Architosh Staff (info@architosh.com)

21 Sep 00

Mac OS X Public Beta at Architosh: First Thoughts

Architosh received its copy of OS X PB two days ago and we have been busy playing with it.

Installation and Initial Impressions

We purchased a new iMac DV (400 MHz G3) with 128 MB of RAM for our installation. We wanted to take no chances with our other machines' data and took into account Murphy's Law. We also wanted to see what a lower-end iMac could do with Mac OS X...how well it would run on hardware that will arguably be quite inferior to what is available in early 2001.

After making sure there were no OS 9 or iMac software (firmware) updates required for OS X we proceeded to install Mac OS X PB from the neatly packaged CD Box with enclosed manual (see pictures). Installation took less than 15 minutes and there were no issues.

After rebooting (which the installer does automatically) Mac OS X started up just fine, not faster or slower than OS 9, basically.

Our first reactions were quite strong to the user interface. It is even more beautiful in person than what it may seem like on the Web or watching Jobs demo it at Macworld. We immediately started pushing the interface around, opening up multiple windows, moving them all over the place (nearly off the screen even! which you can do) and sending them to the dock. We looked for screen redraw problems and to our surprise found none with these basic tasks.

Screen redraw speed is pretty good. For example, live scrolling and live resizing works quite well. If you are watching a Web page download (or QuickTime movie) and at the same time resize a screen the live resizing may get a bit jumpy or choppy—but not that much...and this on a iMac 400MHz G3.

QuickTime performance was exceptional on the Web running in a Carbon compliant version of IE for OS X. We checked out the new Madonna site featured on Apple's QuickTime site. The site looked simply awesome under Mac OS X!

Speaking of awesome! The new integrated Mail (email application) program is beautifully simple and elegant, and you won't believe your eyes with the quality of the text in this program.

Stability and Crashing in OS X PB

Here's the good news. We have not been able to crash OS X PB yet. Here's more good news. We have crashed or been forced to kill applications a few times already (in both OS X and the Classic environment) and Mac OS X doesn't even blink.

The first time you experience this kind of power (protected memory) with the OS just running on like normal you are going to absolutely flip. We personally think that Mac OS X's stability alone will cause almost every Mac professional to upgrade the first year it comes out. And that's just one feature, but one feature that Mac users have never had...outside a dream experience.

The combination of the graphics plus rock solid stability makes OS X a lethal weapon in the OS world. Even Windows NT comes down. And 2000 just has way too many bugs at the moment. And they don't have the Aqua interface.

From our early experience with OS X Public Beta Apple has a real potential hit on their hands. The only bad news at the moment is that Apple has a lot of work left to get in all of those nifty and time saving features of the current Mac OS 9. In comparing the two operating systems Mac OS 9 reeks of refinement and has so many wonderful ways to customize it (without additional software).

OS X the Tiger Woods of OS's

OS X on the other hand has this sense of youthful power and endless potential. It's really going to be the Tiger Woods of OS's, and just as Tiger has been literally built and groomed to be the ultimate golfer in the world, OS X has that same type of ultimate foundation and grooming and physical power to be the ultimate OS in the world.

Mac OS X will take a few years to mature on the tour of real life, just like Tiger needed that first season. But if Tiger Wood's 2000 season is any indication of what could lie ahead for us, then we may have an OS in 2002 that is, just like Tiger, in a league by itself.