Spectralis devlog #32
—Hello again proggers—
Mac’s out. Actually out, actually available, actually done. Took way longer than expected — the site needed updating and every single update script needed fixing before this could actually go out the door clean.
“we got mac out” undersells how much site and script work that actually took
Cat or dog? .pkg
Okay let’s get into it~
—Yap—
Closing the loop that started way back in devlog #19 with a borrowed Mac and a hopeful “fingers crossed,” went through the decoding fixes in devlog #28, the platform-assumption hotfix in devlog #26, and now it’s actually shipped. Quick policy reminder while we’re here, since it matters going forward.
—The Great Suffering—
1 — The Site Needed Updating First
Before Mac could actually go out, the site itself needed real updates to reflect it — new download option, new platform messaging, none of which existed yet. Took a real chunk of the time this release ate.
2 — Every Update Script Needed Fixing
Following up on the Windows/Linux-centric script assumptions caught back in devlog #26 — turns out that wasn’t a one-off fix, it touched update scripts broadly. Had to go through and fix them properly for Mac to actually be able to update itself going forward, not just install once.
3 — Mac Is Actually Out
After all of that: it’s live. Full journey from borrowed hardware sessions to an actual public release.
4 — Reminder: Mac Only Gets LTS
Quick policy note, stated plainly since it matters: Mac only receives LTS releases going forward, not minor updates, unless a minor is a Mac-specific patch. Same access-constraint reasoning from devlog #19 — this isn’t changing anytime soon, so setting the expectation clearly now.
—FAQ (no one asked these but they are here)—
Q: What is a “progger”?
A: A human programmer. You. The one who just found out “ship Mac” secretly meant “rebuild the update pipeline.”
Q: Does Mac get every LTS release?
A: Yes, every LTS. Just not the minors in between, unless that minor is Mac-specific.
Q: Why not give Mac full parity now that it’s out?
A: Hardware access is still the bottleneck — same reasoning as devlog #19, testing and building for Mac isn’t a routine, always-available thing yet.
Q: What took so long between the decoding fixes in devlog #28 and now?
A: Mostly the site and update script work described above — the actual build was closer to ready than the delivery pipeline around it was.
Q: Is this the end of the Mac saga?
A: The release side, yes. Ongoing maintenance is just going to follow the LTS-only cadence from here.
—This is the end*—
*end for now, update scripts permitting
POP!!!