> Apple today released iOS 26.2, iPadOS 26.2, and macOS 26.2
For those as confused as me, I'm on macOS 15.6.1, and it seems for the next version they aligned everything and I do indeed see an update for "macOS Tahoe 26.2". However, I also see a Sequoia 15.7.3 update dated at the same time and together in the same upgrade blog post (and for Sonoma 14.8.3, kudos), so for those that doesn't seem to want to do the jump now into Liquid Glass, that seems available:
There appears to be a dark pattern occurring where the Tahoe update is selected by default and you need to uncheck it to just install the security update.
Is there a new technological space race between Microsoft and Apple, to see who can engineer more dark patterns into their software, forcing unwanted updates onto its users?
These techniques used to be exclusive to spyware distributors.
"Leon Cowle was brave enough to try this out, and, it turns out, just clicking the 'Update Now' button next to Sequoia will, thankfully, do the right thing: install the Sequoia 15.7.2 update, not Tahoe."
This suggests someone forgot to update the "ⓘ" text. Not a dark pattern.
No, I would certainly say it is. Checking the blog post linked in this thread, I find selecting a different version to be both hidden and also have (intentionally?) bad UX. That is exactly what a dark pattern is: making a surprising choice (major upgrade) the default while hiding away the less disruptive or even non-disruptive choice (minor upgrade).
Nothing stops Apple from advertising both at the same level.
That's ridiculous. Like, not even rising to the level of being worth arguing about. There's an entire book that defines dark pattern, you should probably go read it if you intend to use the phrase.
No, because following major software updates is the right thing for 99% of people, not staying behind on a previous major version with security updates.
You have to think about UX for 99%, not just for HNers who might know what a 15.7.3 is.
> No, because following major software updates is the right thing for 99% of people
Not if we aren’t talking about security updates. In this case the previous version of iOS also has the same security updates so ‘updating’ to a new version is completely up to the user, with no difference in security posture either way. Tricking users into updating for what are in the tech company’s opinion ‘new features’ is by definition a dark pattern.
If there are security updates, then actually staying on the old OS is probably better for 99% of users. Constant change is almost impossible for most people to deal with.
Having a default choice is not itself a dark pattern. Offering a free update to the latest version of the project, and a choice to update a branch release instead, does not constitute a dark pattern.
For those as confused as me, I'm on macOS 15.6.1, and it seems for the next version they aligned everything and I do indeed see an update for "macOS Tahoe 26.2". However, I also see a Sequoia 15.7.3 update dated at the same time and together in the same upgrade blog post (and for Sonoma 14.8.3, kudos), so for those that doesn't seem to want to do the jump now into Liquid Glass, that seems available:
https://support.apple.com/en-us/100100
Note: I had to click the [i], then unselect the "macOS Tahoe 26.2" and select the "macOS Sequoia 15.7.3" manually to avoid a full upgrade.