Don't upgrade to Apple Big Sur

[frg]

Today Apple anounced mac OS 11 Big Sur. If you want to continue using SeaMonkey don't upgrade yet. No current version supports it and the upcoming 2.53.5 won't either. It is untested and based on some of the Firefox bugs I saw need more fixes to work fine. I don't have a timeframe for supporting it.

FRG

[frg]

A few fixes for Big Sur did yesterday go into Bills current 2.53.6b1 pre build:

https://www.wg9s.com/comm-253/

Still works fine with 15.7 and one user commented that Big Sur at least shows correct menus and seems to work. I can not rule out further bugs and crashes.

So if you upgraded to Big Sur try it and report problems here in builds.

[Curland]

Hi, if I upgrade to this pre-build and let's say it crashes or other serious bugs, etc., will I have the option to go back to 2.53.4?

[frg]

2.53.5 is being released probably today or tomorrow but it will also not work with Big Sur. Profiles between 2.53.5 and 2.53.6b1 pre are still compatible despite the warning. If you want to go back you need to install Lightning manually from the distribution/extensions folder or using the instructions in the release notes. If you want to be 100% on the safe side do a profile backup. 2.53.6b1 pre has some problems with deleting email folders and unsubscribe feeds. Should be fixed in a day or two but no data loss. Just not working for some cases.

[Curland]

Thanks for your help with this. I'm navigating with some frustration, with no folders and right clicks gone, and other issues. I probably could get by until there is a foolproof update, but I'm saying that now. It is very inconvenient not having all of my folders listed in the folder pane and other things I use. I'm not following what you mean by "if you want to go back you need to install Lightning manually from the distributions/extensions folder". I don't know what "Lightning" or where the "distributions/extensions folder" is. And, how you do you do a profile back up in SeaMonkey. Are you just saying to copy a folder from wherever it is (I forget now, but used to know how to find my profile)? Thanks again for your feedback on this. Not sure what to do yet.

[frg]

There will be no foolprof update. Unfortunately with every os release apple breaks something. Was the same with 10.15. My mac mini from end 2012 is no longer supported also and I don't plan to upgrade it. The latest mac are overpriced and build for obsolescence in just a few years with all the stuff directly on the board.

If you want it fixed please try the latest 2.53.6b1 pre and report problems with it. I try to fix it. According to a tester it works:
https://freenode.logbot.info/seamonkey/ ... 3#c5818599
but I am not sure if he tested mail and news.

[Curland]

Thanks! I'm going to think about it. But, I know what to do if I decide. I'm still not clear if it was really not good, how would I go back to the version I'm at, which I can get around on my email with some effort, but it isn't totally broken? I'm on 2.53.4. I would just want to go back to that if I decided to upgrade to 2.53.6.b1. Mail is the primary use of SeaMonkey, so it would have to improve upon the glitches that it currently has on 2.53.4, but if it completely crashes it or something really bad, I wouldn't want to lose my profile, all of my millions of emails, folders, etc. that I've kept since SeaMonkey first came out, and I'd want to somehow reinstall 2.53.4 and pick up where I'm at now. Would that be possible? Thanks!!

[frg]

You loose your millions of email and other stuff only if you don't have a backup on an external medium or in the cloud. Which you should have because hardware fails too.
That the prerelease will burn your profile in such a way is unlikely (lets say 0.01%) and has not happened for me for a long time. But for these events a backup does what it was done for.

2.53.5 is out and should be no worse than 2.53.4. As I said they are still profile compatible and you can just reinstall the older version. The Lightning calendar extension will not work after a downgrade but you can manually reinstall the old version too to fix this.
The problems I mentioned about folder deletion are gone in todays 2.536b1 pre release.

[Frank Lion]

I wouldn't want to lose my profile, all of my millions of emails, folders, etc. that I've kept since SeaMonkey first came out

You were actually running SeaMonkey without any profile backup for all those years?! Very brave.

http://forums.mozillazine.org/viewtopic ... #p14832589

[Curland]

No, I'm very dilligent about backing up my entire computer using Time Machine and have 3 external HDs and back up my back ups. I never said I don't back up my profiles. All I said is it has been awhile since I've had to find what folder buried in the hierarchy of folders in Mozilla, does my Profile now reside in with these current versions of SeaMonkey. And, I was saying I just wasn't clear what frg was saying about profile backup. I misunderstood and thought maybe there was some shortcut method in SeaMonkey that did a backup of your profile, other than when I do my Time Machine backups and everything on my computer is backed up, including SeaMonkey profiles, SeaMonkey folders (inbox, sent, individual folders, etc.).

[Frank Lion]

No, I'm very dilligent about backing up my entire computer using Time Machine and have 3 external HDs and back up my back ups. I never said I don't back up my profiles.

I'm not sure I understand. Why write this -

... or something really bad, I wouldn't want to lose my profile, all of my millions of emails, folders, etc. that I've kept since SeaMonkey first came out,

...if you already knew there was zero chance of you not being able to recover everything?

[frg]

See https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1677316

If you are on Big Sur please test the current unofficial build mentioned in the bug so that we might be able to fix it faster than anticipated.

[Ralph6410]

Is there a SeaMonkey installation yet that works with Big Sur? TB installed but my wife is very attached to the mail part of SeaMonkey

[hardys]

Is there a SeaMonkey installation yet that works with Big Sur? TB installed but my wife is very attached to the mail part of SeaMonkey

2.53.5.1 should work with Big Sur

Backup your profile before upgrading

https://www.seamonkey-project.org/releases/2.53.5.1

[Ralph6410]

Thanks, tried it again and this time it installed. For what it's worth this is what happened:

D/L > open seamonkey-2.53.5.1.en-US.mac.dmg > move to applications > eject the SeaMonkey icon that appeared on the desktop > Go to Applications start SM.. And error message.
SeaMonkey.app” cannot be opened because the developer cannot be verified.
Google search...
Open a Mac app from an unidentified developer
In the Finder on your Mac, locate the app you want to open. > open SM app Warning message

By opening this app, you will be overriding system security which can expose your computer and personal information to malware that may harm your Mac or compromise your privacy. > throw caution to the wind, cross fingers and open. Magic!

As I had TB installed SM offered to pickup all its settings which I allowed and viola.. a working copy of SM.

Cheers all