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My guess is that 'themes' will make it into MacOS X. At least, under the scenes.

Themes are alive and well in MacOS 9 - Apple simply decided to refrain from bundling any, and has not encouraged developers to make their own (you can download some from a few sites, however). Jobs is really big on 'total user experience' - since themes didn't replicate very well across all apps, rumor was that Jobs cut it out at the last moment.

By the time OSX ships, theme capability will have been in some variant of the MacOS since v8.5 - over 2 years earlier. Developers have been slowly getting their act together as far as Appearance Manager compliance goes, so things may go smoother now.

Also, recent builds of OSX have been shipped with the old dark platinum appearance - only since yesterday has Apple been public with their new UI. It would appear that there is some sort of plug-in theme enabler to make the switch so easy and transparent (even Microsoft hadn't seen it, supposedly - I can understand why :>).

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

Since when is NT Unix based?

I've heard it has some degree of POSIX compliance, but 'Unix-based' that does not make.

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

The operative term is 'reasserts'. To Mac fans at least, Apple has always had the lead in usable operating systems (the foundation is another matter - I don't think anyone is seriously contesting that). Back in the early 80's people were playing catch-up with Apple, in the early 90's Windows took the lead. Not by doing anything particularly interesting, but it was 'good enough' to justify the cost. Now, Apple is attempting to wow the audiences again and shoot well past Windows.

Don't take it too seriously though, it's just marketting-speak. There's more than a kernel of truth to it, though.

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

I think the fact that it only runs on PowerPC iron is going to kill Apple's chances of destroying Linux. If they went cross-platform, things might get very scary indeed (for Microsoft in particular - Linux might be immune to some degree due to its userbase).

Right now, it makes no sense from a business perspective for Apple to offer it to X86. They make their profits on hardware, and the R&D required to support the wild world of drivers in that area wouldn't be worth it. I guess that's where Darwin could come in, though.

I'd like to see Apple open up cloning again. Keep better control over it (sorry folks, pulling an IBM is - rightfully so - not in Apple's interests), but don't kill it outright. This won't happen for a while yet, but it's something to think about in the future.

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

While recent developments have helped (with Gnome in particular), they have more or less been stuck to copying Windows' faults along with its benefits.

Apple is reinventing itself, with a nod to its NeXT and MacOS roots. Outside of Apple and maybe Be, there just isn't much going on in the UI arena.



- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

LinuxPPC (latest version) run fine on current Powerbooks (mine is a Lombard).

There are a few minor issues, but those are pretty minor. Check out the web site for more details:

http://www.linuxppc.org

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

Actually, they're not useless. Apple has for a long time offered hooks to make multiple buttons work universally. They've simply been careful to ensure that more than one button isn't required.

If you get a good multi-button mouse, the right button should work. The middle button may perform no function, but you could always assign a macro of some sort to it (ie. map it to command-C, which copies text).

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

Tim -

I'll agree. Alt-tab is one of the (few) things Windows got right. It is of definate use.

I personally prefer the BeOS implementation above all others, though. The 'twitcher' is pretty damned nice from a usability aspect, IMHO.



- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

Bullshit. Mac users are notorious for criticizing the Mac. We have high standards, and Apple isn't immune to mistakes (you have seen the typical Mac user reaction to QuickTime 4's interface, right?).

We just don't appreciate the constant slurs on our intelligence. The whole 'dumb luser' stereotype has grown very thin.

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

I guess the general idea is that it's better to have 70-80% of the functions available using consistant key combinations than 100% with inconsistant key combinations.

Key combinations are worthless if they don't carry over from app to app. While the Mac doesn't cover some of the more obscure commands, most of the ones that are supported are very common in multiple apps.

Note that this is really a developer choice. Apple has just evangelized consistancy for so long, developers keep it in mind and users chew them out if they do poorly.

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

Where is the Linux marketshare in the desktop arena? That may take a couple years.

Companies don't just make silly decisions like open-sourcing their crown jewels without a reason, and a port takes a while.

Not to mention that vast portions of QuickTime don't even belong to Apple to port.

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

Read here for more info:

http://www.maccentral.com/news/0001/05.quake.sht ml

...sounds like his next project may be MacOS X _only_.

He has a history of liking NeXTStep, and today made his second MacWorld Expo appearance...

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

My guess is that they're waiting for Linux to cut a larger swath in the desktop market. If it can gain a few more percentage points, they might just do it.

I don't think it's as easy as it sounds, though. QuickTime isn't exactly trivial...

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

1. Apple uploads source code to everything to an FTP site.

2. Someone downloads source code.

3. Apple is sued by stockholders.

4. Apple goes out of business (for real).

Say what you will, but Apple isn't lying to anyone about their intentions and stipulations. Read the license, and it will all be clear. Why is Apple cheating? Nobody. Don't like the license? Don't contribute. It's all there on their site.

I can't believe people hold it _against_ a company simply because they won't give away millions of dollars worth of R&D and development time. What is Apple going to do, sell support? Seems like a conflict of interest, as they're going to 'ease of use'.

Bitch about them not using the more restrictive GPL if you like, but it makes no difference. Unless you can figure out a way for them to stay in business (and - gasp! - prosper) under the GPL model, there's no way in hell they or anyone else is going to listen you.

Code doesn't deserve to be free. It's a nice gesture, and potentially rewarding for everyone if done right, but it's not a right in the same way people have a right to live outside of slavery.

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

Yep. And from I hear, it's not nearly as good as the Mac version.

(I haven't used it much on the Windows side of things)

If so, they need to ensure platform parity. Once the Windows version works fine, Linux would be the next logical step (just don't bother asking for the complete source code - it's not all theirs to give).

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

Those developers you cite are now not only Apple developers, but comprise the head of Apple's development group (Avi Tevanian comes to mind).


- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

Apple should make it easy for command line conniseurs, but they also need to encourage developers not to get sloppy. If at all possible, all features should be available from a graphical interface.

I'd hate to see software being written that is configured by editing a text file. This is fine for Linux, but for the MacOS... Well, it's just plain wrong.

I'd still like complete command line support, GNU tools, Perl, etc. These things should come on the CD, as an optional install for 'power' users.

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

On a side note, Word 6 for the Mac was so bad, Microsoft had to start selling Word 5 again because Mac users hated it.

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

---
Don't they just end up meaning that the company in question gets to be the sole distro? Or is it more like they're the only ones who have the right to make a profit off of it?
---

Yeah, this is kind of how companies work.

People need to realize, Apple giving ANYTHING away is a benefit. Why? You don't have to choose it. What this provides to you is a choice - more choice is good.

In the Mac community, there has been a long history of developers going "Gee, I wish we had X feature" in the OS. Now, they are starting to have a place to make the changes necessary.

While Apple certainly isn't going to stop anyone, Darwin isn't necessarily focused on creating tons of different distros. It's aimed primarily at adding improvements to the core OS, with forking as an option.

Apple gets free development and bug testing, the community gets tens of thousands of hours worth of free code.

---
I don't see how that could really help the companies (esp. in the case of Mozilla, since Netscape will distribute Netscape 5 for free anyway, so there's no profit to protect).
---

The problem is that Netscape didn't want to worry about GPL-esque 'viral' code. They wanted to be able to combine the fruits of the open-sourced code with their own proprietary code. Netscape is doing this as well, as Netscape Communicator will have functionality not present in Mozilla.

Apple would be stupid to give away everything, esp. their UI code. Other than some hardware benefits, their UI is one of their biggest selling points.

As for a comparison, check ESR's site (as well as Bruce's, I think). RMS doesn't like it, but then again, RMS doesn't seem to like anything to himself and his license.

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

The real trick is providing a command line interface, and yet convincing 3rd party developers that they really should develop apps with GUI use in mind.

Assuming they can do that, and developers don't slack off, this will be a very good thing. Command line tools, while not perfect for many things and many people, have a few benefits: automation being one of them. I hope Apple provides a full suite of tools, superior to their counterparts, that interoperate with the OS.

Another thing: The thought of scripting the OS using Perl is a cause for salivation. As it is now, Applescript integration with the MacOS is VERY powerful in this regard - I'm partial to Perl, though.

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

It's a very advanced toilet, for a new age in excrement disposal.

One word: 'scoop'

(eww)

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

Here's a diagram:

/\
/\
/\
/\
The 'top' is Wednesday - the 'hump'

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

Someone change this from 'flamebait' to 'informative'. Despite the somewhat inflammatory tone, what he says is correct. You can use multiple button mice with your Mac, and the other buttons can do things.

I would like to see 2 button mice become standard with the Mac though (3 goes away from the simplicity they're going for, but 2 is fine - 3-4 buttons can be assigned to macros, etc).

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

This isn't corporate America - this looks like a scam.

Even corporate America wouldn't touch this with a 10 foot pole...

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

Yep.

Rumor says that they didn't downgrade the graphics capability in the PSX-2. There are some whisperings that it may actually _improve_ some.

Pretty cool, huh? :>

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

Obviously this guy has never worked tech support before. If he had, he'd know that these kinds of jokes are the single thing preventing support techs from hunting down and murdering their users.

These strips are meant for techs, not users. We laugh. What's wrong with that?

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

Blind anti-Americanism sees to be as fashionable these days as blind American nationalism was back in the 40's and 50's.

Witness the number of Anon. Cowards railing against America on a regular basis on these boards. America isn't perfect by any means, but it's not all that bad. CDA and Echelon aside, our variation of 'free speech' is better than many countries, and the average person here is pretty well off financially by global standards.

It could be better, but it could be a lot, lot worse...

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

Yeah, well, nobody is perfect.

You can read more here about Apple's faulty implementation here:

http://www.apple.com/about/year2000/y2kos.html

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

The existance of Jesus, in itself, isn't so hard to believe (although I wouldn't bet on it).

The fairy-tale surrounding it, however, is. Show me a verifiable, repeatable experiment that proves that he is the son of god, and you'll have a convert.

Not easy, though: This would assume that there is a god (you'd have to prove it), that this god had a son (that too), and that this son happens to be the same Jesus mentioned in the bible.

Think whatever you wish, but I still maintain that Jesus would not be a geek - if he were, he would have provided better documentation and explained what scientific processes led to his resurrection, walking on water, etc.

Simply put, religion is the antithesis of science. One requires a suspension of disbelief, the other requires as much verifiable evidence as possible.

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

Coward -

I could argue the validity of relying on a state of being verb in this case, but I won't. Once again, you dodge the issue entirely. Purposefully steering around the main point of a discussion via the use of tangents is usually indicative of the lack of a real argument.

If you plan on replying again, please read the thread again and reply to my point in its entirety (without insults would be great - it doesn't make you look very good when you resort to them).

My point, in case you don't wish to look for it: Everyone who comprehends "Gödel" will understand "Godel". Missing umlauts don't hurt the communicative process, but your incessant whining does.

PS: While you're at it, I'll ask for the _third_ time for you to explain your use of 'eh' and that first comma. Being the self proclaimed genius that you are, you should have no trouble.


- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

Sounds like you're an expert on the topic - care to tell us more?

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

"And Gödel is still preferable."

This is what is known as a sentence fragment - in this case, it lacks a verb.

http://www.lynchburg.edu/public/writcntr/guide/g rammar/sentfrag.htm

Beginning a sentence with the word 'And' is commonly considered bad grammar, and was beaten into many of our heads well before 6th grade. Some of the more 'progressive' teachers don't have a problem with it in informal writing, but most will cringe upon hearing it. I personally don't care, but _you're_ the fucking Gammar Nazi, not I.

To not recognize your mistakes makes you a hypocrite.

Regardless, you miss the point. In a sad attempt to ignore the rest of my post, you focus on a single small point that I made. You avoid my main point that it doesn't matter, this isn't a fucking essay. If you insist on trying to find a way to justify your anti-Americanism, why don't you focus on our policies or actions instead?

Once again, I state that a missing umlaut makes no difference at all in this thread - you understood what he meant, as did everyone else. To complain about it endlessly all over Slashdot only makes you look petty and pedantic.

BTW: You still haven't defended your use of 'eh', nor the overuse of commas.

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

---
I personally don't care, but _you're_ the fucking Gammar Nazi, not I.
---

Grammar, not gammer. Oops.

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

If you don't understand what he means, then who is the true idiot?

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

1. Not everyone's parents are oppressive. Some love their kids, no matter what, and let them be themselves.

2. Not all of society originates in a church.



- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

1. You began a sentence with the word 'And', a definate no-no in the English language.

2. Regarding "...right now, too, eh?", do you really need that first comma? Is 'eh' really an appropriate word to use?

(you do know what they say about those living in glass houses, right?)

You know the reason why we occasionally misspell things or otherwise use improper grammar? Because we don't care. The use of language has a single purpose, to communicate an idea. The fact that you automatically assumed we meant Godel (lacking an umlaut for the sole purpose of spiting you) means that the sentence performed its task perfectly. Ditto with the other 5-6 messages you or others like you have insisted on replying to with snide, elitist spelling corrections.

It's sad to think that there are actually people out there who get some sort of thrill whenever a Slashdot post pops up with a misspelling, as they get to correct someone's usage of a word. I'm not sure whether to attribute this to the lack of a life or simply a case of obsessive compulsive disorder.

Regardless, you need to understand that we simply don't care. The idea is presented, understood, etc. I have no idea why so many Europeans have it in for America and its residents.

Anyhow, I hope my fellow Americans will understand that you are not representative of the European community.


- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

Right.

My understanding was that he was an agnostic, with a lack of real belief in a god.

To make pure assumptions that there is no god is very unscientific. Then again, the same could be said about assuming that there is no such thing as a purple cow orbiting around Saturn. We simply don't know.

Yet, you can imagine that even though it is impossible to disprove anything, you don't exactly need to believe in it. A true scientist can make basic assumptions, but anything is possible.

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

Yeah, but his supposed geekiness is built on vaporware.

"Okay, now prove it"

"Um... Err..."

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

Yep, must be another day of the week, eh?



- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

It's a perfectly acceptable quote, and IMHO one that catches the situation perfectly.

First, you are basically stating that this will save tons of lives. Will it really? Very few people die in hijackings and airline bombings, and this won't do a damn thing about iced wings or engine failure. No disrespect to those who have lost family due to airline violence, but there are a large number of things that have killed far more people.

This is speculation, but I bet far more people die in household accidents yearly than do in airline hijackings and bombings. What is the most likely solution? Why, cameras in homes of course - privacy is of little concern when your child could drown in the tub or you can crack your head changing a light bulb on a vaulted ceiling. This could save lives, right?

Right?

Anyhow, your comment that you were in the military is hardly surprising. Shave the hair off, wear the same clothes, shout the same words, make your bed just so. Conform, conform, conform. While one could make the argument that this is of some use for the military (I wouldn't believe it, but...), most of us civilians would prefer to behave like men and women and not herd animals.

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

I think we should cut of peoples' arms prior to entering a plane - without arms, they can't stab anyone. The children would be far safer (albeit armless).

Sounds ludicrous? Yes, and so does your fallacy.

Anecdotal evidence makes for good soundbites, but it doesn't really help your argument much. The way you word it, you get a choice of either being searched or blown up. In reality, such cases are VERY rare, and may not be worth the loss of rights this might entail (Some people would gladly take the 1 in a million chance instead of being treated like cattle).

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

This isn't homophobic. Some people have a case of 'modesty' to deal with. many straight men don't want women - even those who they consider attractive - to be looking at them naked. Their wives may not appreciate it either. Why do you assume this is homophobia?

Many people don't like to be looked at by anyone who could be attracted to them, whether they are or not (unless they are dating, married, etc). This would naturally include the opposite sex and homosexuals. Since when is it homophobic? I'd call it modesty - esp. since the original poster practically bent over backwards to state that he was not trying to be homophobic.

This militant political correctness bullshit is getting very old...

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

True - but this makes it a bit easier for this guy to be elected. He was popular to begin with, but encumbants usually have an easier time at it.

Of course, his only real rival is a Communist. And you though _we_ had a lack of choices...

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

If you think this is scary, look at the background of the guy who is replacing him...

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

Is it me, or is there a single anonymous coward running around and trying to insult each person who posts?

I say this because rhe insults aren't particularly inspired...

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

Fair enough.

Anyone notice that Perl guys have excellent language skills? :>

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

An individual writes a piece of software, and it is 'silenced'. This is in effect a case of someone treading on free speech.

At least, that's my take on it. This isn't about not having DVD capability on Linux, it's about a perfectly legal piece of software made illegal to protect corporate interests.

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

Not an endorsement. :>

http://internetparty.freeservers.com/

Used to be the 'Internet' party, but they merged with the Constitution party. Go figure.

I prefer most of the politics of the Libertarian party, myself.

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

...also failed to call for yours?

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)

I rest my case.

- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)