Apple’s macOS Big Sur 11.3 update may prevent people in some countries from using Rosetta emulation to run non-optimized Intel x86 apps on Apple silicon computers.
Due to Legal Issues?
This could be for legal reasons, said iOS developer Steve Moser on Twitter.
“Apple is removing Rosetta from Macs during updates in certain countries in macOS 11.3 beta 3,” he tweeted, positing that the change may have something to do with legal issues.
Normally, people who own a Mac computer powered by the company’s M1 chip might see a message asking to install Rosetta. Rosetta is a compatibility layer between different instruction set architectures. It automatically translates non-Apple silicon apps to work with the M1 Macs on macOS Big Sur.
According to Moser, the third beta of macOS Big Sur 11.3 includes strings for a system message to inform the user that “Rosetta will be removed upon installing this update.” Another reference in the macOS code says “Rosetta is no longer available in your region,” adding that any apps requiring Rosetta “will no longer run”.
Although nearly half of the major Mac apps still haven’t been optimized for Apple silicon, the discovery of these code strings in macOS 11.3 doesn’t necessarily mean that this feature will be implemented by the time macOS 11.3 launches publicly.
Other New Features in macOS 11.3
The update packs in other perks, like a new interface for mapping the buttons on your paired gaming controller to custom keyboard and mouse combinations. It’s unclear if this feature might also make it easier to play iPad games on M1 Macs.
New in Mac 11.3 beta 3 thread. 🧵
Apple is getting more serious about gaming on macOS with settings to map controller buttons to keyboard layouts. pic.twitter.com/cWRefKMQ50— Steve Moser (@SteveMoser) March 3, 2021
There are a few quality-of-life improvements as well. In Calendar notifications, you have additional snoozing options. There’s also a reference to a potential message in the Battery preference pane that could pop up when the battery is no longer working properly.
Calendar gets a ton of snooze options in Mac 11.3 beta 3. I think the original ‘Snooze’ is now ‘Snooze (Automatic)’ though I’m not sure how that is different from ‘Snooze until start time’. pic.twitter.com/D8J8g6HGmb
— Steve Moser (@SteveMoser) March 3, 2021
“The battery isn’t functioning normally and requires service,” reads the code string. “Please check your service options.” Apple has not said when macOS Big Sur 11 might release. If history is any indication, the update will arrive later this month or in early Spring.