[FulcrumPilot]

whats all the hype about OSX? Why is apple pushing this as the future OS. Is the classic OS9 so far up that it cannot be improved further? I dont wanna believe that OSX is for everyone, i think for people like me (number crunchers, word processors, surfers and photoshoppers) classic still fulfills almost all aspects of computing. Would really appreciate it if I get enlightened on this.
FP

[ddiokno]

Hey FP,
Apple is still developing OS 9... and will continue to support it for awhile... knowing that much of the installed base use it... As long as it meets your needs and does what you need it to do, great :-). OS X is their migration to a more stable operating system (not to say that applications won't crash, but when they do, the memory is protected ---meaning that it is far less likely to bring down the whole system). Also, many of the current OS 9 Applications will continue to be supported in classic under OS X. So either way, you will continue to be supported, whether it is running OS 9, or running your applications in Classic, under X, or whether you find that your applications become carbonized and run natively under X.
I think you will be fine either way, computing in the way that suits you best!
regards,
dave

[yoyo52]

As you probably know by now, some people hate X, some people love it, and some people will love it when it's ready for prime time. I'm the first to admit that it's not ready for prime time quite yet. Still, let me tell you that I've had my G4 running X 24/7 since the day X came out, on March 24, and I have had one (1) forced restart, as a consequence of a kernel panic on the day I installed it. Otherwise, I've never been forced to reboot the system in order to keep working.

Now, does the Finder seem like it's in molasses half the time? Yes.

Is it irritating that I can't run my burner or scanner from X? Yes.

Is it a pain that browsers for X are either beta, slow, or both? Yes.

Has it taken a while to get used to the new way of doing things? Yes.

Despite all that, do I love X? Yes.

Three things that I've grown to love. First, I never quit an application, just close its windows. So when I want to use an application, it's already on. No wait at all. Can't get much faster than that.

Second, I've learned the beauties of command-option-c (which gets you to the Finder window that gives you the mounted volumes) and command-option-h (which takes you to your home Finder window). That gets me to all the icons, files, and folders I ever need, letting me have the desktop completely blank except for a nice picture.

Third, although the dock has problems as a catch-all interface, I've learned to use it in the same way, more or less, that I used to use the control strip in 9. For 9, I have a little freeware app called CSM Maker that allows me to convert all the applications I use into control strip modules. I have another, cheap shareware app called Strip Launch that allows me to have a folder in the control strip with folders of all the files that I use frequently. Well, the dock lets me work in exactly the same way as the control strip with CSM Maker and Strip Launch lets me work in 9. There's just no clutter at all.

Granted there are problems with the dock. I don't like it that it serves as an application switcher as well as a control strip--so I got a freeware application called ASM that acts like the application switcher in 9. Other things about the dock that I don't like aren't even worth mentioning, really, they're so minor.


What else? Well, there aren't a whole lot of native X applications. But I've learned to use Classic, which is almost the same as working in 9, when I need to use Word or Excel. Not everything works via Classic, and I hope that pretty soon Web plugins like RealPlayer are available for X. If I'm in dire need, I simply restart in 9--no big deal, and I've done it less and less as time passes. In fact, today I printed a Mother's Day card that I'd made in Classic with Adobe PhotoDeluxe, an application that used to make 9 crash from time to time. No problem doing it in X via Classic


What do I get in exchange? Did I mention I haven't been forced to reboot since March 24th?

And I can see the promise of this OS for streamlined work. It's a system just made for networking, and not just because it's a multiuser system. The geeks among us love the access to the *nix stuff. I wouldn't know a *nix from a Nicks, but love the one-click approach to getting almost everywhere.

To be sure, I'm uneasy about lots of things. I think that in the classic world, I could troubleshoot just about anything that came my way. I guess I'd expect that to be the case after using some version of the classic system since 1986. Now I'm really a newbie, and have a distinct sense that I'll stay that way unless I learn a lot more about the
*nix world than I want to know. That makes me feel a lot like the way that most Windows users feel--at the mercy of their system. I don't particularly like that feeling. So I think I'll in fact begin to read up on command lines and other such stuff. I imagine that 15 years from now I'll feel about my command of X the same way I feel about my command of the classic system.

------------------
And that's true too.--Shakespeare, King Lear

[ddiokno]

Hey Yoyo,
Very concise answer! Quick question, does your scanner work in classic? I have two different scanners that I have working through Classic... an Agfa and an Epson... just curious if this a case-by-case thing....
I, too, love the cmd-option-c.... and I have found that my Classic Internet Explorer runs faster than my IE 5.1 preview...
thanks
dave

[FulcrumPilot]

Hello yoyo,
can you share your machine specs with me? thanks.
FP

[yoyo52]

Originally posted by ddiokno:
Quick question, does your scanner work in classic? I have two different scanners that I have working through Classic... an Agfa and an Epson... just curious if this a case-by-case thing....
dave

Ya know, I haven't even tried to use the scanner in Classic, but now that you tell me yours works (I have an AGFA), I'll have to try. I'll let you know what happens.

Originally posted by FulcrumPilot:
can you share your machine specs with me?

Sure. The Mac that's running X is a G4 400 MHz AGP with 384 MB of RAM. It's connected to a USB hub that has printer, scanner, and VideoCam hooked to it. It's also connected to an ethernet hub that's connected to the three other Macs in the house. I haven't installed X on the others cause it would take my wife a dozen years to learn the new OS (she still hasn't learned 9 )

------------------
And that's true too.--Shakespeare, King Lear

[yoyo52]

Originally posted by ddiokno:
I have two different scanners that I have working through Classic... an Agfa and an Epson... just curious if this a case-by-case thing....
dave

Hey, I tried the scanner (AGFA USB) in X/Classic, and it works great. Thanks for the tip

[edit: add kind of scanner]
------------------
And that's true too.--Shakespeare, King Lear

[This message has been edited by yoyo52 (edited 05-14-2001).]

[FulcrumPilot]

is X optimized for G4?

[ddiokno]

Originally posted by FulcrumPilot:
is X optimized for G4?

Yes, it is! :-)
dave