macOS Catalina

macOS Catalina is the 20th major release of Apple's operating system for Mac computers, officially designated macOS 10.15.

Released on October 7, 2019, its primary focus was on media application reorganization, iPad integration, and a pivotal security change by ending support for 32-bit applications.

Key Features and Changes in Catalina

Catalina brought several major shifts to the macOS experience:

The End of iTunes

Catalina completely retired the monolithic iTunes application, which had been a staple of the Mac since 2001. Its functions were split into three new, dedicated apps, aligning with the iOS experience:

• Music: For managing, purchasing, and streaming music.

• TV: For purchasing, renting, and watching TV shows and movies, including content from Apple TV+.

• Podcasts: A dedicated app for podcasts, which could index spoken words to help with search.

• Device Management: Managing and syncing iOS devices (iPhone, iPad, iPod touch) was moved to the Finder application.

Sidecar

This major Continuity feature allows a compatible iPad to be used as a secondary display for a Mac, functioning either to extend or mirror the desktop.

• It supports Apple Pencil input, effectively turning the iPad into a high-precision graphics tablet for Mac apps like Photoshop and Illustrator.

• It also adds a digital Touch Bar and sidebar controls to the iPad display.

Mac Catalyst

Apple launched Project Catalyst (originally "Marzipan") as a new development tool to allow developers to easily port iPad apps to run natively on macOS, resulting in new versions of stock apps like Reminders, Find My, and Voice Memos.

New and Improved Apps

• Find My: Merged the functionality of Find My Mac and Find My Friends into a single app, with an enhanced feature that allows an offline Mac to broadcast its location via a low-energy Bluetooth mesh network of nearby Apple devices.

• Screen Time: The usage tracking and limiting features from iOS were brought to the Mac.

• Voice Control: A major accessibility feature that enables users to fully control their Mac using only their voice.

The 32-bit App Shift

The most significant technical change was the final transition to 64-bit architecture:

• 32-bit Applications are Incompatible: macOS Mojave (10.14) was the last version to support 32-bit software. Installing Catalina results in 32-bit apps no longer launching or functioning at all.

• Rationale: This move was intended to modernize the OS, improve security, and allow the system to leverage technologies like Metal graphics acceleration, which rely on 64-bit architecture. This change primarily impacted older games, legacy creative software, and some unmaintained utility applications.