Leopard thoughts
Mac, Review, Technology December 3rd, 2006
The Leopard keynote came out quite a while ago, and I’ve been surfing around a lot to see what other people have to say about Leopard.
National Bash Microsoft Day
Was most of Leopard’s time spent bashing Vista and Microsoft? I found it a little repetitive, although the introduction by “PC Guy” was rather funny…
Unified?
iChat, among other applications, seems to have joined the unity bandwagon. Although I am not a big fan of brushed metal, it would be odd to see it disappear from the OS completely…after all, the first signs of brushed metal appeared in OS 9, with QuickTime and other Classic applications.
Expectations
Although many people were surprised at the few interface and design changes in Leopard, they must realize that Apple wouldn’t show a major design overhaul in the first “sneak peak” of Leopard. That would just feul Microsoft to play copy-cat, and nobody wants Redmond to “start their photocopiers.” I also think that, if Apple was to show every feature, they wouldn’t make such a big splash in the techie pool when they release 10.5. Many people are hoping for Windows-Mac side-by-side integration in Leopard. It is a possibility, one that I am hopeful for. However, if such a feature was implemented in the near future, it is improbable that those who haven’t gone Intel will be left out. Duh. (Just another reason for me to save for that MacBook Pro, right?)
This is just a short article about some of my thoughts…as Leopard’s public release draws closer, expect more from me.
david
I am David Owens, a fifteen-year-old writer, blogger, and thinker. This is my blog. On it, I write about my life, opinions, and experiences.
December 3rd, 2006 at 2:51 pm
The similar look and feel is part of the recommended design guidelines that Apple publishes for software developers. In Apple’s case, they chose a brushed metal interface that helps identify their brand and lower the barrier to learning any new software they publish.
And while I like Apple’s software, I’m also concerned when an OS company steals business from the developers that make their platform viable. Meaning, there are decent companies out there already making Microsoft side-by-side integration (Parallels being one). I think it’s the eventual death of the platform if Apple continues this practice because developers will leave for Windows if they feel their stiffest competition is the company that makes their development platform.
December 4th, 2006 at 9:07 pm
Although your opinion of the “stealing business” seems reasonable, and, of course, is unfair to those who work on making the software and get paid for it, many people (including myself) find it easier to have features already available in the operating system. I know Apple purchased a few software rights…I believe AppleWorks was derived from ClarisWorks (Claris is now FileMaker,) as many formerly Claris projects were bought by Apple Computers. Apple may be looking into purchasing one of these things, but there are already more than a few Windows-on-Mac applications available already, so I’m not sure if Apple would have any legal trouble at all if they made it unique enough. Everything does look a bit better when Apple does it…after all, they have the best knowledge of integrating things into their own operating system
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