When will you upgrade from mavericks?

[tywebb13]

Shortly after apple release 10.12 they will probably release a security update for yosemite and not for mavericks, i.e. drop support for mavericks (at least as secrurity updates are concerned).

So will you upgrade to 10.10 (or 10.11 or 10.12) then? Or before then? Or will you still keep using mavericks after that?

Many people have stayed with mavericks till now despite 10.10 and 10.11 being released already. That has been OK so far because apple are still supporting it with security updates at the moment.

Up till now whenever a security update for yosemite as been released there has also been one for mavericks. But if they drop support for mavericks in the same manner in which they have dropped support for previous systems then it is unlikely they will keep supporting mavericks after 10.12 is released.

 

[Avenged110]

Can't speak for anyone else, but I have no intentions of updating. I'm still running iOS 6 on all my iOS devices, and it's easier to run outdated software on a Mac, so I don't see any issues. Absolutely can't stand the new visual style or efficiency regression, although not being able to use the new Safari features or Photos.app stings a bit.

 

[Ebenezum]

I have no plans to update from Mavericks in the near future. Several reasons:

1. New visual style is disgusting and new font is harder to read than Lucida Grande in Mavericks.
2. Too many bugs.
3. Pointless removing of features (Disk Utility, Finder, System Preferences etc.) and hiding other features to CLI or behind cryptic key combinations/ menu items.
4. Very little benefits for my needs, improved security isn't exactly heartwarming when user interface regressions and bugs make using software more complicated than previously.

Although I like OS X and have used it for a long time I am not impressed with the direction Apple has taken it. Examples: too much iOS influence, long standing bugs are not fixed (Finder, Image Capture, Spotlight etc.), very little under the hood improvements (new filesystem, I am not sure if Core Storage and related improvements are enough).

I have been thinking about switching to Linux but at the moment some of the software I need isn't available and replacements are inferior in quality.

 

[tywebb13]

So does it not matter if apple cease to provide security updates for it?

I think they will also cease updating the mavericks version of safari too. That could be probematic even if you don't care about security updates.

You could use other browsers, but they have recently dropped support for older systems. It won't be long before they drop support for mavericks too.

Also some apps might drop support for it too.

You may have to consider this as well as security updates.

 

[Ebenezum]

At the moment I'm not concerned about the lack of security updates, once Safari receives no updates I just switch to different browser. If some serious vulnerability is not fixed in Mavericks that is actively exploited I will reconsider my position.

I would be surprised if other browsers would drop support for Mavericks quickly, it has about twice as many users than 10.7-10.8 combined.

As for other software I am fairly certain I have no need to update to later OS for several years because for most of the software I use 10.7 is currently minimum supported (recently some increased requirement to 10.8) and I would be surprised if the developers would suddenly raise the requirements to 10.10+, doing so would likely pointlessly annoy customers which isn't good for business.

 

[asoksevil]

Don't have plans to update anytime soon. Mavericks is working great, all my apps are compatible and there isn't anything that Yosemite or El Cap can offer me to upgrade, even if it's free. We will wait until OS X 10.12 / macOS

 

[monstruo]

I'd love to upgrade but with the constant complaints, bugs and water-down functions regarding to newer OS.
I'll hold as long as possible unless developer stops supporting 10.9.

 

[ricede]

I'm very happy with Mavericks. Yesterday I helped a friend set up his new El Capitan flavoured iMac. Oh dear - its a really unsightly mess compared to Mavericks. My heart went out to him, i could see the confusion on his face, as he's going directly from Snow Leopard to El Capitan !!.

 

[KALLT]

So does it not matter if apple cease to provide security updates for it?

I think they will also cease updating the mavericks version of safari too. That could be probematic even if you don't care about security updates.

You could use other browsers, but they have recently dropped support for older systems. It won't be long before they drop support for mavericks too.

Also some apps might drop support for it too.

You may have to consider this as well as security updates.

The problem is that Apple does not maintain the same security level for older releases. If you look at the accompanying note for the last security update of Mavericks, for example, you will see that only 6 vulnerabilities out of 38 have been fixed for Mavericks in that update, 5 of which are external libraries and components, such as libpng and OpenSSH. Another example, there is a particular vulnerability in Messages which affects Mavericks too, but which has been fixed only for El Capitan. It is probably fair to say that Apple will only really fix vulnerabilities if they can be done on older systems without too much work, such as updating or configuring external components. If the codebase has deviated too much, they generally do not seem to do it.

 

[tywebb13]

The problem is that Apple does not maintain the same security level for older releases. If you look at the accompanying note for the last security update of Mavericks, for example, you will see that only 6 vulnerabilities out of 38 have been fixed for Mavericks in that update, 5 of which are external libraries and components, such as libpng and OpenSSH. Another example, there is a particular vulnerability in Messages which affects Mavericks too, but which has been fixed only for El Capitan. It is probably fair to say that Apple will only really fix vulnerabilities if they can be done on older systems without too much work, such as updating or configuring external components. If the codebase has deviated too much, they generally do not seem to do it.

So the most secure one is 10.11.4 at the moment?

Maybe. But it is not the most stable. This version is causing some computers to freeze up. See these threads for more details:

Mac Users Reporting Widespread System Freezes With OS X El Capitan 10.11.4 Update

and

Macbook Pro 2015 with OSX El Capitan 10.11.4 system wide freeze

And although the Macbook Pro 2015 can't run mavericks, there is some debate too about whether the freezing issue is affecting older computers too.

So I don't think we can recommend 10.11.4 over mavericks at the moment.

I think it should be OK to keep mavericks until the first security update for yosemite is released after 10.12 is released.

Then it would be better to upgrade to 10.10.5, 10.11.6 or 10.12 because such security updates probably won't be available for mavericks any more after that.

 

[KALLT]

So the most secure one is 10.11.4 at the moment?

Maybe. But it is not the most stable. This version is causing some computers to freeze up. See these threads for more details:

Mac Users Reporting Widespread System Freezes With OS X El Capitan 10.11.4 Update

and

Macbook Pro 2015 with OSX El Capitan 10.11.4 system wide freeze

And although the Macbook Pro 2015 can't run mavericks, there is some debate too about whether the freezing issue is affecting older computers too.

So I don't think we can recommend 10.11.4 over mavericks at the moment.

I think it should be OK to keep mavericks until the first security update for yosemite is released after 10.12 is released.

Then it would be better to updgrade to 10.10.5, 10.11.5 or 10.12 because such security updates probably won't be available for mavericks any more after that.

I cannot really say anything about stability, because it is very difficult to measure and I never had such problems. I am running Mavericks too, but only because I like the performance and the design better. Yosemite and El Capitan are both fairly heavy for older hardware. However, security-wise, El Capitan should be the system of choice.

 

[julescilib]

speaking about security , new update available today for mavericks

 

[F1Mac]

I have El Capitan installed but I have to disable SIP because some of my audio drivers won't work otherwise. I can't stand the neverending mds background operations that slow everything down. The application I use the most, Pro Tools, shows some serious and annoying graphic glitches under El Capitan, scrolling in Photoshop is a bad joke. The UI is faster in Mavericks and less taxing on the cpu, and is much easier on the eyes as well, thanks to Lucida Grande, more contrasts and less bright colors...

I've used El Capitan for several months and reinstalled Mavericks (not really by choice) a few weeks ago. By comparison, Mavericks is still a much more pleasant experience for me, even if I got used to the iOS look since Yosemite...

In fact, there's nothing specific to El Capitan that I need, I can still do everything in Mavericks with zero issue, and my CPUs are happier. I'm staying there unless 10.12 brings some worthwile novelty to the table.

 

[ferretex]

I have El Capitan installed but I have to disable SIP because some of my audio drivers won't work otherwise. I can't stand the neverending mds background operations that slow everything down. The application I use the most, Pro Tools, shows some serious and annoying graphic glitches under El Capitan, scrolling in Photoshop is a bad joke. The UI is faster in Mavericks and less taxing on the cpu, and is much easier on the eyes as well, thanks to Lucida Grande, more contrasts and less bright colors...

I've used El Capitan for several months and reinstalled Mavericks (not really by choice) a few weeks ago. By comparison, Mavericks is still a much more pleasant experience for me, even if I got used to the iOS look since Yosemite...

In fact, there's nothing specific to El Capitan that I need, I can still do everything in Mavericks with zero issue, and my CPUs are happier. I'm staying there unless 10.12 brings some worthwile novelty to the table.

Amen.

 

[vista980622]

So does it not matter if apple cease to provide security updates for it?

I think they will also cease updating the mavericks version of safari too. That could be probematic even if you don't care about security updates.

You could use other browsers, but they have recently dropped support for older systems. It won't be long before they drop support for mavericks too.

Also some apps might drop support for it too.

You may have to consider this as well as security updates.

Funny thing - Chrome 50 is actually compatible with OS X Mountain Lion. Google intentionally blocked it through Info.plist. Changing LSMinimumSystemVersion to 10.8 allows it to run on Mountain Lion.

 

[grahamperrin]

… will you upgrade to 10.10 (or 10.11 or 10.12) … Or will you still keep using mavericks after that? …

Mavericks.

… security updates …

Mavericks Support - EOL When?

… I think they will also cease updating the mavericks version of safari …

Safari 9.1.2 for OS X Yosemite and Mavericks beta 1 (2016-05-19) at https://developer.apple.com/downloads/ makes me suspect that development of Safari will continue for a while after the release OS X 10.12.

… thinking about switching to Linux but at the moment some of the software I need isn't available and replacements are inferior in quality.

I empathise. I considered Linux.

I'm switching from OS X to PC-BSD – not because the range of software is better than the range for Linux, but because the BSD environment is more homely to me. Moreover, because I like the direction of PC-BSD.

 

[asoksevil]

I gave El Cap a shot this weekend just to find out that I didn't like it at all. Leaving the UI aside, El Cap run worse on my 2010 MBA when browsing or doing my usual stuff.

Long live Mavericks.

 

[Tozovac]

I gave El Cap a shot this weekend just to find out that I didn't like it at all. Leaving the UI aside, El Cap run worse on my 2010 MBA when browsing or doing my usual stuff.

Long live Mavericks.

I can't leave the UI unfortunately, and get disgusted every time I try an OSX after Mavericks. staying with Mavericks on my Air i7 as long as I can, or until somebody wakes up at Apple and kicks Jony out of software meetings, as he clearly does not belong influencing UI.

 

[SanJacinto]

I can't leave the UI unfortunately, and get disgusted every time I try an OSX after Mavericks. staying with Mavericks on my Air i7 as long as I can, or until somebody wakes up at Apple and kicks Jony out of software meetings, as he clearly does not belong influencing UI.

Same here.

I truly love Mavericks (I do love Snow Leopard even more, but it gets tougher and tougher to use it).
Previous weekend I tried macOS Sierra (because of the new Xcode). I can't stand the new UI - Yosemite was worst version of the new flat design.

As long as Safari will work fine on Mavericks, I am truly happy. Firefox will be my choice for the time when Safari for 10.9.(5.) will no longer work.

I love the old traffic light "drops", and I am happy to still see them on a daily basis. I miss some of the other
Aqua design elements.

 

[jbarley]

I can't stand the new UI - Yosemite was worst version of the new flat design.
I love the old traffic light "drops", and I am happy to still see them on a daily basis. I miss some of the other
Aqua design elements.

This App, "XRevert" does a very nice job of returning the Mavericks UI features to Yosemite and El-Capitan.
My only connection to this application is that of a satisfied user...

 

[Eithanius]

This App, "XRevert" does a very nice job of returning the Mavericks UI features to Yosemite and El-Capitan.
My only connection to this application is that of a satisfied user...

Mavericks UI and not Leo/SL UI...?

The latter has more depth...

 

[grahamperrin]

Mavericks …? …

Yep. Mavericks in the subject line of the topic, and we're in the OS X Mavericks (10.9) sub-forum, so I don't expect discussion of lesser versions.

XRevert

… returning the Mavericks UI features …

If I recall correctly (I don't have easy access to my AppleSeed archives), early versions of the application required an installer for Mavericks as a source for what's required. If that was true, and if that's no longer true, then it's debatably peculiar to find someone charging for unauthorised redistribution of copies of copyright material. I guess that Apple turns a blind eye.

 

[sXpTv]

Nope, i'm still on Mac OS X Mavericks on my iMac Late 2009 and MacBook Late 2009 which could run Sierra just fine without any perfomance issues but i absolutely don't like it. Sometimes i tend to try it again but i know that i'm going to downgrade again anyway.

 

[engseng]

Nice to see other users here still on Mavericks. I also intend to stay on Mavericks for as long as possible.

 

[bidwellian]

I'll stay on Mavericks until my software quits running on it.

Hopefully someone will make a patch for Yosemite that will restore the missing graphics from the Finder? : )