Apple’s Mac operating system has long carried the moniker of “OS X,” leading to such ridiculous OS names as: “OS X 10.11.4 El Capitan.” Could Apple be planning to bring the naming scheme for their Mac operating system into line with the naming conventions of the software running their other popular devices, such as iOS, tvOS, and watchOS?
MacMagazine.com.br reports developer Guilherme Rambo has discovered an interesting mention of ‘macOS’ in the “FUFlightViewController_macOS.nib” interface file within the FlightUtilities framework inside OS X code. According to Rambo, this changed in OS X 10.11.4, which was just released to the public nine days ago.
Such a naming change would be logical, and is something I have discussed with my cohorts on the Macnificent podcast on a number of occasions. (Available in a podcasting app near you.) macOS would definitely bring the naming of the Mac operating system into line with iOS for mobile devices, tvOS for the Apple TV, and watchOS for the Apple Watch.
Not too much should be read into the finding of “macOS” in OS X code, as developers are known to use “macOS” identifiers in their code out of a sense of symmetry and convenience.
If Apple does plan to rename OS X to “macOS,” they will likely make an announcement at the upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference, which is just a few short months away. What do you think, dear reader? Will Apple rename OS X to macOS, or will we see “Mac OS X 10.12 (insert name of national park here)? Does it even matter? Please share your thoughts on the subject with us in the comments area below.
