Snow Leopard warning: Your apps may crash
snowleopard.wikidot.com
One day before the scheduled launch of Mac OS X Snow Leopard — the latest update of Apple's (AAPL) flagship operating system — developers are still scrambling to make sure their applications will work with the new version.
Of the Macintosh apps than have been tested on the gold master of OS X v.10.6 as of Wednesday morning, more than 60 either don't work or have major problems, according to snowleopard.wikidot.com, a collaborative project that is collating independent test results.
Most of the major productivity apps — Microsoft (MSFT) Office 2008, Adobe (ADBE) CS4 Suite and QuarkXPress — are OK.
But there are some big exceptions, including Adobe Photoshop Elements (No. 6 on Amazon's Mac bestseller list) and Google Gears, a Web browser extension that allows offline access to a number of popular online applications.
And users of early versions of some important programs — Parallels version 3.0, for example, or Adobe CS2 — will find they need to update their software.
Snow Leopard: The reviews are in
Among the apps on our hard drive known to have problems with Snow Leopard are Boxee, Reunion, Times Reader and Vuze. Many more, including TurboTax and SlingPlayer, are not listed as tested.
If you're worried about your computer, you can search for your key apps on the wikidot page here (be patient, the server may be busy). Or you can follow the first rule in computer software: wait until the kinks have been worked out before installing a new OS.
UPDATE: The snowleopard.wikidot.com page is working again and has been updated. Among other changes, SlingPlayer has been tested (it works) and there's a version of Reunion (6.0a) in development that is said to be Snow Leopard ready.
UPDATE 2: Apple has posted a support page that includes a partial list of software known not to work with Snow Leopard. Click here.
FIXED IT! And it's easier than I guessed. I'm ecstatic. Anyone that's getting crashes whenever the system tries to save or open docs should try this:
-1. Start by opening System Preferences
-2. Select 'Sharing' from the Internet & Wireless section
-3. From the list on the left choose 'File Sharing' and turn it off.
-4. Delete anything listed in the Shared Folders section
-5. Turn File Sharing back on
-6. Log out, then Log back in
-7. Done!!
I'm saving and loading like a crazy person now. No thanks to Apple or Adobe for this fix.
Mr Pi
Installed Snow Leopard yesterday. Since then multiple apps have crashed several times including Adobe CS4 Suite, Microsoft Office 08. My scanner now also refuses to work even after I reloaded software for it. Needless to say, I am uninstalling it today and throwing it in the trash!
ex ped: Uninstalling may not be as easy as you think. You may want to talk to Apple first.
Macs rule…….. everyone is switching and those who are not are obviously retarded, deaf, dumb, blind, lost and foolish. PC now stands for prehistoric crapheaps/
cs3 was a great suite, and i'm certain that you won't find a cs3 installation cd that lists snow leopard as a compatable operating system.(the same is also true of CS4). The CS suites are incredible bundles of software created by a great company. No blame need be assessed.
conversely, snow leopard was not coded for compatability with any specific adobe product.
end of story.
That being said, i'm certain both parties will do everything possible to make the neccassary adaptations for there clients: me, the user (cs2 on pc, cs4 on mac), and each other!!!
upgrades are not requirements, but rather options.
I do not have snow leopard yet, mainly do to the fact "it is always better to wait until the kinks are out." In contemporary times "time is money" the quicker a product is released the bigger the capital. Every OS ever released has kinks at first. So, if this release angers you, you have only yourself to blame for thinking this would be any different. I am avid apple user and make a living in the IT field.
Apart from obvious mistakes commented on before, I don't see any comments about Rosetta. This Apple-developed emulator was built-in in previous OS X versions. It allows PPC apps to run on Intel processors. Its size is about 3 MB and it is part of the OS. Snow Leopard does not install it as default but it is available for custom install. I suspect that some "incompatibilities" may result from standard install rather than custom one. Once Rosetta is there, PPC apps should run fine on Snow Leopard, unless there are some unreported bugs to be fixed in updates. I would not panic nor comment without any knowledge of the subject, like on Apple in general.
The transition from XP to Vista DID NOT happened without problems, I know for sure that many people had problems with drivers in Vista even after SP1 (a massive 560 megs patch…), and XP needed 2 service packs to work decently, NOT perfectly… So please let's stop the childish "I hate this company" thing, there will be fixes soon, 'cause just like every new OS when it comes out, it isn't perfect. And by the way, just like KSeabolt said, if you don't like it, don't install it, Leopard works just great.
Another reason to hate Apple. I dont care if these programs are 50 years old! I freakin love when they have issues, they screwed me over for so many years on buying a piece of crap ipod that would A) not work B) need a new battery C) have compatiblity issues. Customer support is a joke. I really dont see why some many people like these Crapples.
Keep in mind, Andrew, that any application five years old would be a PowerPC app. How many of us with Intel Macs run any PowerPC apps, let alone five-year-old ones?
The only PowerPC app I use semi-regularly is AppleWorks 6, which happens to be more than five years old and apparently works fine in Snow Leopard.
OMG. What a bunch of haters. It's an optional upgrade folks. If you don't want it don't install it. Simple. Leopard isn't obsolete. Macs running Leopard will still work beautifully. Seriously.
Having worked for a company that does Mac development I can tell you this isn't uncommon. Some of the biggest headaches I've ever had to deal with in my software engineering career, and most costly to fix, were because of new releases of OSX breaking previously working software. In fact, now that I think about it, this was only a problem for our Mac software; our Windows software made the XP to Vista transition without incident. Go figure…
So 2 version old software might not work, and a package that is orphaned by adobe might have problems? And some obscure packages that 95% of users have never heard of don't work?
OK, if MS Office or Adobe's CS4 suite didn't work that would be major news. But really, WindowShade X (really the name "Haxies" says it all) or Wakoopa Tracker? That made FORTUNE? Guys this is non-news.
This has nothing to do with Apple-Developer communications. Either the developer in some case used some non-standard call (Ambrosia is famous for this, although I love their apps, so I forgive them) or is planning a simultaneous release with 10.6, which often happens.
Adobe, if you read THEIR press releases, stated they didn't want to invest effort in CS3, when they are looking ahead to CS5 and making it 64-bit clean; call adobe, don't complain about apple in this case.
And Parallels 3, well remember that is a crazy-complicated piece of software under the hood (it emulates a whole other computer environment for goodness sake with all sorts of complicated OS mapping of calls) so no surprise there, but really, the upgrade there is not onerous.
It must be a slow day in Fortune's news room!
Snow leopard is pretty good, running it on my MiniDell. It is expected that poorly written apps will have to patch themselves. I think its pretty stable and fast. Good upgrade.
Wait, but Macs are perfect! Everything "just works", always, every time. Only Microsoft would be so terrible as to force you to upgrade apps to be compatible. What is this world coming to??
Journalistic sensationalism has no place in science or technology. Wait until Snow Leopard has officially been released, examine the experiences of the wider user community, collate the data, then by all means offer up an informed opinion. It matters not whether it’s Snow Leopard, Vista, Windows 7, etc.; the approach to responsible correspondence and review should be the same. In a competitive business environment, I don’t read this guy’s column for the same reasons I don’t watch FOX News. I need facts I can rely on, pure and simple.
“Two days before the scheduled launch of Mac OS X Snow Leopard — the latest update of Apple's (AAPL) flagship operating system —” implies that there are other, lesser, ships in Apple’s OS software fleet. Please list them.
ex ped: iPhone OS, for example. And whatever it is that runs the iPod line.
I really wish you would stop writing for Fortune. Surely this is not the type of sensational Tabloid Rubbish that they aspire to have their good name on.
Your claim that Apple has a terrible history of backwards compatibility might be true. If that's a problem, than don't upgrade.
Look at the alternative, Windows. Windows has fairly good backwards compatibility and development and usability are absolutely atrocious.
It's really a tradeoff. You can go state-of-the-art all the time and force people to stay on the cutting edge, OR you can keep legacy software at the cost of either having to inhibit enhancements in software or bloating the OS because you keep the old version and the new.
Why is everybody so crazy about the update ? No serious user should update to the first release of any software… Any new release will get many bug fixes within the first month or two.
The current OS is just stable and good enough, without the need for urgent upgrades, unlike VISTA. Where you either can not buy a computer with compatible OS or you if you have a computer with pre installed OS you can not find the apps running on it.
That ADOBE is not following fast and easy is no surprise, they are among the few apps on apple that can not even follow the general short cuts convention used by virtually any app within OS X. Basing a product on exceptions makes your product more vulnerable to changes.
From a developer point of view Apple is one of the easiest platforms to work with, since 99% of the requirements of a software are handled be readymade libraries. If you manage to work with these provided "tools" your software will more or less automatically fit within the scheme of a new release of OS, or minor adjustments are needed.
So at the end its the developers choice to follow or to battle.
Buy the way, as a veteran Apple user and system admin, I have none of the listed Apps on my computers (except for Adobe), all the ones that are in use daily are supported.
The title of this article is rresponsible and misleading.
The vast majority of incompatible apps are items that very few Mac uses have even heard of. I'm a power user with 25 years of Mac and PC experience and a regularly published pro on the subject, and most of the incompatible titles mentioned aren't even a blip on the radar.
Is the writer planning to lower the value of Apple stock in order to make a buck on the bounce?
ex ped: No.
5M copies isn't really anything to brag about considering the price.
Hmm, if you figure an average between the $10 and $30 upgrades, that's probably about $100 million. I'll take it if you don't want it.
I dont see why everyone making a big deal out of it. there are always problems with a new OS in the beginning. it just takes time. MS, was bad about compatability on every OS but over time..things started working…then again..maybe not..you just had to rebuy the same devices. Im new to the MAC world for a few months now and i like it…but i also know APPLE is notorious for not making things work together…i have an Iphone but it wont work with a ipod charger or other adapters..
Funny why does everyone talk about Vista so much. The only people that have problems are the mis-informed and technically challenged. It was designed for SECURITY as a priority. Not everyday use.
People get educated or get lost. Vista Ultimate Rocks! I have not had a single issue and this computer is used for everything from gaming to photoshop without a hitch.
Windows 7 is just a relaxed version of Vista! Sheesh.. people get a clue. Also, Apple is not all of that.. if it took over the market it would have the same issues in less than a month!
This is why I run Linux, all popular apps have alternatives, the OS is more secure than Windows and much more secure than MAC!
My god people, will you grow up and stop falling in love with your tools.
They are tools, not your mate for life. Use the most appropriate one for the job.
New computer programs always have problems and compatibility issues, operating systems are even worse.
Everyone I know with a mac has just as many problems as everyone with windows and linux does. No OS or program is exempt from bugs and problems.
Get over it.
Sounds to me like Apple is rushing this out the door to beat the next version of windoze and get some marketing hype, my guess is they’ll bloody their nose over it just like everyone else who rushes something to market and you early adopters will pay the price.
Personally I use my computers to get work done and won’t touch a new OS on a production machine until it’s at least a year old.
I don't know why people are surprised about this, Apple have a horrible history of backward compatible. People with four year old Mac's can't even run Snow Leopard for example
Are you referring to PowerPC CPU support? The chips Apple hasn't put into any new Macs for years?
Whatever you might think of Microsoft, it's hard to deny that their support for old systems and software is incredibly impressive. Just try running a five year old app on any recent Apple computer.
So explain to me why I can't load Vista on an Alpha CPU-based computer.
Microsoft has never (successfully) ported their OS to a completely new chip family. Apple has done that twice and devised binary program formats that would simultaneously support the old and new CPU families both times. That sure looks like backward-compatibility and legacy system support.
Adobe Photoshop Elements works fine for me on SL.
In fact, I haven't found any program that don't run well on it, including Quark 8, InDesign CS3, Microsoft Office in several iterations, Firefox, GL Golf, Adobe Dreamweaver, comic Life, EasyDraw, FindDuplicateFiles, Home Design Studio, Scrabble, Stuffit, Synchronize X Plus, All Windows Media Players, Silverlight, Yummy FTP and many others.
So when a new OS from Microsoft comes out and some programs don't work, it's Microsoft's fault.
But on the other hand, when it happens with Apple, it's obviously the program creator's fault.
Something seems wrong with this picture here. Seems very lopsided to me.
I don't know why people are surprised about this, Apple have a horrible history of backward compatible. People with four year old Mac's can't even run Snow Leopard for example
I'm amazed though that people see this as being the fault of developers, and not Apple. Many of these breakages are NOT because developers ignored technical guidance but because of Apple's changes to underlying systems. And if you disagree, feel free to post an example.
Whatever you might think of Microsoft, it's hard to deny that their support for old systems and software is incredibly impressive. Just try running a five year old app on any recent Apple computer.
There's enough blame to get spread around on this one. Just dealing with the apps mentioned in the article and screenshot there's a few different reasons for the problems.
First off, Snow Leopard is releasing a couple weeks early which caught some of the smaller studios off guard.
Second, unlike Windows which has a long lead time from RTM to retail (months) Apple has left a very narrow window between announcing the final build for developers and arrival on shelves. By narrow, I mean that developers have NOT officially been told if the code they have in their hands right now is the final code.
In some cases (Wakoopa Tracker) the app did run in earlier versions and then suddenly stopped working very recently.
Google Gears suffers from Apple's lack of compromise. Unlike the 64-bit Vista and Windows 7 that use a 32-bit version of Internet Explorer to avoid headaches, Apple is shipping a 64-bit version of Safari that uses complex methods to get things like Flash that don't have 64-bit editions (hmm, Adobe) to work. No surprise Gears is behind as it's likely a fairly significant portion of code that needs to be dealt with here. Note that Gears DOES work on Firefox under Snow Leopard, this only affects Safari.
So there's plenty of blame to go around. Some that just couldn't be avoided.
Let's try this one more time — Adobe has not made a version of Photoshop Elements for Mac for YEARS, and do not offer one now — check their web site.
Why is this app mentioned in this story on Snow Leopard compatibility???
ex ped: We mention it because it is, as we say, one of the best selling Mac programs on Amazon.
Here's the Amazon listing:
http://www.amazon.com/Adobe-Photoshop-Elements-6-Mac/dp/B0012LMQFI/ref=pd_ts_sw_7?ie=UTF8&s=software
Here's Adobe's support page:
Am I missing something, or has anybody noticed that ADobe does not OFFER a Mac version of Photoshop Elements? So Snow Leopard compatibility is not exactly relevant …
for those that think the developers should have picked up and made the software work with this new version I have one simple question?
Will you pay for a new license to go with this newer version?
maybe snow leopards aren't as creative as regular leopards 
i found this really great article on mac operating system names, have a look: http://onthebutton.wordpress.com/2009/08/26/apple-snow-leopard/
What happened to the backwards compatibility? I worry that the lack of such compatibility with this new release is going to give the same bad taste with consumers that Vista did.
Let's be clear:
Adobe simply drags their feet on everything. Go look through their boards on bugs, PDF artifacts, updates, etc.
That said, they are now on CS4, so what better incentive to force people to upgrade?
It's not Apple's fault. Adobe wouldn't be lazy if they had some competition, which they don't.
Thanks Chris for adding… well… nothing of value. Many Mac users will probably dislike the initial release as well, and 5M copies isn't really anything to brag about considering the price.
Thanks for playing
There have always been software developers who ignore technical guidance, be it from Apple or Microsoft. When that happens, things go splat.
I trust Apple to do their best, but bad stuff happens.
Blah.. blah… blah… Snow Leopard is going to be incredible. The list of applications not working "properly" is miniscule.
There will be some hiccups along the way, but the applications for the most part will work fine and won't cause any serious issues for users.
Unlike Microsoft's Vista which was rejected by a majority of users, Apple's Snow Leopard will be a big success. Already, it is estimated that Apple will sell at least 5 million copies.
If something like this happens on Windows world then it is MS fault (remember how how people were cribbing their s/w drivers not working with Vista, which had multiple public betas)
@Johninchicago
"sorta – I wonder… with Apple's reputation for very limited communication with developers, it's hard for me as an outsider to know where to put the blame. How much time did devs really have?"
As I said, 18 months.
"Was there any reason to believe 18 months ago the OS would ship this year?"
Yes.
"How did the Mac OS changes break the apps?"
Different ways.
"and when was that feature released?"
about 18 months ago.
"How much assistance does Apple gives Mac developers to help them get ready?"
I think you are muddling up Apple's feedback to iPhone App developers with the amount of material provided to developers for application development on the Mac. Generally Apple provide very good tools and a considerable amount of supplementary to develop applications for the Mac. There are still some shops that don't use Apple's current development environment to develop Mac applications and I wonder if you can guess the names of some of them? Certainly Adobe have reluctantly moved towards using any of Apple's improvements – their management was a Windows sell out – and they were hoping for Apple to fail – and have always dragged their feet in developing tools for the Mac since the release of OSX.
"To some extent, I agree that devs who want to provide apps have to keep up with the evolving OSes — but I think it's unfair to put this all on the devs without knowing more"
Adobe like to cross develop for both platforms and therefore are not wanting to use Apple's development tools. That is basically the issue.
"My instinct – based on Apple's reputation for poor developer communication — is that Apple should hold some accountability here."
Your instinct is based on the Internet being an echoey place and you muddling Apple's inability to handle and process 8,500 apps and updates a week for the iPhone with the ability of Apple to provide the resources needed to develop for the platform. Two entirely different things. It is simply laziness on behalf of the developers who can't be bothered to react to the new software release.
Doesn't matter though. Because there are now an enormous number of developers who know how to develop for the Mac as they are using the same toolset to develop for the iPhone. I think this is the point that many people have completely misunderstood. If you are not using these tools then there are plenty of other willing and ready to step up to the plate.
@ John, Chicago, IL
You say:
" wonder… with Apple's reputation for very limited communication with developers, it's hard for me as an outsider to know where to put the blame. How much time did devs really have?"
1-There have been Beta versions of Snow Leopard out for a very long time (18 months??). That – and associated documentation – is all the communication a developer should nee. There has been an extensive trial period.
2- "Was there any reason to believe 18 months ago the OS would ship this year?"
Of course there was – it is the target Apple has been publicizing for almost 2 years.
Link to Google cache since the site is hosed already.
Adobe just announced that CS3 is unsupported. It's worked fine for me in limited use, but that's disappointing.
For an OS that's supposed to be mainly "refinements", any software that's incompatible seems of questionable quality to begin with.
Yep, Adobe AGAIN is among the foot draggers. Their apps have consistently been among the last to update after a system update. Unfortunately, I need Photoshop Elements on a daily basis.
1. Shouldn't be too much of a surprise with any upgrade to an OS.
2. I've been running it for a week or so and haven't run into any issues, so far.
What do you expect compatibility all the time? HAHAHA. Welcome to the world of Microsoft. I think apple should make all their own apps so there is no problem. They like to do it do they? Quit blaming the 3rd party developers. BLAME APPLE. Just like Microsoft is always to blame.
@RattyUK sorta – I wonder… with Apple's reputation for very limited communication with developers, it's hard for me as an outsider to know where to put the blame. How much time did devs really have? Was there any reason to believe 18 months ago the OS would ship this year? How did the Mac OS changes break the apps — and when was that feature released? How much assistance does Apple gives Mac developers to help them get ready?
To some extent, I agree that devs who want to provide apps have to keep up with the evolving OSes — but I think it's unfair to put this all on the devs without knowing more. My instinct – based on Apple's reputation for poor developer communication — is that Apple should hold some accountability here.
"But there are some big exceptions, including Adobe Photoshop Elements (No. 6 on Amazon's Mac bestseller list) and Google Gears, a Web browser extension that allows offline access to a number of popular online applications."
There is no excuse for this – developers have had well over 18 months to get things ready and a good two months to tidy everything up since WWDC – I'm looking at you Adobe – to ship working versions of everything.
"Or you can follow the first rule in computer software: wait until the kinks have been worked out before installing a new OS."
So the laziness of 3rd party developers is a good enough reason to withhold a software update? Hmmm. The devs should have got with the program and produced stuff that works.
All my CS4 apps crash, crash, crash (not great when working all day with them), Firefox crashes randomly during FTP and uploads, MacBook Pro is now running hotter (didn't know that was possible!) Going back to Leopard.