Preserved Topic: Mac OSX - Curiosities

When I read that the new Mac OSX was going to use FreeBSD for its backend I was not too surprised. Most Mac users that I have met tend to have jobs working with graphics design, and Unix is an excellent, stable environment and, unlike the older versions of MacOS, it does an excellent job at memory allocation. Also, if you look at what most of the large 3d design firms are using, it is a Unix-based OS like SGI.

If they do the right thing, and do not touch the BSD core, you guys are going to have a great operating system - one that is literally a thousand times more stable than any other version of Windows on the market.

I do not use a Mac myself (mostly Linux) and would like to know how you Mac users feel about this new change. I hear a whole lot of people from the Unix community bitching that Apple will pollute an otherwise stable system, hide the command-line functionality, write bloated GUI code that causes crahes and then try to sell the new OS as the next-gen FreeBSD.

Chris

You'll hear all sorts of stuff from all sorts of people. I haven't bought the beta, so can't speak from first hand experience. Not sure it's accurate that the kernel is FreeBSD, but there is a very Unix-like chassis to the new chariot. (Almost wrote "buggy" - guess that's not real cool when referring to software!!)

Pollute an otherwise stable system? Unix is going to be Unix (whatever Unix means by now - FreeBSD, Linux, Silicon Graphics and Sun's dialects to name a few, not to mention the wealth of shells and GUIs). Mac OS will be different. 'Cause we "think different"! I believe the command line will be available to those who wish, yes there will be tons of GUI bloat sitting on top, yes there will be people howling. Look at any change. Adobe upgrades PS6, people say "This is great, but why'd you have to change [insert favorite tool]?"

Don't know if the "bloat" will make it crash prone. I do know that it will supposedly be very configurable, so if you want it to behave more like OS 9 it can. That takes loads of overhead. Then there is the emulator so that your OS 8-9 software will run. That's more overhead. Graphics are supposed to be superb. (I mean the GUI graphics, not the graphics you make using the computer!) Wouldn't be possibile if modern computers didn't have so darn much processing muscle.

I've read lots of grousing about the task bar at the bottom and the jumbo icons and the new finder and such, but did read one article by someone openminded enough to get past what they were "used to" and admire what Apple has done from a feed-back standpoint.

It's going to be a difficult adjustment I think. But in the long run, Apple is at about the end of the line with what they can do with decades old technology. I think I'm looking forward to it.

I think.

I mess around with Unix and don't know the Mac OS at all so I can't say much.

However I do have a Sysadmin who is a big Unix/apple user. He thinks OSX is great, a good combo of the FreeBSD stability with the Mac OS ease of use. There must be tradeoffs - more horsepower but less gas milage - otherwise the perfect OS would exist. But this seems to lean more on the best of both worlds type of product as opposed to the worst of each type combo

Ohh and inregards to the Hiding the command line stuff...

Those Unix admins must realize that the market OSX is aimed at doesn't want the command line. If you are that hard-core then stick with Solaris

Walking the Earth like Kane

[This message has been edited by bitdamaged (edited 12-06-2000).]