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You are here: MacNN Forums > Community > MacNN Lounge > Why do useful but minor OSX features get dropped?

Why do useful but minor OSX features get dropped?
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Tiresias
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Jun 10, 2013, 12:28 AM
 
You used to be able to square-crop a jpeg by holding down shift. Then it went away. Then it came back.

You used to be able to delete an image from preview. Now you have to close preview and select the file to trash it.

The fn key used to spread all open applications out into a grid; now, multiple windows from the same application are stacked so that you can't damn well see what is what.

These are three examples off the top of my head. I could think of more.

But it got me wondering...

No software designer could ever have justified removing such a useful feature as square-crop from preview—so how does it happen? How and why do useful and intelligent design features get removed or unjustifiably changed? Who is proposing these changes and how on earth are they getting approved? Or do things just somehow get lost in the shuffle when an app is revamped? Surely there's a checklist or something. It all seems a bit scattershot when dealing with something as complex as an operating system.
     
iMOTOR
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Jun 10, 2013, 12:59 AM
 
They got rid of "mail link to this page" in safari but kept "mail contents of this page" which is bloody worthless.
     
P
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Jun 10, 2013, 03:52 AM
 
Originally Posted by Tiresias View Post
The fn key used to spread all open applications out into a grid; now, multiple windows from the same application are stacked so that you can't damn well see what is what.
That's not a missing feature, that's a deliberate change. It makes some sense if you think about having lots of windows on screen and that people will be using the program-specific Exposé - and anyway, there is a setting in Mountain Lion to make it work the old way again. Best feature of ML.

As for the bigger question... I don't know. I suspect it is an effect of Apple's policy of moving people around, so a single area might be completely uncovered for one release. If a bug then appears in that area, the easiest is to just disable the feature. Or it could come from a change in an underlying API with far-reaching consequences.
The new Mac Pro has up to 30 MB of cache inside the processor itself. That's more than the HD in my first Mac. Somehow I'm still running out of space.
     
mindwaves
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Jun 10, 2013, 04:11 AM
 
Originally Posted by iMOTOR View Post
They got rid of "mail link to this page" in safari but kept "mail contents of this page" which is bloody worthless.
I was wondering about that a few days ago. I tried to do that, but ended up having to copy and paste.
     
Uncle Skeleton
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Jun 10, 2013, 09:17 AM
 
This thread is why I'm still using 10.5
     
mattyb
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Jun 10, 2013, 09:26 AM
 
Originally Posted by Uncle Skeleton View Post
This thread is why I'm still using 10.5
Damn, I thought that I was being cautious on 10.6.
     
Tiresias  (op)
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Jun 10, 2013, 09:53 AM
 
Originally Posted by P View Post
That's not a missing feature, that's a deliberate change. It makes some sense if you think about having lots of windows on screen and that people will be using the program-specific Exposé - and anyway, there is a setting in Mountain Lion to make it work the old way again. Best feature of ML.
Ha. You're right. Thanks.

But is it still called Exposé? The tickbox for Group by Application is under Mission Control in System Preferences.

Oh I remembered one: Have you noticed that the digital lozenge in the iTunes progress bar has been changed to a hideous little grey tab that overlaps the progress bar on both sides?

Why "fix" what ain't broken

That little lozenge was the universal symbol for play location in a progress bar and they went and fuglied it just for the sake of changing shit.

/rant
     
euphras
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Jun 11, 2013, 05:05 PM
 
Originally Posted by Uncle Skeleton View Post
This thread is why I'm still using 10.5
...and why i´m still using 10.4.


Macintosh Quadra 950, Centris 610, Powermac 6100, iBook dual USB, Powerbook 667 DVI, Powerbook 867 DVI, MacBook Pro early 2011
     
ort888
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Jun 11, 2013, 05:28 PM
 
...and I'm still using 7.6

My sig is 1 pixel too big.
     
turtle777
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Jun 12, 2013, 12:57 AM
 
Originally Posted by iMOTOR View Post
They got rid of "mail link to this page" in safari but kept "mail contents of this page" which is bloody worthless.
It's still there, but the default behavior was changed. You can change between Web Page, PDF or Web Link on the right hand side.

Shame on Apple for hiding the more useful behind the bloated crap feature.



-t
     
Uncle Skeleton
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Jun 12, 2013, 10:34 AM
 
Originally Posted by euphras View Post
...and why i´m still using 10.4.
I never got the feeling that features were starting to get taken away until 10.6 came out. Were there?
     
P
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Jun 12, 2013, 11:21 AM
 
Originally Posted by Uncle Skeleton View Post
I never got the feeling that features were starting to get taken away until 10.6 came out. Were there?
Classic was lost with 10.5, I think that that's the big one. Also, Leopard messed around with the Finder, broke the view settings (I think - maybe that was 10.6 though) and made the folders ugly, and IIRC, there were a few major deviations that were fixed by a .2 update.
The new Mac Pro has up to 30 MB of cache inside the processor itself. That's more than the HD in my first Mac. Somehow I'm still running out of space.
     
Tiresias  (op)
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Jun 12, 2013, 01:43 PM
 


That reminds me of a joke:

Why did Hitler commit suicide?

He saw his gas bill.
     
mindwaves
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Jun 21, 2013, 12:32 AM
 
Originally Posted by Tiresias View Post


That reminds me of a joke:

Why did Hitler commit suicide?

He saw his gas bill.
It took me a second to understand this joke.
     
euphras
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Jun 21, 2013, 08:26 PM
 
Originally Posted by Tiresias View Post


That reminds me of a joke:

Why did Hitler commit suicide?

He saw his gas bill.
That´s not a joke at all.


Macintosh Quadra 950, Centris 610, Powermac 6100, iBook dual USB, Powerbook 667 DVI, Powerbook 867 DVI, MacBook Pro early 2011
     
Salty
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Jun 22, 2013, 02:20 AM
 
The only release that I really noticed anything was gone in was Lion, and that I stuck with because I loved the feel of the OS so much more than any others. With Mountain Lion they brought back the option to disable the grouping. Aside from that I haven't noticed many/any things aside from Rosetta going away that has really mattered. Not that I ever really used Rosetta but there were a couple apps that were helpful that never had Intel versions made for them because the developer stopped work on them. Two years ago I worked at a company that STILL used FreeHand MX in their regular work.
     
shifuimam
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Jun 23, 2013, 03:03 PM
 
Originally Posted by P View Post
Classic was lost with 10.5, I think that that's the big one.
Yeah, but at least there was a valid reason for that - Apple was trying to move away from supporting PPC as quickly as possible. Classic required PPC architecture. I guess it could have used Rosetta, but I suspect that would have been balls slow, like trying to run OS 9 or OS X in PearPC in Windows.
Sell or send me your vintage Mac things if you don't want them.
     
P
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Jun 23, 2013, 03:33 PM
 
If I understand Rosetta correctly, it would never have supported Classic, but Apple could have kept Classic alive for one more version as 10.5 still supported PPC. I don't fault them for dropping it, however - I merely pointed out that Apple has kept dropping features for a few versions now.
The new Mac Pro has up to 30 MB of cache inside the processor itself. That's more than the HD in my first Mac. Somehow I'm still running out of space.
     
   
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