MacOS 11 Big Sur News and Features

Why is it called macOS Big Sur?

One way for Apple to differentiate between different versions of macOS is to give each one a special name. So far we have come across names like Leopard, Lion, Yosemite, El Capitan, Mojave or the newer Catalina. These names are not random, but correspond to California places . In fact, the company maintains a large list of registered names that could give its operating systems a name in the future.

Apple is a company deeply rooted in California and for this reason it explores different natural parks, beaches, deserts and outstanding mountains that not only serve to give name to macOS, but also serve as a perfect model to establish spectacular predetermined wallpapers. In fact, since macOS 10.14 Mojave they include dynamic backgrounds that change their light depending on the time of day.

Big Sur is the name of a sparsely populated region of California located in the south of the Monterey Peninsula, on the shores of the Pacific Ocean and which has spectacular mountains like those of Santa Lucia as a sign of identity. Its name is an Anglo-Hispanic mixture that refers to its geographical location in the south of the peninsula and that mixes both languages instead of being called “Big South” or “Great South”.

Curiously, this only happens in macOS, since other operating systems such as iOS, iPadOS, watchOS or tvOS do not have their own name beyond the corresponding number of each version. Who knows if maybe in the future they could adapt it and make everyone carry the same name every year. In any case, today is exclusive to Macs.

macOS ends up looking like iPadOS

With the powerful hardware of the iPad Pro and the succulent novelties brought by the first version of iPadOS in 2019, many took for granted the conversion of Apple tablets to a Mac. Or at least many expected a hybrid between the two, wishing that this get ideas from macOS. However, with macOS Big Sur the process has been reversed, more similar to this desktop operating system that we have on iPads.

Apple already warned in the presentation of this operating system, in WWDC 2020, that this was the biggest change since the launch of Mac OS X. The most striking thing is the change of icons compared to what was seen in previous versions and more specifically in macOS Catalina, its predecessor. In Big Sur we find a redesign of the icons that represent a hybrid aesthetic between drawings and objects in three dimensions. It also says goodbye to classic icons like the Launchpad, going from a rocket to a box in which the reference to an application drawer is made clear. Although the change comes in all, including the Finder, Mail or the iWork suite that we will talk about in another section.

The buttons have also been refined , making them much more aesthetic and with a much more updated view. This part is where we begin to find more similarities with iPadOS and even iOS, having for example identical toggle buttons as we have on the iPhone and iPad. There is also a new and extensive symbol language that is much more recognizable to the naked eye.

Windows are now literally deeper, shaded, and translucent creating a much more visual and orderly hierarchy. Some aspects like the toolbar stop having a grayish color to adapt more to the background color of the place where we are. Also notable is the way in which some applications and folders have left any insignificant detail to give greater prominence to user content. For example, in the Photos app, in which we find an interface that helps to focus more on what really matters when we use it: viewing our photos and videos without distraction. Option buttons appear only when we need them and hover over them.

Arrival of the Control Center

The Control Center is probably one of the places we go to most frequently on our iPads and iPhones. Curiously, we did not have this on the Mac until macOS Big Sur. In this version we can have access to it and have more control over some settings such as WiFi, volume, Bluetooth, screen brightness, AirPlay and more. In fact it is possible to customize this panel, being able to order it and add more functions than those that appear by default.

Better integration of widgets and notifications

The macOS notification center may have been somewhat forgotten in previous versions of the operating system but now they have wanted to revitalize it. To access this new notification center, simply click on the time of your Mac in the upper right. A menu will pop up showing both notifications and widgets in a single view. At the top are notifications, which are grouped intelligently. Before there was not too much control in this regard and notifications were totally dispersed, but now all those that have some kind of relationship will be grouped together. This is something very similar to what we have on iOS and iPadOS today and that they have successfully decided to integrate into macOS Big Sur. We can expand these notifications to see them more clearly or delete them all together.

The widgets have also come to macOS Big Sur with a design very consistent with the operating system and similar to what we have in iOS 14 and iPadOS 14. These will appear under the notifications and the truth is that they look great with a very successful design and showing a lot of information. To be able to customize them, we simply have to click at the bottom in the ‘Edit widgets’ part to see all the options there are. We will appreciate that a window appears showing all the options available within macOS Big Sur with the possibility of changing the size between S, L and M. Obviously the larger the size, the more information we will have in return.

On the left side of the screen while we are editing your widgets we will see that they can be classified by applications. Although especially those native applications of the operating system stand out, the truth is that any developer who wants to can integrate their widgets into the operating system.

Updating Messages

Unfortunately, the Messages application outside the USA is not used very intensively. But in the North American country it is widely used and that is why they have decided to improve it in this latest update. It is true that the Messages application has been evolving in all operating systems except macOS, which has been totally stuck in the past. At macOS Big Sur they have wanted to work in this direction to update it and take it to a new level. They have included a search function that you will find on top of all the active chats or contacts that we have. Here we can search for both a contact and a text within one of the many chats you have open. This is something that we have in other messaging services such as Telegram or WhatsApp and that is useful for looking for a specific data that you told someone.

Sharing photos and videos is not a problem now, since next to the box to write a new message they have included the option to enter through the App Store icon in the photo library. Here we can choose that photograph or video that we want to share and send it. There is still work to be done as we believe that files should be able to be sent in a very similar way. Currently they must first be uploaded to iCloud and then generate a link to share that file. Sending it by iMessage could be much more comfortable but at the moment it has not arrived.

The memojis have also reached Big Sur, something that was totally rumored, and that is that you can react to a specific message with one of these interesting animated faces. But not only are the memojis that are stored on other computers shared, but you can also customize them in macOS without any problem. In this way we can express ourselves in a much more fun and smiling way to turn the conversation we are having. The animated effects have also come to macOS to be able to celebrate a birthday with a streamer and you can also set those individual or group chats that you access the most at the beginning. All of this obviously syncs with every device in the ecosystem.

Map improvements

Although it is true that using Maps in macOS is not the most comfortable thing in the world while you are on the street to guide you, it can be used to plan new routes. This is why they wanted to improve the Maps application so that you send the most appropriate route to follow on a trip to your iPhone. The design as soon as you enter the application you see that it is different being completely redesigned, with a much more detailed map of Apple in the foreground. For the first time, on Mac you will have different favorite sites set at the beginning such as your home or work.

Before going to work you can plan the route to follow through this application. Little by little they also work to implement internal maps of different important buildings such as an airport. Another of the functions that is arriving in a staggered manner by country is that of ‘ Search ‘. This reminds us a lot of ‘Street View’ of Google Maps and is that you can explore any city moving around it with total freedom. In addition to integrating the locations of all those contacts who are sharing the location in real time.

All the functions seen in iOS 14 are also integrated into macOS Big Sur, such as creating routes for electric cars or bicycles . And the guides are also available although only in those selected countries.

Improvements in Safari

Apple has wanted to directly confront Google Chrome with Safari stating that with macOS Big Sur the browser is able to execute JavaScript better than ever, beating other browsers like Google. And this also happens when loading a page that in theory Safari makes it 50% faster than Chrome. As always, a lot of emphasis is placed on the privacy of users within the ecosystem and that they wanted to reflect it with new functions. With Big Sur, it is now possible to have a report that specifies the sites that were trying to track you down so that you have more information about it. This will be seen by clicking on the shield that appears next to the URL of a web page.

Passwords are another of the most important sections when we are working on a computer and on the internet. There may be a major data leak and the password may leak. Apple will now notify us at any time if the password we have stored has been leaked at any time.

Extensions in Safari now have a greater role. From Apple they are going to enable the option that third-party developers who have extensions in other browsers can easily migrate them to Safari so that the library of available extensions is much richer. All of these will be integrated into a special category of the Mac App Store. We must give special extensions to all extensions to act only on those websites that we choose.

The main Safari screen is now fully customizable. We can choose which elements you want to appear in the first window that you will see when you enter Safari, such as suggestions from Siri or favorite sites. In the background we can put the image that we like the most, such as that of your family or a theme that excites you. Tabs will now always load the Favicon to make it much more locatable in everyday chaos, but also if you hover over the tab you will see a preview .

As seen in iOS 14 and iPadOS 14, in macOS Big Sur you can also translate any web page into our language without problems. Unfortunately, this function is limited to specific languages that will be expanded in the future.

Catalyst continues to strengthen

The Catalyst project is giving developers a lot of possibilities to get their applications from iPad to Mac with little difficulty. Swift Playgrounds has been one of the applications that has recently landed on macOS thanks to Catalyst. As notable innovations in Big Sur developers will be able to use optimize their applications to adapt it to the original resolution of the Mac screens. There are also new functions such as new APIs for keyboard and mouse as well as the possibilities to check boxes or arrows.

Mac compatible with macOS Big Sur

This version of macOS 11 has left behind several Mac models that are compatible with previous versions such as macOS Catalina. This is the list of compatible devices:

• Mac mini: 2014 and later.
• Mac Pro: 2013 and later.
• iMac: 2014 and later.
• iMac Pro: 2017 and later
• MacBook: 2015 and later.
• MacBook Air: 2013 and later.
• MacBook Pro: late 2013 and later.

Installing macOS 11

Currently, it is only possible to access this software version through beta versions released by Apple after the announcement of said system. It is expected that in September or October it can arrive for all audiences. If you want to test the beta for developers, you can do it by following the steps below, although we do not recommend it because it is unstable and generates certain bugs, although if you make a backup, you can be more relaxed about possible restorations.

• On the Mac, open the browser (Safari preferably).
• Go to the betaprofiles.com website.
• Search for ” macOS 11″.
• Click on the “Download” button to start downloading the developer profile.
• Go to the folder where the file was downloaded and run it.
• Go now System Preferences> Software update and it will be here you will find the beta ready for download and installation. You may need to restart your Mac to carry out this process.