iTunes 11 and OS X version

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Level 1

62 points

iTunes 11 and OS X version

Has anyone heard if iTunes 11 will be compatible with Snow Leopard? Or do we have to install the malware that is Lion/Mountain Lion for it to work?

MacBook Pro, Mac OS X (10.6.8)

Posted on Oct 24, 2012 1:55 PM

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Answer 1

Limnos

Level 10

411,097 points

Oct 24, 2012 2:49 PM in response to LJH_CMH

Oddly I cannot even see the link on Apple's page to iTunes 11 anymore.

Nobody really knows anything about Apple's releases (any of them) until Apple is good and ready to tell us. You can find rumors on the web but they are rumors and we are not allowed to discuss those here.

The only thing we can say for sure is Apple steadily moves on. However, Apple only just dropped support for Leopard users in the last iTunes release and observation suggests they seem to be more supportive of older OS users in its iTunes releases. If Apple decides that it no longer wants to support Snow Leopard user in iTunes then it will be clear in the next release - when we see it.

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Answer 2

LJH_CMH Author

Level 1

62 points

Oct 24, 2012 3:18 PM in response to Limnos

They do move on but, in my opinion, a little too quickly.

If you want to run the current version of iTunes, you need to have OS X 10.6, which came out in 2009. But if you're a PC user, Apple makes iTunes compatible with Windows XP, which came out in 2001. Why is it that Apple provides longer backwards support for PC users than it does for Mac users?

The same can also be said for iCloud, which requires OS X 7, released in 2011. But if you're a PC user, you can get a free plug-in if your computer runs Windows Vista, release in 2007. Why couldn't they make the same plug-in for Snow Leopard or Leopard users?

I'm just feeling frustrated that Apple seems to provide free, long-term support to PC users while shafting Mac users – the very people who buy their products. Let's just say that I'm seriously considering a Windows 8 machine for my next computer. If history is any indicator, Apple will support Windows 8 long after Mountain Lion users are left out in the cold.

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Answer 3

Limnos

Level 10

411,097 points

Oct 24, 2012 11:01 PM in response to LJH_CMH

As a person who has never owned a Mac any less than 3 years old I am all too aware of the rapid ageing of my equipment from Apple's perspective vs. mine. It's just the way Apple works. If you don't like it then by all means consider alternatives. I'm being honest. I have been pondering it myself but although I have not really researched, it seems the competition isn't much better. It's more a matter of which bad things you are willing to put up with vs. which good ones. Sure, you can have the pleasure of not having to worry about a system upgrade every couple of years in order to keep up with iTunes, but then you have to deal with viruses and more frequent system crashes and incredibly long boot duration. Since I don't use any of the newer features of iTunes (I do not have an Apple Store account) I personally don't care whether or not I can't run newer iTunes.

Yeah, the iTunes support for XP vs OSX has puzzled a number of people here. Who knows what reasoning Apple uses for it. We're not really supposed to discuss Apple's policies on this forum but I am sure you can conjecture as well as the rest of us.

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Answer 4

Dec 23, 2012 5:02 PM in response to Limnos

Especially for those of us who are maxed out financially to be forced to upgrade hardware bugs me. I'm on SSI and don't see any landfalls coming in my future but I haven't updated iTunes yet from 10.7 to 11 nor iOS5.1 to 6.0 because I can't predict what will go wrong next or what will become incompatable... I really don't want to think that hard about how and why what works, just want it to work consistently.

The phrase used in the industry is "Planned Obsolescence", I say they are only thinking of sales forecasts! And I love APPLE, just don't like that we can't know when they are planning to drop "SUPPORT" on anything I am using.

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