So I guess Eco Tech just no longer supports mac

[Sirduckington]

I tried downloading ecotech's connection manager on my mac so I could control some radion g4s I bought. I kept getting errors from the installation software and it kept crashing so I emailed ecotech and this is the response I got, my OS is fully up to date. Seems kinda weird to not support one of the two major operating systems.

 

[mfinn]

Sounds like your current version isn't compatible. Did you ask which ones were?

 

[czhao1009]

Curious about this as well.

Recently upgraded to M1 macbook air and trying to adjust my Radion XR15 light settings.

The connection manager app cannot be installed because "Apple cannot check it for malicious software", even after I tried to bypass it in the security settings, it still could not be installed.

So... what now? My only other option seems to be either 1) try to get my hands on a Windows laptop, or 2) buy a ReefLink (which I did research a bit and recent reviews are mostly negative, doesn't work, connection issues, no support, etc.).

Makes me seriously want to switch brands just because of this...

 

[mfinn]

Curious about this as well.

Recently upgraded to M1 macbook air and trying to adjust my Radion XR15 light settings.

The connection manager app cannot be installed because "Apple cannot check it for malicious software", even after I tried to bypass it in the security settings, it still could not be installed.

So... what now? My only other option seems to be either 1) try to get my hands on a Windows laptop, or 2) buy a ReefLink (which I did research a bit and recent reviews are mostly negative, doesn't work, connection issues, no support, etc.).

Makes me seriously want to switch brands just because of this...

I'm assuming because you mentioned a reeflink that your xr15 is gen 4 or earlier.
I always avoided reeflinks because I heard all the uproar about them, but every single person I know locally who uses them ( couple dozen ) said they work fine.
But I didn't believe them.

I would call ETM and find out if your new mac is compatible with the reeflink.
The support is there, you just have to call them.

 

[DHill6]

I had a reeflink with gen 4 and earlier, it worked without issues. It may work for you.

 

[xabo]

If I'm not mistaken the Mac support was stopped after certain IOS. Can't remember which one.

 

[exnisstech]

I've ran into a similar problem but in autos. I was a tech at a new car dealership and when Apple would force an ios update out people would flock to the store complaining about features on their phone not working any longer. Sometime an infotainment center (I know they used to be radios) update would roll out sometimes not.

 

[czhao1009]

I'm assuming because you mentioned a reeflink that your xr15 is gen 4 or earlier.
I always avoided reeflinks because I heard all the uproar about them, but every single person I know locally who uses them ( couple dozen ) said they work fine.
But I didn't believe them.

I would call ETM and find out if your new mac is compatible with the reeflink.
The support is there, you just have to call them.

Yeah I think mine is gen4 or earlier, to be honest I didn't really keep up with all the generations, I bought it new about 5 years ago and have since not touched it after the initial setup/fiddling.

I fired up my old 2011 macbook that still had the Ecotech connection manager and was able to adjust the light settings! LOL... this will keep me good for a while.

K rant over, just surprising to me that support for the newer mac os does not seem to be a priority for them

 

[mfinn]

Yeah I think mine is gen4 or earlier, to be honest I didn't really keep up with all the generations, I bought it new about 5 years ago and have since not touched it after the initial setup/fiddling.

I fired up my old 2011 macbook that still had the Ecotech connection manager and was able to adjust the light settings! LOL... this will keep me good for a while.

K rant over, just surprising to me that support for the newer mac os does not seem to be a priority for them

Glad you found a solution, while it's not perfect it will do for now.

Did you ever call them? There may be a work around.
Is there a way to partition the hard drive and add the older version ios on it?

 

[92Miata]

Yeah I think mine is gen4 or earlier, to be honest I didn't really keep up with all the generations, I bought it new about 5 years ago and have since not touched it after the initial setup/fiddling.

I fired up my old 2011 macbook that still had the Ecotech connection manager and was able to adjust the light settings! LOL... this will keep me good for a while.

K rant over, just surprising to me that support for the newer mac os does not seem to be a priority for them

You're asking for support of what is essentially a discontinued platform, for an obsolete light, on a niche operating system - from a company who just got bought out by a venture capital group whose whole goal is consolidation and streamlining.

I would not expect further updates

 

[BeanAnimal]

You're asking for support of what is essentially a discontinued platform, for an obsolete light, on a niche operating system - from a company who just got bought out by a venture capital group whose whole goal is consolidation and streamlining.

I would not expect further updates

I agree that there is should be no expectation that the light is or should be supported. Tech has moved on.

That said... 'niche' operating system?

MacOS accounts for over 25% of desktop operating systems in the US...
Catalina was the 'major' architecture change that both Big Sur and Monterey are built on...
Microsoft's desktop footprint is almost now entirely in the the business sector...
MacOS has all taken over the home desktop market...

I would hardly call that niche, unless you are defining the HOME computing market as niche.

In that case...
Is that 'niche' not the very same one that this hobby shares?

----

I found this thread looking for info on my old G3 that I am taking down. I wanted to look at the schedule on them so that I could replicate it on new fixtures.

 

[Whiskeyboy84]

To everyone who likes Mac’s as I do but gets screwed into needing windows to operate certain apps and files you can have your hard drive partitioned or do it yourself so that you have both IOS and Windows operating systems on the same device.

 

[BeanAnimal]

To everyone who likes Mac’s as I do but gets screwed into needing windows to operate certain apps and files you can have your hard drive partitioned or do it yourself so that you have both IOS and Windows operating systems on the same device.

I have owned an IT consulting firm for ~20 years.
I support Windows, but moved to Mac about 6 years ago and will never go back. Everything about Microsoft Windows is terrible, from both a home and certainly a business standpoint. Its saving grace is Active Directory - and even that (must have for business) is turning into more of a mess every day.

Windows 7 was their high mark and from that point forward it has gone downhill. I am not saying the Mac ecosystem is a good fit for business (it has huge warts too) but from a usability, security, ergonomic, and stability standpoint, it leaves Windows a decade behind.

With the move to Apple Silicon, dual boot will no longer be an option (and it was too much hassle anyway). Parallels is decent enough if all you need to do is control a few devices with windows apps.

I have no idea what Ecotech's plans are. I know GHL does not have a MacOS based application either.

An option is to get a tiny HDMI based windows machine and plug it into your monitor. It is enough to do what you need it to do.

 

[Whiskeyboy84]

I have owned an IT consulting firm for ~20 years.
I support Windows, but moved to Mac about 6 years ago and will never go back. Everything about Microsoft Windows is terrible, from both a home and certainly a business standpoint. Its saving grace is Active Directory - and even that (must have for business) is turning into more of a mess every day.

Windows 7 was their high mark and from that point forward it has gone downhill. I am not saying the Mac ecosystem is a good fit for business (it has huge warts too) but from a usability, security, ergonomic, and stability standpoint, it leaves Windows a decade behind.

With the move to Apple Silicon, dual boot will no longer be an option (and it was too much hassle anyway). Parallels is decent enough if all you need to do is control a few devices with windows apps.

I have no idea what Ecotech's plans are. I know GHL does not have a MacOS based application either.

An option is to get a tiny HDMI based windows machine and plug it into your monitor. It is enough to do what you need it to do.

My Nephew is my IT department lol he is a very talented programmer and builds all his own systems and many of his own components he graduated high school two years early very bright kid but has no people skills . I will ask him to explain the new Apple Silicon situation to me. I am not as versed as I should be given that I am 38 and have always had access to computers I gravitated to Mac decades ago because of their quality and security. Thanks for the heads up.

 

[DanyL]

Whats the deal with calling macOS "iOS", they are built on similar foundation, and the same kernel but certainly aren't the same, just saying..

As for why it doesn't work - well, first of all the error massage you've seen is related to a process called notarization which is required for a couple of years now and basically registers the fingerprint of the app with Apple so that they would be able to black list it if they want.

But notarization isn't the root cause of the issue here, the app is most likely compiled for 32bit architecture, something Intel Macs do support in hardware, however the support for it it was dropped OS wise to push vendors to recompile their software to 64bit, as a preparation to the Apple Silicon architecture that came out a couple of years later and included hardware assisted emulation for 64bit apps (amd64).

I've attempted to somewhat backport 32bit support based on Mojave on top of Catelina and had success when it comes to CLI tools, I was even able to patch the window manager enough to accept most of the deprecated calls, however there was just too much difference to be able to fully run the complex GUI app I tried to execute.

What does it mean?
The good thing - it usually just a matter of recompiling the app for 64bit and notarizing it with apple.
One could use virtual machines to run an older macOS version on intel Macs, otherwise you could use Microsoft's software based 32bit emulation for Windows on Arm which can also be run on an Apple Silicon Macs.

The bad thing - You won't be able to use the current version on modern macOS or any Apple Silicon based Mac, ever and the solutions suggested above are either cumbersome or require Ecotech to invest some time (hour tops, tbh).

 

[BeanAnimal]

Whats the deal with calling macOS "iOS", they are built on similar foundation, and the same kernel but certainly aren't the same, just saying..

As for why it doesn't work - well, first of all the error massage you've seen is related to a process called notarization which is required for a couple of years now and basically registers the fingerprint of the app with Apple so that they would be able to black list it if they want.

But notarization isn't the root cause of the issue here, the app is most likely compiled for 32bit architecture, something Intel Macs do support in hardware, however the support for it it was dropped OS wise to push vendors to recompile their software to 64bit, as a preparation to the Apple Silicon architecture that came out a couple of years later and included hardware assisted emulation for 64bit apps (amd64).

I've attempted to somewhat backport 32bit support based on Mojave on top of Catelina and had success when it comes to CLI tools, I was even able to patch the window manager enough to accept most of the deprecated calls, however there was just too much difference to be able to fully run the complex GUI app I tried to execute.

What does it mean?
The good thing - it usually just a matter of recompiling the app for 64bit and notarizing it with apple.
One could use virtual machines to run an older macOS version on intel Macs, otherwise you could use Microsoft's software based 32bit emulation for Windows on Arm which can also be run on an Apple Silicon Macs.

The bad thing - You won't be able to use the current version on modern macOS or any Apple Silicon based Mac, ever and the solutions suggested above are either cumbersome or require Ecotech to invest some time (hour tops, tbh).

Not sure who called MacOS iOS unless it was on accident, but sadly Apple thinks that MacOS should look and feel more like iOS. It is misguided and the new system settings is a disaster.

I am not sure what part of the package is no longer supported. I started to fiddle with it, and decided it was a 100% waste of my time. It was easier to buy new lights…. I was due anyway and not an eco tech fan anyway. Way to expensive given the quality control, state of the new app, etc.

 

[Whiskeyboy84]

Whats the deal with calling macOS "iOS", they are built on similar foundation, and the same kernel but certainly aren't the same, just saying..

As for why it doesn't work - well, first of all the error massage you've seen is related to a process called notarization which is required for a couple of years now and basically registers the fingerprint of the app with Apple so that they would be able to black list it if they want.

But notarization isn't the root cause of the issue here, the app is most likely compiled for 32bit architecture, something Intel Macs do support in hardware, however the support for it it was dropped OS wise to push vendors to recompile their software to 64bit, as a preparation to the Apple Silicon architecture that came out a couple of years later and included hardware assisted emulation for 64bit apps (amd64).

I've attempted to somewhat backport 32bit support based on Mojave on top of Catelina and had success when it comes to CLI tools, I was even able to patch the window manager enough to accept most of the deprecated calls, however there was just too much difference to be able to fully run the complex GUI app I tried to execute.

What does it mean?
The good thing - it usually just a matter of recompiling the app for 64bit and notarizing it with apple.
One could use virtual machines to run an older macOS version on intel Macs, otherwise you could use Microsoft's software based 32bit emulation for Windows on Arm which can also be run on an Apple Silicon Macs.

The bad thing - You won't be able to use the current version on modern macOS or any Apple Silicon based Mac, ever and the solutions suggested above are either cumbersome or require Ecotech to invest some time (hour tops, tbh).

So I followed about half of what you’re saying lol like I said I am not very literate with all things computer lol my nephew normally has to Barney things way down for me. I am wondering though if a third party may be able to build an app to interface with both or if this would even be worth the effort. I am going to talk to him next time I see him because he lives 4 hours away about trying to make a reefbot communicate with my Apex Fusion I like the quality of the build of the new reefbot or reef lab but would like to integrate it with my Apex. I have even contemplated enlisting him to build me a controller that utilizes different parts from different controllers like I would like to use the new Hydro’s Kraken instead of EB8’s I also like the setup of the Hydros Wave engine except I would like it to be able to run multiple 24v circuits at 100%.

 

[BeanAnimal]

My Nephew is my IT department lol he is a very talented programmer and builds all his own systems and many of his own components he graduated high school two years early very bright kid but has no people skills . I will ask him to explain the new Apple Silicon situation to me. I am not as versed as I should be given that I am 38 and have always had access to computers I gravitated to Mac decades ago because of their quality and security. Thanks for the heads up.

Nothing to explain.
Apple was running on x86 Architecture (Intel and AMD), the same as windows. The underlying hardware can run either OS.

Apple Silicone is Apple proprietary CPU architecture and instruction set and glue… it will only run Apple. Of course somebody may build a bare metal emulator for other Operating systems… would be faster than Parallels but slower than native… so why?

 

[DanyL]

Not sure who called MacOS iOS unless it was on accident, but sadly Apple thinks that MacOS should look and feel more like iOS. It is misguided and the new system settings is a disaster.

I am not sure what part of the package is no longer supported. I started to fiddle with it, and decided it was a 100% waste of my time. It was easier to buy new lights…. I was due anyway and not an eco tech fan anyway. Way to expensive given the quality control, state of the new app, etc.

Well, Ecotech did, as well as xabo, mfinn and Whiskeyboy84

I could take a look at it as well, but I'm certain that my guess about 32bit is correct, and I don't even own any Ecotech device to make the time investment worth it if I'm being honest. Never liked this company anyway, and more so now.

 

[DanyL]

So I followed about half of what you’re saying lol like I said I am not very literate with all things computer lol my nephew normally has to Barney things way down for me. I am wondering though if a third party may be able to build an app to interface with both or if this would even be worth the effort. I am going to talk to him next time I see him because he lives 4 hours away about trying to make a reefbot communicate with my Apex Fusion I like the quality of the build of the new reefbot or reef lab but would like to integrate it with my Apex. I have even contemplated enlisting him to build me a controller that utilizes different parts from different controllers like I would like to use the new Hydro’s Kraken instead of EB8’s I also like the setup of the Hydros Wave engine except I would like it to be able to run multiple 24v circuits at 100%.

A third party can reverse engineer the protocol and reimplement it, of course.
The question is would it be worth it? Properly reverse engineering it alone could take weeks worth of work, not as a side project but as your daily job, implementing a user friendly app would be the same.

Same goes for pretty much any thing else you'd want to do, it's not impossible and sometimes can be done as a side project when some really want to achieve a result, I've done it before many many times, its satisfying and fun but requires a big investment of time and dedication.