Aperture Support Ending With MacOS Mojave

[dof]

The end of the line is coming for folks using Aperture who also need to stay up-to-date with the latest version of the MacOS. Apple has announced that MacOS Mojave will be the last version that supports 32-bit software.

Since Aperture is a 32-bit application, the options are to never upgrade your OS beyond Mojave or to switch to another image editing/asset management program.

More at MacWorld:

https://www.macworld.com/article/3391567/still-using-apple-s-aperture-your-time-is-running-out.html

 

[c.poulton]

This isn't great news. Although I don't use Aperture that much anymore I still have a sizeable Aperture library. I'm reluctant to migrate it over to Apple Photos and was holding out for something that would allow me to export it out to Luminar which I am using nowadays, although the DAM is far from perfect.

 

[Godfrey]

I expect Lightroom 6.14 to be dead after macOS Mojave too. I already get the "not optimized for Mojave" notification every week, and the Maps module is permanently broken now. Just a matter of time.

The easy thing would be to just pay the Adobe monthly tax and buy into the CC universe, but I'm uncomfortable with that.

The harder thing is to use and evaluate other options .. Luminar, On1, RAW Power, and Affinity Photo are all on my system now, I'm in that process. Given that LR is a 'by reference only' file manager, and I've kept a separate library of every rendered image as a 16bit TIFF independent of the original image files, moving over to another image processing system is mostly a matter of learning how to get what I want out of whatever I decide is worth moving over to.

RAW Power and Photos together could be a decent replacement for Aperture, just like they could be for Lightroom. Affinity Photo is a good replacement for Photoshop (at least the portions of it that I have used in the past). Both of these apps work on both macOS and iOS so there's good advantage to becoming familiar with them, for me, and more familiar with Photos as well.

I consider change to be an upside and look forward to the challenge. 🙂

G

 

[jarski]

Got recently new Mac with Mojave version of OS. Godfrey's comment made me try the LR 6.14 (installed some days ago, but not actually used yet). the very "not optimized" warning was first thing that showed up, offering more information in: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT208436

 

[Henry]

You might be able to create a virtual machine image of your existing macOS install and use that solely to run Aperture and old Lightroom. You can create a stable base where those applications will continue to run while moving most of your work to a more up-to-date OS with up-to-date security patches.

 

[dof]

Thanks for your insights into options, Godfrey. I also appreciate your optimism regarding change. It truly is inevitable.

Folks - please forgive me a digression in the thread while we're on the subject - I've been a Lightroom user since the first beta and have yet to upgrade to Mojave. I'm curious about the "not optimized for Mojave" warnings. I've upgraded to the second to the last standalone version of Lightroom via Adobe's Application Manager app. Its version number is listed as "Adobe Lightroom [1099473]" and Apple's System Information app lists it as a 64-bit application. Curious if version 6.14 is 32-bit and that's the reason for the warning under Mojave.

I expect Lightroom 6.14 to be dead after macOS Mojave too. I already get the "not optimized for Mojave" notification every week, and the Maps module is permanently broken now. Just a matter of time.

The easy thing would be to just pay the Adobe monthly tax and buy into the CC universe, but I'm uncomfortable with that.


I consider change to be an upside and look forward to the challenge. 🙂

G

 

[jarski]

Curious if version 6.14 is 32-bit and that's the reason for the warning under Mojave.

LR is mostly 64bit, but there are least two components that are 32bit only (and thus the warning), see bellow in blue.

(LR 6.14 & Bridge & DNG Converter installed)

 

[dof]

Thank you, Jarski!

 

[willie_901]

You might be able to create a virtual machine image of your existing macOS install and use that solely to run Aperture and old Lightroom. You can create a stable base where those applications will continue to run while moving most of your work to a more up-to-date OS with up-to-date security patches.

I'm not sure if you mean VMwares Fusion when you speak of a virtual machine.

Anyway, a dual-boot system is a solution. You just boot up using a separate HD (or partitioned very large internal drive) and run the last release of Mojave. This could be less convenient than purchasing new software licenses and leaning new workflows.

 

[Henry]

I'll admit, it's been a few years since I last looked at virtualization options for MacOS, but it seems like Parallels Desktop, VMWare Fusion and VirtualBox all would work. Dual boot would also work, though my mindset is mostly on laptops since that's primarily what I use and so something like having an extra hard-drive isn't all that practical. The biggest issue with running an old OS is the security (patches stop being generated pretty quickly as new versions come out).

I really don't have much experience running macOS inside one of those programs, though, as mostly I used them to run Linux or Windows, in theory it's possible though.

A long term strategy to loosing those programs is probably to start looking at alternatives, the features of Aperture seem to only really exist in paid programs at the moment, though Lightroom (minus tethering, if that's important to you you have to pay) has a sane alternative in Darktable (https://www.darktable.org/). People really like it, though macOS support is experimental.

 

[Peter Jennings]

Just a reminder to anyone contemplating installing macOS Catalina when it comes out of beta in the near future. Aperture will not run on that platform. I have not been using Aperture for over a year, but the app and its library have still resided on my Mac. I just spent a day going through all of the project folders in my Aperture library to double check that I'd transferred everything out. Found a few that I hadn't moved to Photos, so I'm glad I looked. Now that that's done, all that's left is to delete. I liked that app. Kinda sad to see it go.

 

[jarski]

Because of my work, I have to install Catalina soon after its arrival. Will test LR 6 shortly after and update here.

 

[Rob-F]

I have both Aperture and Lightroom, but I don't much care for Lightroom. I much prefer the way Aperture catalogs and files my pictures. And I find Aperture much more intuitive to use. I bought a whole big book on Lightroom and then couldn't make myself read it. I have two Macs that run Snow leopard, and one that runs Sierra. I think I'll pick up a more recent version or two as protection against not being able to use Aperture, in case one of my Macs conks out.

 

[Solinar]

Where to go from here for 64 bit compatibilty?

Where to go from here for 64 bit compatibilty?

Probably better asked in its own thread, but who is happy with the alternatives - Alien Skin Exposure X4, Luminar 3 and On 1 Photo.

 

[Godfrey]

Probably better asked in its own thread, but who is happy with the alternatives - Alien Skin Exposure X4, Luminar 3 and On 1 Photo.

I've been evaluating various software for when I update to a new machine and past macOS Mojave. Right now my top contender for Photoshop replacement is Affinity Photo. For Lightroom replacement, I'm working with RAW Power (which works alongside Photos), On1Photo, and Luminar 3.

All three of the LR replacements work well. RAW Power's use of Photos as its DAM has some notable advantages. Affinity Photo also works well in the stead of Photoshop, but most of what I need to do today is handled very nicely by LR and that level of replacements. RAW Power and Affinity Photo have the additional advantage of being available on iOS/iPadOS as well.

None of these apps are exactly the same so there is a learning curve. But all of them do a fine job once you get the rudiments of their operation into your head.

(On iOS, I find myself using SnapSeed a lot of the time.)

Which to pick depends on you. All of them have trial versions available ... go try them out. Keep your expectations at bay and just learn how new software works, then decide whether it does the job for you. 🙂

G

 

[Timmyjoe]

Okay, I'm really confused. If you go the the web page jarski linked to:

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT208436

It's Apple's web page talking about the migration to 64-bit. It tells you how to go into the Apple menu and see which of your applications are 64-bit compatible. When I follow the instructions on that web page, all these applications come up as 64-bit compatible:

Adobe Photoshop CS6
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 4
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 5
Aperture 3.6
Capture NX-D
DXO Optics Pro 10Image Capture
Photos
Preview

So why is everyone saying that after Mojave, these applications, which Apple lists as 64-bit compatible, won't work on the new Catalina operating system. Is it because certain remote components of these applications are not 64-bit compatible?

Best,
-Tim

 

[Rob-F]

So maybe the sky isn't falling?

 

[Godfrey]

Okay, I'm really confused. If you go the the web page jarski linked to:

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT208436

It's Apple's web page talking about the migration to 64-bit. It tells you how to go into the Apple menu and see which of your applications are 64-bit compatible. When I follow the instructions on that web page, all these applications come up as 64-bit compatible:

Adobe Photoshop CS6
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 4
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 5
Aperture 3.6
Capture NX-D
DXO Optics Pro 10Image Capture
Photos
Preview

So why is everyone saying that after Mojave, these applications, which Apple lists as 64-bit compatible, won't work on the new Catalina operating system. Is it because certain remote components of these applications are not 64-bit compatible?

Best,
-Tim

My understanding, which might or might not be correct, is that components of the Adobe apps' suite of supporting executables are not 64-bit compatible, where LR and PS main line code is 64-bit. I don't know about the others, but since Photos and Preview are Apple apps and deliver with macOS, I doubt that there will be any issues with them in particular, unless Apple is replacing them with something else.

Of course, LR 6.14 perpetual license is already broken on Mojave: The Map module can no longer function at all because a change made to the back-end interface of the mapping subroutines will never be patched into this version of LR.

The bottom line will be that when the next major macOS revision is released and you upgrade your existing machine, what no longer works will be self evident. My strategy regards that is that my existing mid-2012 Mac mini will never be upgraded: I'll buy the new Mac mini I've been planning for and it will come with the new macOS installed, and I'll set it up from scratch with all new software that I know is up to date with the latest OS. The old machine will be freeze-dried as it is, which is perfectly functional, and I can pull it out if I want to use anything that no longer runs on the next OS. All of my photo data is on external drives so it means a two minute swap over from one machine to the next... 🙂

G

 

[PRJ]

Gentlemen Coders has an extension for Photos. I believe the man behind it worked on Aperture at Apple. I haven't tried it, but it looks pretty good. They have a free trial too...

https://gentlemencoders.com/raw-power-for-macos/