By now I know sufficiently well that once I update to Catalina, many of my applications will stop working, so I’d like to be able to switch off this annoying message ‘“x” is not optimised…’. Does anyone know if this is possible?
You should only get that message for each app once.
Easiest way to get rid of those messages is to toss / replace all your 32 bit apps now.
Thanks, but deleting my applications is not an option… I’m planning to keep a “legacy Mac’ running for them, and it would be nice not to have this message pop up all the time.
MY main concern is my ScanSnap S1500M that uses older Adobe and scanning software. I have not been able to find an update to the software that is 64 bit compliant. I would hate to buy a whole new device, but really like the ease of use of the software
I have the same concern, though after 25,000 scans my ScanSnap S510M probably belongs in a museum. Apparently Fujitsu has released updated software, but I’m not sure how compatible it is with older products. Worse, it appears that it’s quite cloudy, will only work with an active internet connection, and potentially shares your scanned documents with whomever has access to their cloud storage.
I discovered the venerable VueScan third-party scanner software seems to work great with my S510M. I had purchased it in 2002 to rescue another ancient scanner I had from obsolescence. I was delighted to see that it is still maintained and Hamrick has added a number of features including support for one-button scanning.
I tried to re-register it, assuming that I had more than got my money’s worth from my 17 year old license, but the site refused to take my money as I still had a valid extended license. Wow! I’m currently still using the old ScanSnap Manager software as I also need support for a wireless Fujitsu scanner at work, but I’ll be switching to VueScan rather than exposing personal data on the cloud.
–Ron
I have a bunch of the ScanSnap 100/1100 scanners which don’t work under Catalina, the new cloud software does it except that it has minimal functionality and even less usability compared the 32bit standalone software.
I would happily replace one but three 
I fear there will be a VM on every machine just to handle them, or we need to find an alternative hardware.
I tried the Doxie One scanner but it was way too heavy to take on the road because of its internal battery.
It’s not unless they’ve done another new version since last I looked maybe in December or so.
Ron,
I cannot thank you enough for the VueScan tip! I have a Fujitsu S300M scanner and was facing the same issue with 32-bit controlling software. This has solved my problem! The scanner is small and easy to use and lots of life left in it. I like the VueScan software - clean interface and up to date! I tried it and bought it immediately.
Just don’t update. There are 32 bit Apps that I use every day and nothing about this latest upgrade is worth losing them. So the problem is solved, for me.
But of course you have created a different problem in not being able to take advantage of any new features (which you may or may not care anything about) and over time be left in the dust regarding security updates.
Very true. However, usually the security updates have a one for previous OS versions. At least in my experience.
Actually, it has consistently been the previous two versions for Security Updates, which is why I said “over time,” but not all vulnerabilities in the current OS are patched in those previous two, for whatever reason. Background security updates even further. Currently Gatekeeper updates go back to Mountain Lion, XProtect to Mavericks and MRT to El Capitan.
I agree. At some point i will be so annoyed by the direction Apple is going that I will set my iMacs and MacBook Pro back to Mountain Lion. That was the last stable OS and the UI was much easier on the eyes. I can always use the Nikon program to process RAW images and most all my photo apps will accept tiff and Jpeg once I have cleaned the RAW images so there are fewer artifacts in Tiff and Jpeg edits.
The other thing is all the stuff I use the most is installed on my computers so I can leave the internet to my iPhone and Tablets, thus eliminating all the nuisance updates, patches, notifications and security concerns.
That is my plan as a result of Apple becoming more like Microsoft lately.
Phil
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Check out roaringapps.com before upgrading! It lists apps by compatibility (none, some problems, or compatible). There’s also an app that you can run on your own machine to check your specific apps.
Thanks all for contributing to this thread! As some were suggesting I indeed plan to ‘freeze’ at least one of my Macs in order to be able to run legacy software. (Given that my main Mac will be essentially bricked, I might even consider moving to another platform altogether, but this is another issue.)
But it would be a pain if my legacy Mac would continue to throw up these annoying and by then completely irrelevant messages. So I repeat my question: does anybody know a way to stop them?
The Go64 app seems the best available today able to identify 32-bit apps and it’s free from St. Clair Software.
And I’ll make clearer my earlier answer…no. Further, I doubt that it’s even possible without disabling SIP and removing either processes that also protect you from malware or a database which will be periodically replaced.
Regarding the Go64 app, that duplicates the built-in function of System Information/Software/Applications!
I’ve found it to be much more accurate, in my setup, as well as including the additional information to assist me in tracking down updates or contacting the developer for guidance as well as the cost in doing so, if that was a factor.
Specifically, SysInfo only identified 185 apps while Go64 found 212. The differences appear to be associated with apps that are partially 64-bit but have at least one component that’s 32.
*" Apple’s support article](https://support.apple.com/en-us/ht208436) explains how to use the built-in macOS System Report to identify 32-bit apps on your system.
However, once they’ve been identified, looking them up and locating the developers’ contact information can be a painstaking process if you’ve got more than a few. In addition, the System Report doesn’t account for apps that are themselves 64-bt, but that contain 32-bit plugins, frameworks or services. These apps may or may not run correctly on macOS 10.15. That’s why we made Go64!"