Apple today released OS X 10.11.5, the fifth major update to OS X El Capitan since it was released last September. The company also released iTunes 12.4, a minor update that tweaks the user interface in an effort to simplify it.
The El Capitan update doesn't change much. There are quite a few security fixes and a few tweaks related to enterprise usage, but little in the way of user-visible changes. iTunes 12.4 is more noticeable change. It doesn't fix the core problem with iTunes—that having one program to handle local music, streamed music from Apple Music, TV and movie purchases, podcasts, and iOS device backups and administration makes for lots of clutter and confusion—but it does present a marginally more streamlined version of the app everyone loves to hate.
The top navigation bar has had several buttons removed, and the app uses a persistent sidebar instead of multiple drop-down menus to let you view your media. iTunes versions of yore also made heavier use of sidebars for navigation—sometimes the old ways really are best. Finally, the back and forward buttons now let you "navigate between your Library, Apple Music, iTunes Store, and more."
OS X 10.11.5 is likely to be the last major point update to El Capitan. All versions of OS X since Apple switched to a yearly release model have gotten five major point updates followed by a couple years of security-only updates. Work on major new features and improvements at this point has presumably shifted to the next version of OS X, which Apple will demo publicly at WWDC next month. All El Capitan users can grab the update through the Updates tab in the App Store, or you can download combo and delta updaters from Apple's download page.
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