I’ve been looking forward to the release of OS X Mountain Lion – the next major new version of the Mac operating system – for some time now, and getting more excited as the release date gets nearer. Apple has said it will be released this month and many are predicting we will see it launched next week.
While I’m keen to get on board with Mountain Lion, I’m also trying to temper my enthusiasm for jumping into an update in the first couple of days after its release. Partly because, as with any major new OS release, there may well be some painful glitches and bugs to deal with when version 1.0 hits the street. And even more so because I want to first feel comfortable that all my most critical and frequently used apps are fully compatible with the new OS before making the leap.
So I’ve been doing my best to keep track of the state of play for apps compatibility for Mountain Lion in general – and in particular for the handful of apps that are essentials for me. Here are some of the things I’ve noted so far on this subject:
— RoaringApps once again has an excellent App Compatibility Table for Mountain Lion. It lists apps alphabetically and lets you search for apps by name. The table is simple and quick to scan – it shows app name, version, developer, and its compatibility status with both Lion and Mountain Lion. The status shows that an app is either compatible, not yet tested, tested and has some problems, or tested and does not work properly. This is a great starting point for checking on the apps you’re most concerned about, and you can find it here:
http://roaringapps.com/apps:table
Here are results for the handful of Mac apps I most often use and find most essential, with status checked just before writing this post:
Compatible:
- 1Password
- Evernote
- Parallels Desktop 7 (so is VMware Fusion 4)
- Pixelmator
- Spotify
- Screenflow
- Transmit
Tested but Have Some Issues:
- OmniFocus (and looks like all of Omni Group’s apps have this or a worse status right now)
- Skype – but Skype’s website says it Mountain Lion ready: http://www.skype.com/intl/en-us/get-skype/on-your-computer/macosx/
Not Tested:
- iA Writer
- Skitch
Not Listed:
- Chrome – but it looks like Chrome is in good shape for Mountain Lion: http://www.theverge.com/2012/6/11/3078984/google-chrome-mountain-lion-update
- Osfoora
So as of today there are a couple of big dealbreakers on the list for me – OmniFocus and iA Writer. Both of these are everyday, heavily used apps for me and I won’t consider updating until I see that they’re fully compatible with Mountain Lion.
How about all of you? Have you taken a look at Mountain Lion compatibility for your most important Mac apps? If so, how’s it looking for you?
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TAGS: mountain Lion, os x, OS X Mountain Lion
