Archive for June 17th, 2008

Apple have announced the new version of OS X (10.6 to be called “Snow Leopard”) is due to launch in 2009, and with this they have given a brief overview of the expected features in the new OS. In a rare move for the computer industry, Apple appear to be focusing on re-writing core portions of the OS in order to decrease its footprint and provide better performance. This is in stark contrast to Microsoft’s policy of increasingly bloating the OS so that it requires ever more powerful hardware. So, here’s a quick summary of the changes (which may not be final yet):

Increased RAM support
The new OS X will support RAM up to a theoretical limit of 16TB. Yes, 16TB! 64 Bit technology always promised leaps like this, and it’s good to see Apple finally implementing them. I can’t see why any user would ever want 16TB of RAM, but it’s nice to know you can.

Better multi-core support
OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard will have core components re-written to make better use of multi-core processors. In fact, the entire system will make use of the available processing power, which should show the end user real speed increases in daily usage.

Open CL
This new technology allows the computer to make use of unused power in the GPU of your graphics cards. GPUs have phenomenal computing power, hardly any of which is being used unless you are playing the latest game. This is a feature that developers will have to implement in their software, but if they do, it promises even better performance from existing technology.

Media and Internet
The new Mac OS X will include Quicktime X, the media technology used for iPhone, presumably also lighter in weight than the current Quicktime. In terms of Internet performance, Apple claim the new Safari will run Javascript 53% faster.

All of these changes amount to what borders on thriftiness from Apple, and frankly I think it’s great. I have an Amiga 1200, of mid-90s vintage. It has a ridiculously slow processor by today’s standards, virtually no RAM, no hard disk and just a low-density 720KB floppy drive. Despite this, the Amiga always had a rich array of games and software that wasn’t so far behind current technology as the figures might suggest. Developers just had to be space-conscious. Their games had to fit on tiny floppy disks, and be carefully optimised. The current trend is nothing like this. Hardware is so cheap, that the developers just demand that you upgrade your hardware to pay for their laziness in development. This is proved by looking at something simple like word processing. Can you type your letter any faster on the current version of Word than you could on the first version? No. And yet you have to have a computer significantly more powerful to run it.

So, I welcome this return to common sense. I’ve paid for two processor cores, I would like my computer to use both those cores at every available opportunity. If I’ve paid for a 200Gb hard disk, I don’t want to find huge portions of it consumed by a bloated operating system. Making existing technology faster through better written software, now that’s common sense computing. Microsoft can keep their touch screen nonsense - Apple are actually listening to what computer users really want.

There isn’t a raft of new features and innovations in this latest version of OS X, but Snow Leopard will include full support for Exchange 2007, and this is great news for people using Macs in a corporate environment with Windows servers. I’ve been waiting for this for ages. Entourage really is crap. I would much rather just use Mail, iCal and Address Book with my Exchange server. The only downside I can see, is that there is no mention of support for Exchange 2003, which is what most businesses will be using. Still, it is progress.

In the computing world of the future, Apple users will compute faster and more efficiently on their existing technology, whilst Windows 7 users wave their arms around in front of their expensive (and newly upgraded) touch screen, wondering why on earth they can’t just use a mouse like they always did.

Here’s the information on the Apple website: http://www.apple.com/macosx/snowleopard/?sr=hotnews