This evening at Apple's WWDC the finer points of the OSX upgrade named 'Snow Leopard' have been announced. The finer points of the operating system have been announced which include its Microsoft Exchange compatibility.
However what we've all been waiting for are prices and dates and I'm happy to tell you now that both of these thingsh ave been revealed. Upon wrapping up the Snow Leopard commentary Apple state: "So that's Snow Leopard." Available on intel Macs "past and present."
Moving onto pricing they conclude that they'd like to offer it for $129 but they won't.
"How should we price Snow Leopard? We won't price it at $129, because we want all Leopard users to upgrade. SO we are pricing Snow Leopard at the incredible price of $29".
Apple are also offering a family pack for $49. Apple state that this operating system will be available in September with a developer preview available today. This ties in nicely with the official release of Windows 7, expected in October.
There has been a range of new Snow Leopard features introduced today, also, which we will go through below.
Over 90% of the Leopard operating system has been refined, according to Apple; additionally to this, Finder has been rewritten in Cocoa, which means a lot of new features can be available to the end user. Apple's Exposé feature is now built into the dock, also; this means that you can click and hold an app icon, and all of the open windows for it appear as you would expect them to.
Preview is now twice as fast, as well as featuring better text selection in .pdf files, and it also support improved Chinese characters (you draw them on your notebook touchpad). Apple's Mail application is now 2.3X faster, and Safari 4 has some improvements too. According to MacRumors, "Safari is 7.8X faster at javascript than IE8 (Chrome is only 5X faster). Passes Acid3 test; IE8 only gets 21%. Safari 4 is included with Snow Leopard -- with some added features. Crash resistance (sandboxes plugins), 50% faster JS thanks to 64-bit, new and faster Quicktime (hardware accelerated, new streaming method that works with any webserver)."
Stacks has been improved to handle content better than it used to, including scrolling and drilling down into different levels of folders, which we already knew. You can now drag a file icon to the dock, and the appropriate application will open (or become focused) so it's easier to work with them. Spotlight can also now search browser history, for those who are interested in that. 64-bit is a big part of this new software, so Apple has been showing that off quite a bit; as you all know, it allows for massive amounts of RAM, and has other benefits too. Lastly, we've got full Exchange support, which is relatively self-explanatory.
Neowin reporter Sam Symons contributed to this report.
+1
Every app is 64 bit now. Some apps were rewritten, like Finder. I think you underestimate what it takes to do all that.
Oh, hi, Steve Jobs. Didn't knew you were hanging out at neowin
I must do cos XP was fully 64bit quite a while ago.
MS and Apple do it differently. There are a multitude of different versions of Windows, both 32 bit and 64 bit. The binaries can only run in the mode that they were designed for. 32 bit programs will still run in 32 bit on a 64 bit Windows install. This is not the case with OS X. The same binary runs both ways; there is no need for multiple versions. This is why there is a standard OS X and a server, which simply is bundled with different programs and daemons.
Particularly on the topic, is the 64 bit XP a service pack to the 32 bit one? You're comparing apples to oranges.
Particularly on the topic, is the 64 bit XP a service pack to the 32 bit one? You're comparing apples to oranges.
Apples have worms
Not Office though.
I hope you are being sarcastic...
So is Windows 7 by those standards compared to Windows Vista. It offers relatively few mayor new features the average will actually care about. Same goes for the GUI, beyond the new taskbar (which is a big change) there are only subtile tweaks to Aero.
The way I see it Windows 7 and Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard are actually pretty similar.
I'm sure he is. He's just pointing out the ignorance of the original post.
Maybe not many major changes in 7 but a lot of useful updates as per the below link
http://blogs.msdn.com/e7/default.aspx
Same thing applies to Snow Leopard.
-1 no....i don agree...it's just paid version service pack...
don talk like apple....we are talking about OSX not windows
Yes, there really isn't much difference.
Of course MS won't offer Win7 upgrades for $29, they're too greedy - after all, they have a monopoly and can make prices however they want, as there will always be people who buy it no matter the price.
No, but there is a 64-bit Office "available" now, and I wouldn't expect to see one for OS X anytime soon, since the Windows version won't even hit retail till next year. How does a productivity suite have anything to do with Apple finally having a 64-bit OS ready years after nearly every other major OS?
Get the hell out of here, I'm sick of people like you. You have no understanding of software engineering whatsoever and only see the outside. Maybe do your homework before shouting stupid things.
Gods sake... How about All the improvement in Windows XP SP1,2,3? They could have of released them as "new editions"
"XPS"
The "S" stands for speed.
Microsoft sucks.
Windows 7 is less of an sp for vista, and more like an xp fix to vista. Just re-marketed t o make a ton of money off of poor saps who aren't smart enough to stop buying into Microsoft's bull**** marketing.
A damn big service pack in that case, haha. The service pack to own all service packs. :p
I actually find Snow Leopard comparable to Windows 7. Still the same system, but VERY optimized compared to the predecessor. Same idea here.
Haha, did you run out of arguments? :p
Windows 7 *is* a Vista overhaul, but a much needed one due to the epic failure of Windows Vista.
then
Windows 7 = Service pack for Vista
It's not because it keeps the same cosmetics that it's a service pack.
It's way much more than this, people who say that are misinformed. Snow Leopard took probably as much time than windows 7 to produce.
He was probably just referring to the fact that when Windows made all these same changes, it was in a free service pack (XP x64 Edition / Server 2003 SP1).
Although for Windows we actually ported every last line of code to 64-bit, not some mishmash where another 10% becomes 64-bit every three years.
Particularly on the topic, is the 64 bit XP a service pack to the 32 bit one? You're comparing apples to oranges.
x64 support was added in a service pack, yes, and made available for free to buyers of XP / Server 2003.
You are incorrect about the differences between the Mac and Windows implementations. On Windows, 64-bit editions are 100% pure 64-bit binaries. Most 64-bit Windows editions include the WOW64 component which includes a set of 32-bit binaries for compatibility purposes that run in a lightweight VM. However that is simply an application compatibility layer and not necessary for the OS in any way (The last beta of Server Core shipped with it off by default).
The Mac on the other hand has always been a fully 32-bit OS with a few 64-bit extension libraries you could make use of, but with various performance an integration penalties.
Snow Leopard moves closer to the Windows model, where it appears the SL kernel and most OS components are finally available in a 64-bit version. There are still two binaries though. A 32-bit one, and a 64-bit one. The install disc / OS simply chooses the appropriate binary to load at runtime.
The main difference is that here even in 2009, they are releasing an OS that isn't fully 64-bit...
Maybe they had a lot more work to do, given the overly complicated nature of OS X and its mishmash kernel architecture. Windows on the other hand had the benefit of its NT origin, which originally targetted a variety of architectures (i386, PPC, MIPS, and Alpha). Particularly useful was the Alpha support, since the Alpha included x86 emulation and since NT was built to accomodate that kind of environment (via the Windows On Windows virtualization / thunking model).
then
Windows 7 = Service pack for Vista
It's not because it keeps the same cosmetics that it's a service pack.
It's way much more than this, people who say that are misinformed. Snow Leopard took probably as much time than windows 7 to produce.
Not really. Snow Leopard is kind of a side project at Apple while most of their software engineering team is devoted to iPhone OS and related projects. Windows 7 on the other hand was the one and only focus of the Windows engineering teams - thousands of engineers.
It's apparent in the amount of change in each OS. Whereas Windows 7 has major new features and improvements from the kernel level (scaling to 256 cores, lower power usage, etc) to rewriting several major shell components, to applets and accessories - Snow Leopard has only a few targetted changes and some code clean-up by deprecating hardware support. There are more significant changes available for free on Vista. Just look at DirectX 10.1/11 (includes OpenCL equivalent), .NET 3.5 and soon 4.0 plus the Concurrency Runtime (light years ahead of Grand Central), IE 8, Windows Search 4, SP1+SP2, and so on.
Instead of targetted updates, Windows 7 includes major updates to virtually every OS component at every level of the stack, and tons of new user-facing features. Nevermind all the new developer support, much of which is being back-ported to Vista for free.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Features_new_to_Windows_7
Where is my snow leopard preview ;_;
But now i realize that charging $29 for a service pack is not good!!
Vista -> 7 is breathtaking...while leopard to snowleopard is not as vista to 7 right!?
Last edited by guruparan on 08 Jun 2009 - 18:11
Not all Leopard users run Intel
ready for it?
FREE.
Windows 7 = the same thing with an updated UI. Thanks for playing
Windows 7 = the same thing with an updated UI. Thanks for playing
You are clueless and obviously have not used Win7. Win7 has a lot of improvements and things that are different. So thank you for playing. And until Apple lowers their HW prices for their products, then there is nothing to woohoo about. Until Apple can run a non bashing/negative ad campaign and instead tell the consumers about their products, there is nothing to woohoo about.
It's not, and it's sad to see the Apple faithful joyous about have to pay for something that should be free, just because they've been gouged $129 for the point release/service packs in the past two years.
I wish Apple well with this. It looks promising.
they might as well offer for free!
But that works both for and against Apple. On one hand, it keeps almost everyone using the latest OS, with all of the features that it supports. On the other hand, it almost guarantees that if you fall too far behind on the OS upgrade track that you'll begin to have problems with newer programs.
The only way they wouldn't make money if it it was free, so that part of his comment stands. They want everyone to upgrade, else they'd be a pretty stupid business.
I would suggest a size guide of largeness:
Windows Service Pack < Snow Leopard update < normal OS X update < normal Windows update. Win7 is probably closer to a normal OS X update, but still larger.
Now, the point here is that since none of the above are on a level, it's just silly to call an OSX update a service pack, or Win7 as being like the Snow Leopard update.
But that works both for and against Apple. On one hand, it keeps almost everyone using the latest OS, with all of the features that it supports. On the other hand, it almost guarantees that if you fall too far behind on the OS upgrade track that you'll begin to have problems with newer programs.
Exactly... I have been using 10.5 since Nov. of 2007 when it came on my new MBP I have never had a problem with it unlike my windows computers which require a OS reinstall every 6-10 months in order to keep speed up and size down.
$29.
How about the changes and new features? I haven't read any info on this yet.
- Did he bash Microsoft? Yes.
So summarizing: he goes on stage, bashes Microsoft with an argumentation that is the main weakness of his product too, then announces a $29 update which wouldn't be so low if the OS was worth more than that or if he wasn't scared, he just didn't give a full Retail price, but nontheless he got everyone excited about it!
That's how Apple works, isn't it?
- Did he bash Microsoft? Yes.
So summarizing: he goes on stage, bashes Microsoft with an argumentation that is the main weakness of his product too, then announces a $29 update which wouldn't be so low if the OS was worth more than that or if he wasn't scared, he just didn't give a full Retail price, but nontheless he got everyone excited about it!
That's how Apple works, isn't it?
Plenty was said about their product. Weren't you watching?
I wouldn't see why. There's a lot to look forward to with Windows 7, especially if you must use it in the workplace. I look forward to installing it on my bootcamp partition. But, will it sway me away from Leopard or even Snow Leopard? Not a chance. Neither OS is going to sway existing users.
Naw, they are not scared really. They are just wanting to improve their market share and the only way they know how to do it is negative campaigning. They cannot increase their share without it.
MS would probably be sued somehow for being anti-competative doing that
And it is FREE for Vista customers.
So by that same quote, anyone that claims Windows 7 is a service pack for vista.......
Woah, I was pretty shocked right there.
Same things goes for people, or APPLE, who have not used Win7. Hypocrite much?
At a very low price. Most people are saying service pack on here and i have to agree.
£30 for a service pack? i'd rather nail my foreskin to a wooden cross than pay for a service pack.
And why did Apple repeat them selves over and over, re-explaining everything they did back in the iPhone keynote they did a while back? time filling? yeah...spot on!
Yet again, another keynote has past and another round of things that didn't send a chill of excitement up my spine.
I'm more excited about widnows 7 to be honest and thats Microsoft for god-sakes
And why can't Apple just sticvk to one modal of the iPhone and update it? why keep releasing newer versions and don't give me all this **** about new hardware, thats ********!!
they only can do it to make themselves look good. But they hit the wall of innovation. Other than same old OSX, iphone, ipod. What else they can created? Look at microsoft, in one year they have done so much things like project natal, surface computing, win 7 etc..... They created many new name and concepts
Valid points. You don't often see them in these kinds of discussions. Most of this one has nothing to do with the 10.6 announcement, but thread crapping. It's something I've come to expect with the Apple news.
EASILY WORTH THE DOUGH!
What do you mean it isn't? 90% of the codebase was rewritten.
You can't take primarily Carbon applications such as the Finder and simply recompile them as Cocoa. (64-bit)
Ok, well if you're talking about completely rewritten from "scratch"--then yes that would be incorrect. But that doesn't leave out the fact that 90% of the codebase was rewritten (again, not necessarily from scratch) and refined with optimizations. (barring just a simple 64-bit recompile)
I wish I could take a look under the hood as to the specific changes, but sadly I don't have the developer seed.
Lets see how Microsoft compete in pricing for its service pack windows 7.
Windows trolls really does not, calm down (don't know whats driving them mad, maybe their non-satisfaction with what they are defending? maybe apple is too threatening ? maybe Microsoft inability to keep up ?
maybe because they are used to afford junk (not all pcs) and believe that they had the best quality until apple came along?! and now thats too pricy for you?! guess what, thats what quality costs!.. even if they are more expensive than the standard high quality margin would be,... its worth it..
the IDEA.. is not that narrow minded to the point that you see it just the same PC components in a shiny overpriced package!! (I won't explain it.. because if you really care to know you would research that honestly yourself than just bashing!..
Macs works, entirely different that what PCs approach is. from a hardware point (as you can easily connect your harddrive to someone else's mac and boot it without installing drivers.. even if the specifications of the two systems are different or has different Peripherals or components cards!, excluding some Mac Pro third Party Expansion cards that require driver installations).. thats of-course regardless of that every piece of software or whatever are completely supported and compatible and trouble free, as if you had a game console and buying games and peripherals for it.., you are sure that games will work and won't be slow.. and its perfect for the console, and that would be it for any upcoming game that will be released for that console.. try imaging that with macs as they are consoles and its software and peripherals are like its games.. (of course excluding the ppc, and any big transition that could come up in the future)
as from an OS point of view, I cannot really compare OSX to windows. it would be unfair for both of them
bit i can say (and i've been using both from a long time) that OSX beats windows hands down when it comes to convenience!! ( there is alot to say here,.. but you can find that out yourself if you care)
also you cannot get that good feeling and sense of joy while using OSX from windows..
as for windows its has its strong points too, as for example being..duh. WINDOWS, and its wide software availability and some other business and professional usage domain strong points..
But as a blind fact, i see OSX as an innovative OS when it comes to how OSX works!..
I can't imagine how are you guys living with yourselves that easily when you are just denying apple innovation, or being innovative!
all you see that their products are garbage, pricy, etc... Don't you ever have something new to say? because I sense that the way here is just bashing.. and no valid arguments..
it looks like the classic arguments when atheists try to deny the existence of god, although they know that GOD is there!
so calm down..
AND I INVITE EVRY Mac USER TO STOP RESPONDING OR WRITING COMMENTS ON NEOWIN... because if thats the way windows trolls's gonna be, then lets leave them talking to themselves!
I don't say that all windows users here are that way though,.. so I hope i've not offended everyone!..
thanks.
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