Next Stop: macOS Ventura
macOS Ventura running on a range of Macs - Image via Apple
07 JUNE 2022 - macOS 13 Ventura has a lot of features that aren’t just macOS features. I’ve joked for years that Apple is merging macOS, iOS, and iPadOS into one operating system for the whole of the ecosystem. I do think you could make that argument, though it might be more fair to say that Apple is building a language for computer use. Not like a programming language. More like a set of expectations around how devices will work. For example, Stage Manager is a feature for both macOS Ventura and iPadOS 16. Remember Spaces for Mac, the feature that would let you create multiple desktops through which you could scroll? This is sort of like that, but more convenient. Rather than moving from one desktop to another, Stage Manager lets the app or group of apps with which you’re working take center stage, while the rest of the open apps hang out to the side. Click one of the apps in the wings, and the app or group of apps you had been using moves to the wings, with the new one selected taking center stage.
Sounds gimmicky at first, though the more I saw it, the more useful it seemed.
Another one that blurs the OS line is Continuity Camera. Put simply, this feature lets Mac users use their iPhone as a webcam, and then some. The iPhone/Mac combo gives the user Center Stage, Portrait mode, Studio Light, and something called Desk View. Basically, if you want to show someone something on your physical desk, Continuity Camera can show both your face and your physical desktop without moving or repositioning the iPhone.
And I was - seriously - this close to buying a webcam to go with my M1 Mac mini. Glad I waited.
Other features include:
Shared Tab Groups, letting select users share their favorite sites in Safari and see what tabs others are looking at live. That, plus a shared Start Page, and the ability to start a Messages conversation or FaceTime call in Safari make the browser an interesting collaboration tool.
Improvements to Mail, including more comprehensive search, scheduled delivery, reminders for following up on messages received, and the ability to cancel delivery after hitting send, provided you change your mind in ten-seconds or less.
Messages on the Mac can be edited or undone, provided that’s done within 15-minutes of sending. Sharing file via Messages is no longer just sending a copy, with collaboration added as an option instead. And SharePlay has made its way into Messages for Mac as well.
There are improvements to Spotlight.
There’s an iCloud Shared Photo Library, letting users “create and share a separate photo library among up to six family members…”
Browsing in Safari gets more secure with passkeys. Made to replace passwords, Apple says “Passkeys make it simple to sign in securely, using Touch ID or Face ID for biometric verification, and iCloud Keychain to sync across Mac, iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV with end-to-end encryption.”
Games get better with Metal 3. That’ll allow such AAA games as GRID Legends, Resident Evil Village, and No Man’s Sky to hit the Mac later this year.
And that is just some of what’s in store for the Mac update.
Hitching a Ride
If you’re wondering whether you can get to Ventura from where you are, a piece from MacRumors lists machines that’ll make the move. They include:
iMac (2017 and later)
iMac Pro
MacBook Air (2018 and later)
MacBook Pro (2017 and later)
Mac Pro (2019 and later)
Mac mini (2018 and later)
MacBook (2017 and later)
As for when you can get your hands on it, the first beta is out to developers now. Betas will be available for Apple’s public testing program sometime in July. The public release is slated for sometime this fall.
