this is very encouraging — to know that and iPad and its associated Mac relationship remains viable despite the advancing OS X/iOS upgrades the User makes - or not. In other words, iTunes “sees” the iPad, even if older versions of OS X are installed on the Mac.
What I’m trying to avoid is an OS upgrade which will obsolete my hardware by breaking compatibility, forcing me to buy new computers. My Apple gear works beautifully right now and I want to keep ‘er that way, while wanting also to keep up to date with security/performance fixes. I have zero problem being several waves of OS X behind..good to know I can remain functional regarding the iPad.