apple product name. Apple now seems to be depreciating the term "Apple Silicon" - so that could fall out of use - in favour of "M1" which is likely to get incremented every year or so... and/or we could see a world with simultaneous M1 and M1X/M2/P1/whatever versions of the MacBook Pro & Mini.

I think the current "Apple Silicon (ARM)" (which can be renamed at leisure) forum is fine for the present- there are a lot of discussions about performance, software compatibility and future speculation that don't depend on the machine model. A year or two down the line, when ASi is the new normal and the question becomes "does it still run on Intel?" there may be a case for an "Intel Macs" forum.

(How long Intel Macs stay current is going to depend on how well received the ASi Macs are. So far, M1 is looking like a roaring success for Apple - particularly with regards to how well it deals with Intel binaries - so I don't think Apple are going to let the grass grow under their feet when it comes to getting rid of Intel Macs).

 

[Nicole1980]

If it ain't broke - or, at least, if it hasn't been a problem for 15 years - maybe don't fix it.

Well, it's been one processor platform for 15 years, that's why it hasn't been a problem. As far as keeping it just consistent with the naming (e.g. a MacBook Air forum) I hear what you all are saying, but the fact is - the ARM and Intel Macs are very different animals at this point - even if the naming and computer case happens to be the same.

And besides, the main reason I brought it up is that there already is a dedicated 'ARM" Mac area, and there already is a dedicated 'PPC' Mac area. To me, if they're going to continue those - given how different all three are (ARM, PPC, Intel) to me it would be consistent to make a dedicated Intel area as well.

 

[theluggage]

the ARM and Intel Macs are very different animals at this point - even if the naming and computer case happens to be the same.

...but, then, so are the 2-port 13" MacBook Pro and the 16" MBP. Or the white 2009 MacBook and the 2016 12" MacBook. Or the 2012, 2013 and 2019 Mac Pros. In fact, the cases aren't even the same...

Partly, I'm thinking of practicality rather than principle: trying to stop M1 Air users posting to the Intel Air forum, and vice versa, would just be an endless losing battle.

Also, while there are many processor-specific issues, there are many more that are general to MacOS and the physical design of machines. Having more and more forums just scatters these more widely and reduces the number of people who will see them and maybe know the answer.

And besides, the main reason I brought it up is that there already is a dedicated 'ARM" Mac area, and there already is a dedicated 'PPC' Mac area.

I'm not against an "Intel Macs" forum per se but I don't think its time has come just yet. Maybe when "Intel" has become a legacy issue (like PPC).

The "Apple Silicon Macs" forum on the other hand is important for all the "Does x run on M1", "How fast is your M1 and x", "What will M2 be like" and "I'm swapping my 28 core 2019 Mac Pro with 1.5TB RAM for an M1 - should I spend an extra $200 to get 16GB RAM? " threads that don't need sorting by model.

Incidentally - here's a snippet of the MacRumors forum page from August 2006, a year after the PPC-to-Intel transition was announced, 7 months after the release of the Intel MacBook Pro and a few weeks after the release of the Mac Pro which "completed" the transition:

(Thanks to the Wayback Machine)

...so by discussing this now, a month or so after the very first M1 launch, we're kinda ahead of the game!

 

[Roxy.music]

Just like the title says, with Intel Macs on the way out to pasture, how long will it be before Macrumors creates a special forum for us, just like there's a forum for PPC Macs?

Looking forward to hanging out there with my Intel stalwart buds

Sounds like a good idea Nicole.

 

[Roxy.music]

Speaking as a member not as a moderator, my $.02 is there will be some sort of revamp. I'm thinking (guessing really) it will be fairly simple, in that the current Mac forums will gain Intel and ARM prefixes to identify the platform. Having different sets of forums will be confusing and just contribute to overall forum bloat, i.e., do we really need two sets of iMac forums, one for intel the other for ARM?

The PPC was different because it was both a new platform (intel that is), and new Mac models, Powerbook -> MacBook Pro Plus there was a clean cessation of the PPC line, where as Apple is still selling intel Macs and it appears that will be true for the near future.

Who in there right mind would want to buy a new Intel Mac with those amazing M1 Mac,s?
And there just the base modals.I will stick with my IMAC for the near future.