[leperkuhn]

How about an update to ical?

I'd like to see 2 tabs, one for calendar, one for todo list. More options on the todo lists, different ways to sort. Add folders like in itunes, for related todo items.

switch to the new unified look (Mail.app).

I'd also like to see a nice interface for cron, and one to schedule one time events as well. For now, cronnix will do.

Oh yeah, and more automator actions. So far I haven't used it, since everytime I think of something I need it's not there.

Can you say "sync my motorola phone over bluetooth at 4am every night?"

[joltguy]

Spring-loaded folders for the Dock, please.

[dru]

In the Copland Macromedia demos there was a feature in the "live search" that isn't part of Spotlight. It let you drag/drop a document to a well and let the system find documents "similar to this one." I imagine Apple's data detectors and other V-Twin technologies were the basis.

Couldn't it be used to make a Smart Folder?

If you wanted to finally bring in piles, stacks, groupings, decks, packs, bundles or whatever Apple called them in their research papers and patents, they would just use keywords, tokens or whatever metadata is on hand to visually group things together in the window like say I want photos sorted by subject well the same photo of my spouse could be in a "T-Ball" "Ball-and-Chain" and "Kitchen" if the photo involves a post-game team party, for example.

Just a random flashback to 10 years ago.



All I really want is the CLASSIC "Find File" to return so I can, you know, FIND FILES because Spotlight seems like over kill and very inefficient since I have some idea already what I'm looking for.

Can we also finally fix drag/drop of large numbers of items? Since OS X debuted you've always lost pointer feedback once the number of things being dragged exceeds a relatively low threshold. Come on. Windows, Classic... everything does this correctly Apple!



I want more mouse-button control so I can hold down a left button and tap the right to simulate another button entirely. You could do it in Win 3.1 and OS/2 Warp.

[kent m]

Originally Posted by moreno

down, at video content.
here is it

Thanks for posting the link!

sigh... Sidebar = Dashboard, Gadgets = Widgets... ...it'd be nice if they were in Java or some cross platform format...

...a lovely but probably annoyingly unusable Alt-Tab feature... Thank goodness osX doesn't require us to scroll through every single open window...

The TaskBar Preview Feature looks useful... sure hope it can be turned off though...

(Why can't I scrub in Windows Media Player yet?... ) (Grrrr)

WTF?:
Windows Vista Starter Edition
Windows Vista Home Basic Edition
Windows Vista Home Premium Edition
Windows Vista Professional Edition
Windows Vista Enterprise Edition
Windows Vista Ultimate Edition
N Editions

Criminey. ...How about the "Windows Vista I Bought This On Tuesday Before Noon Edition"... sounds like somebody in Marketing really really needs to come up with something good this time or they loose their job edition...

...theory supported by this line: "the goal of the product edition differentiations in Windows Vista is to provide "clear value proposition" to all customer segments"... it's only a matter of time until they start talking about "Customer Segment User Interface Design"...

...

Pardon the near troll post...

[Agent69]

My List:

01. Allow me to not install Safari, Mail, iCal, and iTunes during install. (Very MS like that I have to.)
02. Allow me to turn off Spotlight and still have old style file name searches.
03. A tool to delete resource forks, or at least to have the system ignore them.
04. A consistant UI through Mac OS X and Apple's applications.
05. A rewritten Finder.
06. A built in option for a clear Dock.
07. Return of the Internet Control Panel (I shouldn't need Safari/Mail to select www and email apps).
08. Give me the option of having Spotlight wait until I hit enter to begin searching.
09. Built in virtual desktop abilities
10. Be able to set the screensaver to not start if certain user defined apps are running.
11. Give Mail the ability to use the Unix mailspooler.

EDIT: More

12. The ability to set custom mount points (as a hidden power user install feature).
13. The Users control panel should allow you to customize where the home directory will be created.

[Simon]

Originally Posted by OreoCookie

stop this GUI mess and finally converge Brushed Metal, Aqua, ProApps and Mail to a more sophisticated Mail-like interface with all the proApps goodies

I'd like to second that. It's my number one request for any future OS X version. As far as I'm concerned, if they don't do that, they might as well not release a 10.5 at all.

Some other things I'd like to see:

• an X11 that actually works (umm, no, come to think of it, I want that in 10.4.3)

• make Preview be able to display and save PostScript directly and not just via (a sometimes lengthy) conversion to PDF

• portable /~ so I can take my stuff with me everywhere and also login to my own /~ on another Mac (there used to be a home on iPod project)

• remote desktop should be a part of the standard OS X package so that I can open a new user session on a remote Mac in a window of its own or even full-screen right from the login panel after booting

• a Keynote/Pages version of Excel; not because Excel sucks as bad as PowerPoint or Word, but just because it's fugly and a pain to work with. Keynote and Pages are so much more comfortable (and beautiful!), I'd like to see Apple do the same for Excel

• Automator needs to be able to access more apps and system functions (like, why can't I use Automator to write a backup script with DU and ASR?)

• Either get AppleScript's 'record' button to work or get it the hell off the GUI!

• I want user control (read system pref) over what the 'Services' menu displays (God dammit, I have a Chinese converter in there and MOHAA thinks it needs to be in there too! Can you imagine?)

• Safari needs built-in add blocking like PH

• It would be nice if Apple cleaned up the system a bit and made sure stuff really goes to the proper place. In short: If I set up a new Mac with a standard OS X install, create a new user and copy over that users old ~/ from somewhere to the new account, s/he should be able to login to the exact same environment they were used to. Right now, it's not that way. Too much user-specific stuff goes outside of ~/

• I would like AirTunes to (upon selection) forward all of the sound-out on a given Mac to a specified APXpress, not just iTunes contents (allowing me to hook up my PowerBook to my projector and play sound over the stereo system w/o sound cables)

• an X11 like implementation of WINE for Mactels, just to shut up the gamers.

• TextEdit should let me edit html documents instead of trying to play web browser and show me their html output

• and finally, for the love of God, desktop icons shouldn't get covered by the dock, ever

[MPMoriarty]

One of the the things that has always bugged me and seems so BACKWARDS is that Apple has no HELP menu in the Apple menu. If you want system help, you have to go into the Finder's Help menu and launch it. Unlike in other apps where the help menu for an app will launch its help guide, the Finder launches the system's help guide. Very weird. A user shouldn't have to go to the Finder first to access system related help information.

I can say that Windows does this right. It has a system help available right in the start menu and allows you to access an applications specific help guide in the app's help menu.

[kent m]

Originally Posted by MPMoriarty

One of the the things that has always bugged me and seems so BACKWARDS is that Apple has no HELP menu in the Apple menu. If you want system help, you have to go into the Finder's Help menu and launch it. Unlike in other apps where the help menu for an app will launch its help guide, the Finder launches the system's help guide. Very weird. A user shouldn't have to go to the Finder first to access system related help information.

I can say that Windows does this right. It has a system help available right in the start menu and allows you to access an applications specific help guide in the app's help menu.

Not sure what you mean, as each app has it's own Help option in the rightmost position of the Menubar menu which do activate the System Help window into which each app plugs it's own help pages. That's the standard anyway, and most seem to follow it. Not to start a debate on Windows vs. osX here but my feelings about Windows apps is that their menu organization is generally a mess and a half. Try finding the prefs for Outlook, for example.

Well anyway, the things I like about the way the osX help pages are set up is that the menu option is always in the same place in the Menubar and that all the Help pages formats are standard. Each App that has Help Pages that can be accessed from the main Apple Help page.

Some osX apps have informative mouse over hints that sometimes can be activated by hovering, or hovering and pressing a key - option I think - the Finder does this, for example.

[MPMoriarty]

No, I am not complaining about how you should be able to access any apps HELP guide from the Apple menu. I am talking about putting the System's Help guide in the Apple menu as this guide talks about how to use your Mac and other related topics.

Right now, you have to go to the Finder's HELP menu to access this information. It's backwards if you think about it. Shouldn't the help guide that the Finder brings up be the actual Finder's help guide and not one on how to use your Mac?

[all2ofme]

• TextEdit should let me edit html documents instead of trying to play web browser and show me their html output

Preferences / Open and Save / [tick] Ignore rich text commands in HTML files

[Simon]

Originally Posted by all2ofme

Preferences / Open and Save / [tick] Ignore rich text commands in HTML files

Been there. Done that. No effect.

[all2ofme]

Weird - works fine here.

[michaelb]

Originally Posted by Kate

While Apple and the Darwin Group are rewriting the kernel anyway for the Intel transition, they could as well repair all the issues with signaling, threading, context switching, spawning and the like. This alone would make the OS remarkably speedier, responsive and stable.

Talking about stability: Cut off all System services with regard to files, volumes, network etc that are part of the Finder and make those reentrant. Refurbish the rest of the remaining Finder to match the current claim of "most innovative OS".

Expertly stated. Fully agree.

[petrol]

How about Java performance reasonable close to the Windows JVM? Can I get an amen?

[brokenjago]

Amen.

[leperkuhn]

I'd like to attach notes to my e-mail messages. Both for spotlight searching and as helpful reminders.

I'd actually like them to just fold ical and mail into 1 application but I know that'll never happen. what a shame.

[noreturn]

Originally Posted by Simon

• I would like AirTunes to (upon selection) forward all of the sound-out on a given Mac to a specified APXpress, not just iTunes contents (allowing me to hook up my PowerBook to my projector and play sound over the stereo system w/o sound cables)

There are a few practicality issues with that, the main one being that audio sent through AirTunes lags about 2 seconds because of the compression/transmission. However, there is a third party product by the name of AirFoil, which basically does exactly what you want. You can play video files on VLC and tweak the audio's synchronization to counteract the lag of AirTunes. It works pretty well, actually.

Me, I just want the Finder quirks smoothed out so things will react more predictably. Oh, and growl built-in would be very nice.

[shunt]

How about scrolling the entire desktop to a clean area, say 5 screens or so, stacked vertically.

Continuous pages or a soft seam of some sort, you choose...same wallpaper or not, you choose.

With a customizable transparent layer for disks, or whatever you want..they stay, and everything else snaps into place/parks near them. Maybe some GPS style way points to catch the scroll.

Then, sideways...imagine a 3 foot diameter cylinder behind the screen.

You can spin it and stop, go up/down, etc...might be a job for the new mouse?

I dunno, maybe it's a dumb idea, and people will get dizzy?


-oh, and fix all the broken stuff, as expected.

[teney7]

Agent 69: Be able to set the screensaver to not start if certain user defined apps are running.

that is an excellent idea. nothing more annoying than having to wake up the PB while playing music, etc.

[No Time 4 Love Dr. Jones]

More Windows-like precision with mousing. Even with USB OverDriveX and MouseZoom installed and tweaked, the cursor always feels too "floaty" and imprecise compared to the same mouse using generic drivers in Windows. I use an IntelliMouse Explorer 3.0 and it's night and day between Windows and OS X, but it's the same with any wired mouse I use, and even more annoying with a wireless.

[sc_markt]

A lot of the things I would like to see have been listed. However...

One thing I would like is to be able to label the folders ONLY (as in classic OS).
I would also like to be able to change the label colors to whatever I want.

I like the way I can log IP addresses that have tried to access my computer. However, I would like the console log to also keep track of the ip addresses that did get into my computer (There should be zero since I don't allow it. I just want the console log to show that zero accesss were made.)

A warning chime (or dialog box) that lets you know whenever someone has accessed your computer (either allowed or unknown).

A docklet (I hate the dock but I have to live with it) that is identical to menumeters in what it displays.

A better menubar clock (i.e. easier to read).

A "technical theme" skin in addition to the Aqua theme. As an engineer, I would prefer something more bland but looking like it belongs on a NASA control station.

- Mark

[Salty]

Big requests.

iTunes libraries and iPhoto Libraries should feel the same way within the Finder. IE when I open my iTunes library Folder I would like to switch to a view that is the exact same as my iTunes library This way any changes made in one happen in the other. As well this would get rid of the fact that at first glance iPhoto makes no sense.

Front Row built in.

Read/Write FTP in Finder.

Unified interface among Apps, iPhoto, Mail, iTunes and everything else should look the same.

Support for full screen video play back from within the Finder or some App other than iTunes.

[- - e r i k - -]

Get a unified interface today:
UNO

Installed it on all my macs. It's perfect! Best of all: No haxie or APE needed!

[lngtones]

http://www.xilokit.com/deskloops/deskloops.html

[supernature]

Full Screen option - similar to that of how Windows does it, but in better style. Something of a cross between FrontRow, DVD player (fullscreen), QT player (fullscreen), and Opera (full screen mode).

Open/Save dialogue boxes that can have the option of having full functionality as a regular Finder window has. Showing and being able to edit the file properties in the open/save dialogue boxes.

Incorporate true "smart" folders/documents/etc. The system could keep track of the most use documents, the most used commands in an application, the most used folders where documents are stored from an application, the most likely folder a document would be saved based on content.

[hangtown]

Originally Posted by moreno

here is it!

Thanks for the link, I couldn't find them either. I like Paul Thurrot but finding stuff on his site makes my head hurt.

[Huwaidi]

I wish I could find two packages of Mac OS X 10.5 on the shelf, one for G4-G5 processors and the other package for Intel-AMD processors. In addition, can get along with Windows instead of using emulators i.e. a visual menu to select to run Mac OS X or Windows.

Although I am confident this will never happen , this is my wish and I hope (dream) that Apple will grant it for (us Windows users) someday.

[MindFad]

WHAT?

[Axxll]

I would love to see that the number of files inside of a folder is displayed by passing the cursor over the folder or by some other mmechanism ( hot-key)

[Peter]

I want every window, regardless of previous settings to open in 'List' view.

[aehaas]

-Clear dock with custom color markers
-3D finder
-Postscript-like finder. Fonts and objects can to scaled and still be crystal clear
-My wife says simplicity, a computer that is easier to use

aehaas

[triskele]

I'll have been a Mac user for a week tomorrow, but I've been a linux user for the past two years so here's a few things I'd like to see:

- A slightly better Safari with better pop-up blocking and better handling of tabs over time
- Ability to customize colors and level of transparency like some of the docks/taskbars I've used in linux
- A consistant theme, and the ability to change theme of 3rd party apps (Camino, Thunderbird...) to match that of the rest of the windows
- Finder could be improved, but it's not at the top of my list
- an X11 that works
- It's not gonna be a big issue once they switch to intel but an easier implimentation of Wine or some form of Windoze emulator(for no other reason than gaming of course)
- What I think is my last and biggest potential improvement would be to include some form of app menu. Definately not like the Windoze START menu but like either the XFCE 4.2.2 or Enlightenment e17 menus in linux. I just find that it's kind of a pain to get to an app that's not in the dock. Putting it in the list of functions available in the Mouse customization screen, or have a menu button available for the Dock.
- One more thing. I'd like to see iPhoto use a similar storage system as iTunes instead of those dreadful numbered folders that appear to named by date.

I think that about covers it.

[Simon]

Originally Posted by triskele

- What I think is my last and biggest potential improvement would be to include some form of app menu. Definately not like the Windoze START menu but like either the XFCE 4.2.2 or Enlightenment e17 menus in linux. I just find that it's kind of a pain to get to an app that's not in the dock. Putting it in the list of functions available in the Mouse customization screen, or have a menu button available for the Dock.

Umm, Spotlight...?

[triskele]

Call me a lazy sack of crap, but I'd just rather tap my scroll wheel or give the sides of the mouse a squeeze and have a list of all of the apps pop up grouped in a fashion that's pleasing to me. I don't want to be bothered typing in a keyword, but who knows I may just get used to it.

[ahmed_88]

Originally Posted by triskele

I'll have been a Mac user for a week tomorrow, but I've been a linux user for the past two years so here's a few things I'd like to see:

- A slightly better Safari with better pop-up blocking and better handling of tabs over time
- Ability to customize colors and level of transparency like some of the docks/taskbars I've used in linux
- A consistant theme, and the ability to change theme of 3rd party apps (Camino, Thunderbird...) to match that of the rest of the windows
- Finder could be improved, but it's not at the top of my list
- an X11 that works
- It's not gonna be a big issue once they switch to intel but an easier implimentation of Wine or some form of Windoze emulator(for no other reason than gaming of course)
- What I think is my last and biggest potential improvement would be to include some form of app menu. Definately not like the Windoze START menu but like either the XFCE 4.2.2 or Enlightenment e17 menus in linux. I just find that it's kind of a pain to get to an app that's not in the dock. Putting it in the list of functions available in the Mouse customization screen, or have a menu button available for the Dock.
- One more thing. I'd like to see iPhoto use a similar storage system as iTunes instead of those dreadful numbered folders that appear to named by date.

I think that about covers it.

As a substitute to an application launcher in OS X, simply add your Application folder to the right of the Dock split line: you can control-click or click-and-hold for a drill-down(including subfolders) access to all applications. And in System Preferences you can adjust how quickly the click-and-hold method responds. I find it quite handy!

[- - e r i k - -]

Originally Posted by aehaas

-Postscript-like finder. Fonts and objects can to scaled and still be crystal clear

Don't you think this would have been done already if it was possible? You need high-res monitors for this, and such things have yet to reach more than the 100-120dpi. Mac OS X already supports a resolution-independent display. But have yet to implement the graphics to take advantage of it (higher resolution UI-element bitmaps or a vector-based UI like you are talking about ('postscript'). Fonts are already vectors (and have been since OS 8-days) so they can be scaled to any size crystal clear. Or at least as crystal clear as our current displays allow.

And for 3D-finder? Pfft.

[- - e r i k - -]

Either drag your applications-folder to the dock or install FinderPop. Or both.

[miacomet]

Drag and Drop SSH FTP abilites in the OS.

[igroucho]

Windoze-like alt-tab between windows irrespective of app (so I can toggle between a word-doc and aSafari-window for ex).
I think that most users have a hard time w copies all over the place. OK I am disorganized SOB but I'd like to think I'm one of a majority. Somehow it would be super to have a built-in copy-detection in the system. I think Steve realised part of this in his praise for Spotlight, that the average computer user is unorganised. Copy-littering is a MAJOR one and it would be super if Apple could help out w this.

[triskele]

My biggest copy-littering beef is with iPhoto. I love it but it would be great if it was organized like iTunes. Everything could be oganized by folder/album and anything that's no in an album could just be loose in the library folder. Right now I have the pictures folder I brought over from my old computer which is sorted into named folders, but once I import them to iPhoto it duplicates everything into the iPhoto Library and it's now sorted by date which is a royal pain if I'm trying to look for a specific picture in Finder. So I've decided to just have duplicates so it's easier to find things. If anyone has any words of wisdom i'm open to suggestions here.

And something I didn't mention earlier but has been brought up are Virtual Desktops. They can come in very handy when you have a lot going on.

[gadster]

I wish it bloweth off my socks. that is all.

[eastblu]

Originally Posted by Goldfinger

That would be nice. But if they do that it should be 100% support of ALL the features not the half assed support you get with adium/gaim and through Jabber.

Why oh why doesn't MS realese a good Messenger for Mac?

I actually talked to the messenger product manager at digitallife ny. I complained to her about how the windows version was ok, but the mac version sucked. i complained for about 10 minutes. hopefully they'll work harder .


-eastblu

[triskele]

In regards to messaging clients I really wish iChat AV utilized tabs like Gaim and probably others.

[Daude]

I'm just happy that Macs are around. I have used Windows for years and then I always went to enjoy my Mac and relax.

However, I'd like to be able to find, mark and. possibly, delete duplicate images in iPhoto.

[OmniX]

Originally Posted by Agent69

My List:

01. Allow me to not install Safari, Mail, iCal, and iTunes during install. (Very MS like that I have to.)
02. Allow me to turn off Spotlight and still have old style file name searches.
03. A tool to delete resource forks, or at least to have the system ignore them.
04. A consistant UI through Mac OS X and Apple's applications.
05. A rewritten Finder.
06. A built in option for a clear Dock.
07. Return of the Internet Control Panel (I shouldn't need Safari/Mail to select www and email apps).
08. Give me the option of having Spotlight wait until I hit enter to begin searching.
09. Built in virtual desktop abilities
10. Be able to set the screensaver to not start if certain user defined apps are running.
11. Give Mail the ability to use the Unix mailspooler.

EDIT: More

12. The ability to set custom mount points (as a hidden power user install feature).
13. The Users control panel should allow you to customize where the home directory will be created.

Agent 69 is right on. I'd also like to second the call for Virtual Desktops. XP has had that as an option for a while, and of courses the various *NIX distributions have had that feature forever. It seems like Apple is resisting this for the same reason they resisted making a mouse with more than one button. Though I hope they implement Virtual Desktops in a way that is better than the darn Mighty Mouse!

[cla]

Originally Posted by miacomet

Drag and Drop SSH FTP abilites in the OS.

[milhous]

there's still a lot of overhead in the UI that I think needs to be dealt with. for example, i routinely access my applications from the dock by dragging the Applications folder into it. It still gets me that even on my 1.2ghz iBook with plenty HD space and RAM that when I click and hold the mouse to show all my applications that it still takes several seconds for that list to draw and appear (you can hear the hard disk processing as you're doing this to return the results). this is unacceptable and i think it's been this way ever since 10.0 general release. and it's not the iBook either, I've tested this out with the latest G5 iMacs with the integrated iSight and it does the same thing.

we definitely need an overhaul of the present UI and Finder. at the very least, there should be a UI profile mechanism whereby users can chooce how they want to interact with the system. there can be a ui like the ones that we presently use, and a power user/professional profile that is created based on the input and feedback of power users and creative professionals. if apple trully values user feedback as jobs has said a countless number of times, then i believe this is the only way to go.

i want to be able to see more data, have instantaneous directory navigation, smaller ui elements, and a unified neutral-color theme across all windows on my desktop. it's really not too much to ask for.

and yes, i'm copying this to apple's mac os x feedback page and hope everyone else is doing the same.

[wgscott]

The Finder needs to be scrapped and redone, right, in Cocoa. I would like to see something that minimally incorporates the functionality of konqueror (from KDE) without loosing the current advantages.

I also wouldn't mind seeing scripting options that permit extensive terminal-finder interactions similar to this sort of thing

[wgscott]

Also, I cannot function without CodeTek's virtual desktops and focus follows mouse. Ideally, I'd like to see Apple buy the technology from CodeTek at a fair price and incorporate it into the operating system. I'd be willing to pay $30 more for OS X if this were incorporated, fully supported, and developed.

I'd also like to see X11 be fully integrated into the operating system rather than as a graft-on.

[gradient]

Originally Posted by milhous

when I click and hold the mouse to show all my applications that it still takes several seconds for that list to draw and appear (you can hear the hard disk processing as you're doing this to return the results). this is unacceptable and i think it's been this way ever since 10.0 general release. and it's not the iBook either, I've tested this out with the latest G5 iMacs with the integrated iSight and it does the same thing.

I do the same thing on my iBook 1.33 but the folder draws instantly, the first time I tried it I was actually impressed with how cleanly it pops up. I've never done it on my G5 for whatever reason but I'd be shocked if it wasn't even snappier. I'm running 10.4.3.