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> On the other hand, it is entirely possible to stay on a given version for the entire life of its successor. Or the successor of its successor: Apple doesn't

> On the other hand, it is entirely possible to stay on a given version for the entire life of its successor. Or the successor of its successor: Apple doesn't make any guarantees about it, but typically the _three_ most recent macOS versions receive security updates. Right now: 10.13, 10.14, and 10.15 (plus of course the 10.16 betas). The real problem for many developers is that Xcode typically requires a fairly recent macOS version. Compiling for iOS is the one thing that developers absolutely _need_ a Mac for, so it's unfortunate that Xcode also forces you to be an early adopter on top of that.

jkestner 6y ago
OSes (MacOS, iOS, watchOS, tvOS) and Xcode get released in lockstep. The SDKs for each year’s OS releases will work only on that year’s Xcode, which runs on no earlier than the previous year’s MacOS. I’ve been able to transplant the SDK for iOS 13 (which requires MacOS 10.14) so that I can develop on MacOS 10.13 (the latest my MacBook Pro will run), but that’s about to run out. I may end up with a cheap dev-only Mac Mini.
kergonath 6y ago
Yes, I’ve had some issues with n-2th version support for some software. Although these days, support for older OSes from third-party developers is better than it used to be, I think.