Using Old Mac Apps In Macos

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However, when Apple launched Mojave the Mac App Store changed, and these installers are no longer downloadable from the store - unless you are using an old version of macOS/macOS X.

On macOS, Messages has several of the fun effects that can be found on its iOS counterpart to help liven up your conversations. However, Messages for Mac isn't quite the same app as Messages for iPhone and iPad, with a number of effects left out of this version that have made their way to the mobile app.

Using this guide, find out what you can do, what you can't do, and how you can work around some of the limitations of Messages for macOS with other apps and tools.

Messages features you can use in macOS

Here's what you currently can do with Messages and macOS.

Rich links

Rather than simply displaying a link when you paste it in an iMessage conversation, now Messages generates a slick preview of the link, including a headline and a photo. Messages also allows you to watch YouTube videos from within your conversation as well.

Big emoji

Emoji are now three times larger than they have previously been. The emoji you send will appear this size when you send three or fewer characters.

Tapbacks

Tapbacks are quick reactions that you can attach to message bubbles. You can select from the following: heart, thumbs up, thumbs down, 'Ha Ha', '!!', or '?'.

What's missing from Messages in macOS

Macos

Unfortunately, while Messages on iOS has features like bubble and screen effects to add extra flavor to your messages, these effects have yet to make their way to the Mac.

Also absent from Messages in macOS are stickers and iMessage apps. These features require the iMessage App Store, and as such, it's not surprising to see them excluded — still, their absence is felt, especially when iPhone- and iPad-touting friends send a constant barrage of stickers. That said, you can still take advantage of services, apps, and utilities to bring a little more fun to Messages on the Mac.

GIPHY

Giphy puts thousands of GIFs right at your fingertips that you can easily share with friends and family just as you would any other image. Just bookmark the site, then head there and search to find the right GIF for your conversation.

GIF Keyboard

Just like its counterpart for iPhone and iPad, GIF Keyboard for Mac lets you quickly search for GIFs and add them to any conversation. The app lives in your Mac's Menu bar, and you can just drag and drop your chosen GIF into any message thread in any app you want, including Messages.

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Rocket

This is a useful little utility that makes adding emoji to your messages quick and easy. Just type your trigger character (':' by default), and follow it with the name of the emoji you want to use. You can download it for free, then upgrade for $3.99 for access to custom emoji phrases, GIF support, and more.

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But what about my apps?

If you've been using iMessage apps on your iPhone, you might be wondering what you can do to get those apps on your Mac. Unfortunately, it seems unlikely that iMessage apps will be making their way to macOS anytime soon. For now, you'll need to head to the websites for OpenTable, Fandango, and Square Cash, among others, in order to make use of these services on your Mac.

Questions?

If you have any questions about using effects in Messages on macOS, be sure to let us know!

Updated January 2020: Up-to-date for macOS Catalina.

macOS Catalina

Using Old Mac Apps In Macos 10

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Closed for 2020

Apple says its offices in the US will not fully reopen until at least 2021

According to a report from Bloomberg, Apple is planning for its office and many of its retail workers to remain remote for the rest of the year.

When macOS Mojave was announced, Apple warned that it would be the last version of macOS that would support older 32-bit apps. Apple has been phasing out 32-bit apps for the last 10 years and is now ready to take the final step, even if Mac users may not be ready to lose access to older apps.


With the release of macOS Catalina, 32-bit app support is no longer available, which means many of your older apps will no longer work if they haven't been updated to 64-bit.

32-bit vs. 64-bit

Free Old Mac Apps

32-bit apps date back to a time when there were 32-bit processors and 32-bit operating systems, but are now outdated. Apple has long since transitioned to 64-bit processors and macOS has been 64-bit since the launch of Snow Leopard in 2009.

Compared to 32-bit apps, 64-bit apps can take advantage of more memory and offer faster system performance. Apple technologies like Metal only work with 64-bit apps, and for Apple to ensure that Mac apps include all of the latest advancements and optimizations, support for 32-bit needs to end. In the simplest terms, 32-bit apps are inefficient.

32-bit apps can run on a 64-bit system as they've been doing for years, but Apple wants to get rid of outdated apps to make sure everything that runs on the Mac is properly optimized and isn't an unnecessary drain on system resources.

Previous Warnings

Apple started warning Mac users about plans to end support for 32-bit apps back with macOS High Sierra. In High Sierra, users started getting warnings about a 32-bit app's future incompatibility with macOS.


A similar message was available in macOS Mojave, and if you opened up a 32-bit app while running Mojave, you saw an alert letting you know a specific app wouldn't work with future versions of macOS unless it was updated.

Alerts re-appeared every 30 days when launching an app, with Apple aiming to make sure customers would not be caught unaware when a 32-bit app stopped working in the future, so you should already know if one of your frequently used apps hasn't been upgraded to 64-bit.

Using Old Mac Apps In Macos 10

Upon updating to ‌macOS Catalina‌, you'll be shown a list of 32-bit apps that no longer work on your system.

How to Check if an App is 32-Bit or 64-Bit in macOS Mojave

To determine whether an app is 64-bit or 32-bit and to see if there are 32-bit apps installed on your machine before upgrading to ‌macOS Catalina‌, follow these steps:

  1. Click the Apple symbol () in the menu bar on your Mac's desktop.
  2. Click on About This Mac.
  3. Choose 'System Report' at the bottom of the window.
  4. Scroll down to the Software list on the sidebar.
  5. Select Legacy Software.'

Anything in the list of Legacy Software applications is a 32-bit app and will not work when upgrading to ‌macOS Catalina‌.

If Legacy Software isn't an option in the sidebar, select the Applications option and then check the list of apps at the right. The column that's labeled 64-bit will show a 'No' listing for apps that are 32-bit.

How to Prepare to Update to ‌macOS Catalina‌

The first step is to make sure there aren't already available updates for apps that you have on your system, which you can generally do by updating through the Mac App Store for ‌Mac App Store‌ apps.

Apps outside of the ‌Mac App Store‌ use other update methods that can vary by app, but for many, you can click on the app's name in the menu bar and choose the 'Check for Updates' option. Some other apps have more hidden update methods, so if you do have a 32-bit app, make sure to Google how to update it to be sure there's not already new software available.

After ensuring you've updated everything you're able to update, you can contact developers and ask them to update their apps, but if that doesn't pan out, the only other solution is to start the search for an alternative app if you're committed to upgrading to ‌macOS Catalina‌ or have already done so.

Netflix Macos App

32-Bit App Warnings When Installing Catalina

Using Old Mac Apps In Macos X

When upgrading to ‌macOS Catalina‌, the installer will show a list of recently used apps that are 32-bit so you know what to expect before installing.


After viewing this list, you can choose to either cancel or continue with the installation.

‌macOS Catalina‌ also shows a stop symbol over the icon of 32-bit apps in the Finder, so you know that the app isn't going to open.

Aperture

With the release of ‌macOS Catalina‌, Aperture is going to stop working. Apple warned Aperture users in April 2019 that the software won't run in future versions of macOS, starting with ‌macOS Catalina‌.

If you're an Aperture user, you'll have to transition to alternate photo editing and management software, such as Adobe's Lightroom. Aperture is not 32-bit, but Apple is phasing it out all the same.

Affected Media Formats

Certain media files that use older formats and codecs are also not compatible with macOS after macOS Mojave due to the 64-bit transition, and you will need to convert some iMovie and Final Cut Pro X libraries. Incompatible media files were created using codecs that rely on QuickTime 7, and while macOS Mojave has QuickTime 7 frameworks, future versions of macOS will not.

Apple has a full list of media formats that are going to be affected by the transition available in a support document.

Using Old Mac Apps In Macos Computer

Continuing to Use 32-Bit Apps

In macOS Mojave and earlier versions of macOS like High Sierra, you can continue to use your 32-bit apps. If you have a 32-bit app that you absolutely depend on, you're going to want to think twice before upgrading to ‌macOS Catalina‌.

Guide Feedback

Have questions about the end of support for 32-bit apps or want to offer feedback on this guide? Send us an email here.