2015's OS X will be the last to support the aged-but-still-popular Java 6 Apple today released the second developer preview of OS X 10.11, aka El Capitan, matching the cadence of last year’s Yosemite to the day. Previews of the Mac’s next operating system are currently restricted to registered developers, although Apple has pledged to offer a beta to the general public next month. Apple debuted El Capitan June 8 at its annual developers conference. The 15-day lag between then and today’s second beta was identical to the stretch between the first and second previews of OS X 10.10, better known as Yosemite, in 2014. If Apple continues to hew to the same schedule as last year, it will offer a public beta of El Capitan on July 30. That’s unlikely, as it will barely make Apple’s self-imposed deadline, presenting poor optics to the faithful. More probable would be a July 23 release for the public preview; like last year’s Yosemite public beta roll-out, that’s a Thursday. Not surprisingly, Developer Preview 2 contains a host of unfinished features and known problems. For example, Apple’s not recommending that users upgrade directly from OS X 10.7, aka Lion, or earlier, and said that if a Mac lapses into sleep mode while an AirDrop panel is open, the Wi-Fi connection may be slow upon wake. Also of note is that El Capitan will be the last major release of OS X to support Java 6, the software Oracle retired in March 2013 and Apple deprecated in 2010. Apple last bundled Java with its Mac OS as of 2009’s Snow Leopard; 2011’s Lion did not include the software, although users could manually install it themselves. While most Mac users don’t miss Java much, those who use Apple’s computers in the workplace might be stymied with the next OS X if, as promised, the operating system doesn’t support the creaky-but-still-widely-used Java 6. According to Wolfgang Kandek, the chief technology officer of Qualys, Java 6 remained popular in enterprises during 2014. By the end of the year, Qualys’ scans showed that over 40% of all client personal computers — the vast majority of them Windows PCs — were running Java 6. The software was there for a reason: Many companies have an assortment of Java 6-compatible line-of-business applications that would need to be written — at a considerable cost — to work with newer editions. Macs in those shops would need Java 6 to run those apps. Qualys Java 6, which Apple abandoned years ago, remained popular in the enterprise last year, according to scans run by Qualys. That may be trouble down the road for Macs used in those workplaces because Apple plans to drop Java 6 support next year. Related content news analysis Apple earnings: About that iPhone 'slump' in China Based on information from Thursday's earnings report, it seems that data pointing to an iPhone slump in China were over-baked. By Jonny Evans May 03, 2024 9 mins iMac iPhone Apple news Microsoft begins to phase out ‘classic’ Teams Microsoft is encouraging Teams customers to move to the new, faster version of the collaboration app; the older version will be switched off next year. By Matthew Finnegan May 03, 2024 3 mins Microsoft Teams Collaboration Software Productivity Software news analysis Apple confirms it will open up the iPad in Europe this fall The latest efforts to comply with Europe’s Digital Markets Act mean developers can offer to side load apps to both iPhones and iPads in the EU. Apple has also taken steps to improve what it offers to smaller and non-commercial developers in the By Jonny Evans May 02, 2024 6 mins iPad Apple Mobile Apps news Udacity offers laid-off US workers free access to its courses for 30 days Sign-ups will be available over the next 30 days By Lucas Mearian May 02, 2024 4 mins Technology Industry IT Jobs IT Skills Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe