Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Computing
  3. News

MacOS Catalina already has a supplemental update, and you should download it now

By
New MacOS Catalina Update
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Apple released a supplemental update for MacOS 10.15 Catalina on Tuesday measuring 985.4MB. The company recommends that all Catalina users install this update, as it brings fixes and improved reliability. Mac owners must restart their device to complete the update.

Here are the release notes:

“macOS Catalina Supplemental Update

Recommended Videos

The macOS Catalina Supplemental Update includes installation and reliability improvements and is recommended for all users.

This update:

  • Improves installation reliability of macOS Catalina on Macs with low disk space
  • Fixes an issue that prevented Setup Assistant from completing during some installations
  • Resolves an issue that prevents accepting iCloud Terms and Conditions when multiple iCloud accounts are logged in
  • Improves the reliability of saving Game Center data when playing Apple Arcade games offline
Please enable Javascript to view this content

For detailed information about the security content of this update, please visit: https://support.apple.com/kb/HT201222

Related

MacOS 10.15 Catalina arrived in early October bringing new apps for music, Apple TV, and podcasts to Mac owners.”

Catalina also includes a new “Sidecar” feature that extends or mirrors the desktop to an iPad running iOS 13 serving as a secondary display. This apparently only works “officially” on specific Macs, like the 2018 MacBook Air and the 2019 Mac Pro, though users can enter a lengthy Terminal command to enable Sidecar on older Macs:

defaults write com.apple.sidecar.display AllowAllDevices -bool true; defaults write com.apple.sidecar.display hasShownPref -bool true; open /System/Library/PreferencePanes/Sidecar.prefPane

Other new features spied in Catalina include weak password warnings in Safari, a “block sender” tool in the Mail app, an updated Reminders app, larger photo previews, colored tints covering your entire screen, a new Apple ID location in System Preferences, and more.

The removal of iTunes may be a big surprise for Mac owners after the update. Rather than cram your entire media library into a single place, you can now access albums in the Music app and your TV shows and movies on the Apple TV app. Users can still purchase media through these apps, or enable the iTunes Store interface by clicking the app’s name in the menu bar followed by Preferences.

A previous report suggests that Mac owners may want to hold off on the Catalina upgrade. Many users now report of missing or incomplete messages after its installation. Others claim moving emails between mailboxes results in blank messages.

Editors’ Recommendations

Topics
Kevin Parrish
Kevin Parrish
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Kevin started taking PCs apart in the 90s when Quake was on the way and his PC lacked the required components. Since then…
A new malware threat to macOS adds to the data-stealing surge
Apple MacBook Pro 16 downward view showing keyboard and speaker.

If you still think Macs are inherently safe from malware, think again.

Mac users have another threat to worry about. Cthulhu Stealer, a new Mac malware threat, tries to steal sensitive data such as passwords and cryptocurrency wallets, Cado Security reports in a blog post. The malware threat disguises itself as authentic software to gather login credentials.

Read more
I finally tried Apple Intelligence in macOS Sequoia to see if it lived up to the hype
The redeisgned Siri user interface in macOS Sequoia.

For the last few years, Apple’s macOS releases have been interesting, if not particularly exciting. But that’s all set to change this year with the launch of macOS Sequoia, and it’s all thanks to one feature: Apple Intelligence.

Apple’s artificial intelligence (AI) platform has the potential to completely change how you use your Mac on a daily basis. From generating images, rewriting emails, and summarizing your audio recordings to revamping Siri into a much more capable virtual assistant, Apple Intelligence could be the most significant new macOS feature in years.

Read more
You can finally try out Apple Intelligence on your Mac. Here’s how
macOS Sequoia being introduced by Apple's Craig Federighi at the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) 2024.

The second developer beta of macOS Sequoia is open for business and it includes Apple Intelligence features. It looks like anyone can try it out as long as you're not in China. That includes people in the EU -- even though the AI features might not launch there right away. The features available for testing include Writing Tools, Siri, Safari and Mail summaries, Smart Replies, Memory Movies, transcription features, Reduce Interruptions Focus Mode, and a few more. If you want to have a look yourself, here's everything you need to do to download the beta and activate Apple Intelligence.

Before you start, make sure you've backed up your Mac with Time Machine so you can restore the previous version if anything goes wrong. You can also use a secondary device if you have another Apple silicon Mac lying around because beta versions can go wrong and you have to download them at your own risk.

Read more