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Well they've already figured out multi-targeting in XCode and gave done this once before so I would imagine for a lot of developers it will just be a recompile.

Well they've already figured out multi-targeting in XCode and gave done this once before so I would imagine for a lot of developers it will just be a recompile. I saw a really cheap MacBook Air deal the other day and was tempted until I saw they're i3 based. Assuming App support, I could see them replace that with an ARM based CPU without anyone noticing.

meatmanek 6y ago
They've done this 2 to 5 times before, depending on whether you count the 32-bit to 64-bit conversions and iOS. 68k->PPC, PPC->PPC64, PPC->x86, x86->x86-66, arm->arm64
- jdxcode 6y ago
  what is x86-66?
  - MarkSweep 6y ago
    X86-64 is the 64-bit version of x86, also known as AMD 64 and Intel 64. The first computers that apple shipped with Intel processors only supported x86 (32-bit). The most recent version of macOS removed support for x86, only allowing 64-bit apps to run. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X86-64 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X86-64
    - vdfs 6y ago
      Yes, but what is what is x86-66?
      - rurban 6y ago
        A typo
- timw4mail 6y ago
  I'm not sure you could say they fully transitioned from PPC to PPC64, as only the G5s were 64bit, and laptops never got the G5. I think the x86 transition would have been easier if it started out 64bit, but that's probably Intel's fault. More practically, the transitions so far have been like this: 68k -> PPC (With full 68k emulation) -> x86 (with partial PPC emulation) -> x86_64
leejoramo 6y ago
Yes Apple has mastered multi-targeting. Apple has completed MANY major transitions 68k -> PPC -> Mac OS X -> Intel -> a near perfect 64bit transition. Then there is the NeXT side that ran on 68k, x86, PA-RISC, and SPARC Of course OS X was the foundation to iOS I think the forced death of 32bit apps last year entirely in preparation for moving to ARM.
- solarkraft 6y ago
  > I think the forced death of 32bit apps last year entirely in preparation for moving to ARM You probably mean this is so they're not in multiple transitions at once. Something to note here is that Microsoft's x86 emulation only works for 32 bit apps (a processor limitation?), but with Apple having more control over their chips (and no knowledge about the exact issue) I could imagine them having it solved.
  - leejoramo 6y ago
    No, what I have heard from a Mac developer friend is that Apple's Xcode tool chain is likely able cross-compline x86-64 applications to ARM with relative ease. By forcing developers to move to 64bit last year, much of the work will already be done for the ARM transition. (Of course, there are always difficult cases that will take lots of work)

meatmanek 6y ago

They've done this 2 to 5 times before, depending on whether you count the 32-bit to 64-bit conversions and iOS. 68k->PPC, PPC->PPC64, PPC->x86, x86->x86-66, arm->arm64

jdxcode 6y ago
what is x86-66?
- MarkSweep 6y ago
  X86-64 is the 64-bit version of x86, also known as AMD 64 and Intel 64. The first computers that apple shipped with Intel processors only supported x86 (32-bit). The most recent version of macOS removed support for x86, only allowing 64-bit apps to run. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X86-64 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X86-64
  - vdfs 6y ago
    Yes, but what is what is x86-66?
    - rurban 6y ago
      A typo
timw4mail 6y ago
I'm not sure you could say they fully transitioned from PPC to PPC64, as only the G5s were 64bit, and laptops never got the G5. I think the x86 transition would have been easier if it started out 64bit, but that's probably Intel's fault. More practically, the transitions so far have been like this: 68k -> PPC (With full 68k emulation) -> x86 (with partial PPC emulation) -> x86_64

leejoramo 6y ago

Yes Apple has mastered multi-targeting. Apple has completed MANY major transitions 68k -> PPC -> Mac OS X -> Intel -> a near perfect 64bit transition. Then there is the NeXT side that ran on 68k, x86, PA-RISC, and SPARC Of course OS X was the foundation to iOS I think the forced death of 32bit apps last year entirely in preparation for moving to ARM.

solarkraft 6y ago
> I think the forced death of 32bit apps last year entirely in preparation for moving to ARM You probably mean this is so they're not in multiple transitions at once. Something to note here is that Microsoft's x86 emulation only works for 32 bit apps (a processor limitation?), but with Apple having more control over their chips (and no knowledge about the exact issue) I could imagine them having it solved.
- leejoramo 6y ago
  No, what I have heard from a Mac developer friend is that Apple's Xcode tool chain is likely able cross-compline x86-64 applications to ARM with relative ease. By forcing developers to move to 64bit last year, much of the work will already be done for the ARM transition. (Of course, there are always difficult cases that will take lots of work)