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Apple Seeds Second OS X 10.11 El Capitan Beta to Developers

Apple today released the second beta of OS X 10.11 El Capitan to developers for testing purposes, just over two weeks after unveiling the new operating system at its 2015 Worldwide Developers Conference. Any new changes found in the second El Capitan beta will be detailed below.

The update, build 15A204h, is available through the software update mechanism in the Mac App Store and through the Apple Developer Center. Apple has also released OS X Server 5.0 beta 2.

os_x_el_capitan_roundup
OS X El Capitan largely builds on the features introduced with OS X Yosemite, focusing on improving performance and user experience. Behind-the-scenes improvements in El Capitan have made a number of apps and processes on the Mac much faster, and the introduction of Metal makes system-level graphics rendering 40 percent more efficient.

Along with a new systemwide font, El Capitan includes a revamped Mission Control feature, a new Split View feature for using two full-screen apps at once, deeper functionality for Spotlight, and several new features for Safari, including Pinned Sites for housing frequently-visited websites and a universal mute button that quiets all tabs.

Mail's been updated with new iOS-style gestures and Smart Suggestions, and Photos, Notes, and Maps have also gained small improvements.

OS X 10.11 El Capitan is currently only available to registered developers, but Apple plans to offer a public beta of the software in July. Following testing, El Capitan will see a final release in the fall of 2015.

Related Forum: OS X El Capitan

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Top Rated Comments

AngerDanger Avatar
144 months ago
Perhaps you'd prefer its inverse, @redheeler:



[SPOILER="1024x1024 verson"]
MacRumors content image [/SPOILER]

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Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
theSeb Avatar
144 months ago
I thought these updates were only for us devs... first thing I do is open up Xcode to continue my project, only to see that it doesn't work with El Capitan Beta 2 anymore.

"No problem", I said to myself, "there's a 6.4 beta that should work fine". Except it doesn't.

Xcode 7 isn't an option because I consider releasing my game within the next 2 weeks and if I convert it to Swift 2.0 it'll get rejected because it's a beta language that has been compiled with a beta compiler.

Seriously ? o_O

Luckily, if you Show the Package Contents of Xcode.app, then go under /MacOS/, you can start Xcode 6 through the terminal. Not like they bothered telling us or anything ........
Yes, seriously. Please tell me that you are not really running a pre-release BETA operating system on your "production" machine?

I don't get the shock and indignation. You should not be running beta software on your production system. Beta software is for testing in a VM, or another computer. Why would you install a beta operating system if you're actively working on an application that will be released in the next two weeks? That's very dangerous.

Yes, these are previews are for devs. They are for devs to get their apps working with the latest SDKs and operating systems so that they are ready WHEN the new versions of the operating systems are out of beta and released to the public. They are not there to continue working on applications that you're planning to release before the next operating system is released. This is not rocket science to understand.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
144 months ago
anyone could check the graphic performance improvement? i have iMac 27 5k and expose is dreadfully slow in yosemite. thanks in advance!
Expose or Mission Control pretty much got an overhaul and is quick on all Macs, they changed how it is rendered. Even the weak rMB saw major improvements.

I have 5K iMac and I can say it is a huge improvement from Yosemite.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Rudy69 Avatar
144 months ago
Could the 3 OS updates just have been put in one article?
3 articles = ~2-3 times the views!
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
redheeler Avatar
144 months ago
I'm assuming it's the Apple Watch San Francisco one.
It's not quite the same.

MacRumors content image
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
144 months ago
I always see developers complaining about non developers who install DP on their devices, saying that it's not right for them to download betas since betas are for developers, while that's true, they have the freedom to do that and I don't see that as a bad thing, I think they are just curious about the new things and curiosity it's a good thing, maybe curiosity is what lead most of developers to become that, maybe downloading betas without being a developer could be their first step to become one.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)