Apple does not need new gimmicks. They need to bring their old quality back into their new software.
Specifics:
Why not just implement enabling technologies instead of trying to make second-rate implementations of good ideas and hard-wire them into the operating system? I'm thinking of the horrible Show Fonts gadget, the Show Colors gadget, and the Address book. Changing fonts in OS 9 took a click, drag, release. Now it requires a click, a drag, a release, a select, and then close the dialog. Why is this better again? The whole idea of building an Address book into the operating system, which they never improve and which nobody else can really make good use of. The Color gadget. WTF?
More: The random mixes of interface styles between applications. The non-spatial monstrosity they mockingly call "Finder", the lack of thought to number of mouse clicks and distance between events, and other GUI errors...
I now believe that they no longer have any real standards, just a set of guidelines that they feel free to ignore. Such details were understandably glossed over after OS X came out at first, but holy crap, Mail hasn't changed for years now, as far as I can tell. They update it, but it never improves. It's depressing.
Ah yes, Mail.app. The whole painful Mail.app interface with its weird sort-of-heirarchical menus and color labels that don't show up on messages unless they ARE NOT selected. Its underpowered rules filter. The weird implementation of Spotlight technology. The hit-and-miss interfacing with IMAP servers, misplacing messages. The ability to say "use this mailbox as the Trash," but afterwards, you can't set that back to the Trash! Endless nits like this, too many to mention, but each reflecting a lack of thought, and implying to me that Apple employees must use Eudora for their mail needs. Now it's version 2.0. Can somebody explain why this got a whole version bump? Was it just Spotlight? It's weird. Seemingly just a rewarmed Next gadget, Mail is.
Another thing is the organization of the Applications directory. Why is Grab a utility but Preview isn't? Some things go into folders, some don't. It's exactly as if each little project just picks a random spot and sticks their application there. Quick quiz: where is Stuffit Expander located? You can't move them because then they won't get updated properly. It's just crap. Crap I say!
And another thing: after software updates, sometimes the installed application is an updater such as iPod update. The installer asks me to restart, then the installed application cancels the logout to install something I don't even own. I can't choose NOT to download the update. It's pretty messed up.
Oh, I guess I'll lose karma for this post!:-) But it's the truth. OS X is a hard-core sweet technology with tons of power and is the best thing out there, but it could be a lot better if they would shine it up a bit. The spit and polish is gone, replaced mainly with spit.
Sometimes is seems that everybody has some class of humans in mind that they assume is somehow morally above others. Every human being is imperfect, occasionally dishonest, stupid, clumsy, error-prone, etc. Also every human is occasionally amazingly well-behaved, courageous, insightful, etc. Scientists are no different. The only time we are surprised by tales of one or the other is when we have a bias one way or another towards that group or a vested interest in their behavior.
Luckily, the culture of science is generally one of disclosure, so if you have problems with somebody's findings, you can go try to reproduce it yourself, presumably...
The article makes a common mistake. Before, SOME mac users claimed PPC was THE way to go. Now SOME Mac users are saying Intel sounds like a good idea. Hey, guess what? They are not the same people saying this. The author is just being silly. I don't think many people have changed their positions about anything since Jobs made his announcement. The people who were saying "Mac is better because of PPC" are now saying, "Damn, this is a bad move, what's going on?" But most people don't give a crap. It's just about making the best Mac possible. If it's built on Intel, great.
The reason they chose "informative" instead of funny has to do with Slashdot's methods of awarding points. I think "funny" has a disadvantage, like somehow you don't get a point for it. As if being funny isn't important? Tell that to George Bush!:-)
BTW, I just had to add. I don't think you have read his original prediction, the one you claim is just another guess that happened to hit it right. It really is well reasoned and in retrospect seems an obvious conclusion. I mean, why did Steve Jobs KEYNOTE at an Intel conference? Why were Intel execs in the front row at Macworld Expo? How could Steve let Pixar switch to Intel (something I raised eyebrows at, too, knowing the tight reign Steve has on things)?
Let's be fair to this guy; he really had it right. And of course, as flame retardant, I have to state my Mac credentials: I am writing this from my dual-G5 Tiger box... I've never owned an Intel machine. But I'm glad and hopeful for this switch, although a bit worried at the same time.
I don't know why they say he doesn't gloat in this article; he does. But guess what? He has the right to. The Mac fanatics (I'm a Mac lover, but I'm reasonable about it) gave him hell about his prediction. He was right, so he deserves a little victory dance.
As for making the same prediction each year, I don't think so. He has made the same *suggestion* each year, but isn't this the first time he claimed it actually was happening soon?
PS I'm just trying to be fair to a guy everybody here seems to hate.
If the question is worded this way, it sounds like it's referring to sites like Priceline.com. I believe as part of their advertising they regularly claim they are there to find you the lowest price possible. I think it is illegal to make false statements about the nature of your product, so maybe people aren't as stupid as some slashdotters seem to think. The question arises as to the meaning of "possible" in the above sentence as well.
I'd think it would be much cooler for people to broadcast their position and speed to a central hub somehow (yes, anonymously, you paranoid bastards!)
The information could be used to plan travel by seeing where traffic is bad.
I don't know about France, but in America, judicial activism is a Bad Thing. We don't want the judiciary to become politicized, or it will lose the very objectivity that makes its politicization seem attractive in the first place. It can make more objective judgements if it doesn't try to legislate a particular social result in its rulings.
The force which is supposed to overcome bad lawmaking by nullfiying the ostensibly "proper" but possibly ridiculous results which we often see emanating from our courts is the presence of a jury. However, ironically, the same judges who are hot to champion the latest social cause in their courtroom are loath to empower the common jurist with the information and ability to make common-sense decisions in the courtroom. juries are very hamstrung in America.
Sadly, we are left to rely on Congress. But we just vote for the guy we hate less and get back to our busy lives, instead of looking for good men to lead us. So we end up with bad laws, twisted about in nearly random ways by activist judges, and zombie jurors who have trouble believing in what they are doing. What a farce! Sigh.:-)
Holy shit! He said what? I guess that explains a lot. Sure, write your password down and put it underneath your keyboard.
How about using an easy to remember phrase like "I like sex" but replace some of the letters with crazy symbols like $ for s and 3 for e, etc. That makes a very strong password, actually. It's the one I use, in fact. Can you guess my password now? I don't think so.
I hope we're not seeing a new philosophy here: ship an incomplete product to meet a marketing deadline with major features buggy and incomplete, then patch the problems later. There are no serious bugs that I have found yet in all of four days of playing with Tiger intermittently, but I can already tell that Apple basically rushed out an incomplete product here. Risky.
You "pretty much read" that? Hmm. I would be more confident about your information if you were at least sure you read it. Maybe you could share your information source?:-)
This just shows me that the people deciding how to set up their online sites do not themselves shop online very often. I often get most of the way through an order, then abandon it because a shipping charge shows up that I think is offensive, or because I reconsider my purchase. But I often go back and buy it the next day or a few days later. I have to think I'm not alone. I don't understand why retailers should be "frustrated" by this. If they would like to know why people leave, how about if they try shopping at their own site to see what it's like?
Well, since small-scale fusion that produces more power than it consumes is not being done here, the statement is not as ridiculous as you make it sound. Perhaps if you had bothered to glance at the article, you would know that.:-)
Where did you get this information? Perhaps you are running and older version than 10.3.8? Or maybe the readme that comes with the update is incomplete? The update from 10.3.8 to 10.3.9 does not mention any security updates.
You would expect the number of people using email less because of spam to decrease to zero quickly when 25% of the population say they avoid email!
Can somebody parse this sentence for me? Thanks.
Restated, it sounds like, When 25% of the population say they avoid email, you would expect the number of people who use email less because of spam to decrease to zero quickly.
This is ridiculous. I don't think it's outrageous to try to create ad revenue, but TiVo has been feature-frozen for years, essentially. No new innovation, same terrible interface for typing out words painfully through the infamous "ouija board screen," same awfully slow sorting algorithms, same ancient hardware, RAM limitations, lack of customizability....
And the "innovation" they come up with in 2005 is to find a way to spam us? Thanks, TiVo.
I see your point, but my point is that yes, you can *make* Windows secure if you are knowledgable, but last time I checked, an out-of-the-box Windows box is owned minutes after connecting to the network unless the user takes steps to prevent attack, such as putting the machine behind a firewall and blocking all incoming traffic. Our Windows machines here spread email viruses like, er, the plague? I think our security here is taken very seriously, yet somehow we cannot stop the PC viruses from literally crippling our mail server occasionally. I think there is something fundamental going on here, and I think it is the notorious habit of Microsoft to start out with unnecessary services enabled, and allowing their email client to automatically run scripts under the instruction of an arbitrary email message. This makes Windows more insecure. I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree there. I'm not trying to troll.
I think it will be interesting, because I think OS X will be shown to be highly secure. I agree, though, as market share increases, the proof will be forthcoming. Apple has made some MS-like security mistakes, such as the Help vulnerability that was discovered last year. But in general you are not going to see a Mac box with no MS Word and no MS Access installed spreading viruses like the PC's around my office seem to. I cannot believe what people put up with on their Windows machines. They are such pieces of crap, security-wise.:-) I don't mean to troll, it's just that I have yet to see a virus forwarded from an OS X machine... yet have seen hundreds from PC's. It's not just market-share, people. There is actually a difference in operating systems. Why is the idea that OS X might be inherently more secure than Windows such a shocking one to some people?
Slashdot Mirror
Specifics:
Why not just implement enabling technologies instead of trying to make second-rate implementations of good ideas and hard-wire them into the operating system? I'm thinking of the horrible Show Fonts gadget, the Show Colors gadget, and the Address book. Changing fonts in OS 9 took a click, drag, release. Now it requires a click, a drag, a release, a select, and then close the dialog. Why is this better again? The whole idea of building an Address book into the operating system, which they never improve and which nobody else can really make good use of. The Color gadget. WTF?
More: The random mixes of interface styles between applications. The non-spatial monstrosity they mockingly call "Finder", the lack of thought to number of mouse clicks and distance between events, and other GUI errors...
I now believe that they no longer have any real standards, just a set of guidelines that they feel free to ignore. Such details were understandably glossed over after OS X came out at first, but holy crap, Mail hasn't changed for years now, as far as I can tell. They update it, but it never improves. It's depressing.
Ah yes, Mail.app. The whole painful Mail.app interface with its weird sort-of-heirarchical menus and color labels that don't show up on messages unless they ARE NOT selected. Its underpowered rules filter. The weird implementation of Spotlight technology. The hit-and-miss interfacing with IMAP servers, misplacing messages. The ability to say "use this mailbox as the Trash," but afterwards, you can't set that back to the Trash! Endless nits like this, too many to mention, but each reflecting a lack of thought, and implying to me that Apple employees must use Eudora for their mail needs. Now it's version 2.0. Can somebody explain why this got a whole version bump? Was it just Spotlight? It's weird. Seemingly just a rewarmed Next gadget, Mail is.
Another thing is the organization of the Applications directory. Why is Grab a utility but Preview isn't? Some things go into folders, some don't. It's exactly as if each little project just picks a random spot and sticks their application there. Quick quiz: where is Stuffit Expander located? You can't move them because then they won't get updated properly. It's just crap. Crap I say!
And another thing: after software updates, sometimes the installed application is an updater such as iPod update. The installer asks me to restart, then the installed application cancels the logout to install something I don't even own. I can't choose NOT to download the update. It's pretty messed up.
Oh, I guess I'll lose karma for this post! :-) But it's the truth. OS X is a hard-core sweet technology with tons of power and is the best thing out there, but it could be a lot better if they would shine it up a bit. The spit and polish is gone, replaced mainly with spit.
Luckily, the culture of science is generally one of disclosure, so if you have problems with somebody's findings, you can go try to reproduce it yourself, presumably...
The article makes a common mistake. Before, SOME mac users claimed PPC was THE way to go. Now SOME Mac users are saying Intel sounds like a good idea. Hey, guess what? They are not the same people saying this. The author is just being silly. I don't think many people have changed their positions about anything since Jobs made his announcement. The people who were saying "Mac is better because of PPC" are now saying, "Damn, this is a bad move, what's going on?" But most people don't give a crap. It's just about making the best Mac possible. If it's built on Intel, great.
The reason they chose "informative" instead of funny has to do with Slashdot's methods of awarding points. I think "funny" has a disadvantage, like somehow you don't get a point for it. As if being funny isn't important? Tell that to George Bush! :-)
Let's be fair to this guy; he really had it right. And of course, as flame retardant, I have to state my Mac credentials: I am writing this from my dual-G5 Tiger box... I've never owned an Intel machine. But I'm glad and hopeful for this switch, although a bit worried at the same time.
I don't know why they say he doesn't gloat in this article; he does. But guess what? He has the right to. The Mac fanatics (I'm a Mac lover, but I'm reasonable about it) gave him hell about his prediction. He was right, so he deserves a little victory dance.
As for making the same prediction each year, I don't think so. He has made the same *suggestion* each year, but isn't this the first time he claimed it actually was happening soon?
PS I'm just trying to be fair to a guy everybody here seems to hate.
I wonder if Safari could be improved by open-sourcing it.
There are transcripts? Where?
Actually, what's funnier is that your comment got rated as Funny and the parent was modded down. Or is it just Bizarro?
If the question is worded this way, it sounds like it's referring to sites like Priceline.com. I believe as part of their advertising they regularly claim they are there to find you the lowest price possible. I think it is illegal to make false statements about the nature of your product, so maybe people aren't as stupid as some slashdotters seem to think. The question arises as to the meaning of "possible" in the above sentence as well.
I'd think it would be much cooler for people to broadcast their position and speed to a central hub somehow (yes, anonymously, you paranoid bastards!)
The information could be used to plan travel by seeing where traffic is bad.
The force which is supposed to overcome bad lawmaking by nullfiying the ostensibly "proper" but possibly ridiculous results which we often see emanating from our courts is the presence of a jury. However, ironically, the same judges who are hot to champion the latest social cause in their courtroom are loath to empower the common jurist with the information and ability to make common-sense decisions in the courtroom. juries are very hamstrung in America.
Sadly, we are left to rely on Congress. But we just vote for the guy we hate less and get back to our busy lives, instead of looking for good men to lead us. So we end up with bad laws, twisted about in nearly random ways by activist judges, and zombie jurors who have trouble believing in what they are doing. What a farce! Sigh. :-)
Honestly, if you were to redirect the output of FSLogger to a file... wouldn't it then bog the system down?
Holy shit! He said what? I guess that explains a lot. Sure, write your password down and put it underneath your keyboard. How about using an easy to remember phrase like "I like sex" but replace some of the letters with crazy symbols like $ for s and 3 for e, etc. That makes a very strong password, actually. It's the one I use, in fact. Can you guess my password now? I don't think so.
OMG, best line ever! Nice shot!
I hope we're not seeing a new philosophy here: ship an incomplete product to meet a marketing deadline with major features buggy and incomplete, then patch the problems later. There are no serious bugs that I have found yet in all of four days of playing with Tiger intermittently, but I can already tell that Apple basically rushed out an incomplete product here. Risky.
You "pretty much read" that? Hmm. I would be more confident about your information if you were at least sure you read it. Maybe you could share your information source? :-)
This just shows me that the people deciding how to set up their online sites do not themselves shop online very often. I often get most of the way through an order, then abandon it because a shipping charge shows up that I think is offensive, or because I reconsider my purchase. But I often go back and buy it the next day or a few days later. I have to think I'm not alone. I don't understand why retailers should be "frustrated" by this. If they would like to know why people leave, how about if they try shopping at their own site to see what it's like?
Well, since small-scale fusion that produces more power than it consumes is not being done here, the statement is not as ridiculous as you make it sound. Perhaps if you had bothered to glance at the article, you would know that. :-)
Where did you get this information? Perhaps you are running and older version than 10.3.8? Or maybe the readme that comes with the update is incomplete? The update from 10.3.8 to 10.3.9 does not mention any security updates.
Can somebody parse this sentence for me? Thanks.
Restated, it sounds like,
When 25% of the population say they avoid email, you would expect the number of people who use email less because of spam to decrease to zero quickly.
Which still makes no sense.
This is ridiculous. I don't think it's outrageous to try to create ad revenue, but TiVo has been feature-frozen for years, essentially. No new innovation, same terrible interface for typing out words painfully through the infamous "ouija board screen," same awfully slow sorting algorithms, same ancient hardware, RAM limitations, lack of customizability....
And the "innovation" they come up with in 2005 is to find a way to spam us? Thanks, TiVo.
Is that what the kids are calling it nowadays? :-)
I see your point, but my point is that yes, you can *make* Windows secure if you are knowledgable, but last time I checked, an out-of-the-box Windows box is owned minutes after connecting to the network unless the user takes steps to prevent attack, such as putting the machine behind a firewall and blocking all incoming traffic. Our Windows machines here spread email viruses like, er, the plague? I think our security here is taken very seriously, yet somehow we cannot stop the PC viruses from literally crippling our mail server occasionally. I think there is something fundamental going on here, and I think it is the notorious habit of Microsoft to start out with unnecessary services enabled, and allowing their email client to automatically run scripts under the instruction of an arbitrary email message. This makes Windows more insecure. I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree there. I'm not trying to troll.
I think it will be interesting, because I think OS X will be shown to be highly secure. I agree, though, as market share increases, the proof will be forthcoming. Apple has made some MS-like security mistakes, such as the Help vulnerability that was discovered last year. But in general you are not going to see a Mac box with no MS Word and no MS Access installed spreading viruses like the PC's around my office seem to. I cannot believe what people put up with on their Windows machines. They are such pieces of crap, security-wise. :-) I don't mean to troll, it's just that I have yet to see a virus forwarded from an OS X machine... yet have seen hundreds from PC's. It's not just market-share, people. There is actually a difference in operating systems. Why is the idea that OS X might be inherently more secure than Windows such a shocking one to some people?