I realize that the blogger (Mary Jo Foley) is usually a Microsoft journalist, and last went to a Mac conference five years ago, I do believe that if people are going to compare two technologies, they should at least respect the timeline in which certain technologies were delivered and most definitely, who stole from who.
I'll directly quote her article, and see if it makes any sense. I've directly linked to the article in the first sentence of this post, so there should be no, 'taken out of context' bitching.
"What struck me at the June 11 Apple Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC) event wasn’t the glitzy demos, the rockstar-like worship of Apple CEO Steve Jobs or the “I’m Steve Jobs” parody video by the “I’m a PC” guy.
Instead, it was the excitement by the 5,000 WWDC attendees about many technologies in the forthcoming Mac OS X “Leopard” release that already exist in Windows Vista."
This is the part when anyone who's been following the development of Vista / OS X Leopard would be scratching their heads to the tune of 'huh?'
Vista is Windows XP with transparent windows and a 3D layer of which windows have been placed. I've seen this before. In fact, I seem to recall a program called Sphere3D which would pretty much turn Windows XP into something very Vista like. This 3D layering of windows in the desktop, one would seem to think, was first implemented well in Compiz / Beryl on the Linux side of things, but this is the same technology OS X started out with when Jaguar was released.
"I’ve sat through countless Microsoft demos of Vista at a variety of consumer and business events. I don’t remember ever hearing thunderous applause when Microsoft showed off Flip 3D or Vista’s ability to preview thumbnails of documents. The “wows” were few and far between. Yet when Jobs put almost identical versions of these features in Leopard through their paces, there were lots of oohs and ahhs."
Again with the head-scratching I'm afraid. Do I have lice? There's a reason you didn't hear thunderous applause when Microsoft showed off a technology that they 'lifted' from technology that's been around for a good few years. Don't believe me? Here's an interesting google query for you Mary: "Sun Java Project Looking Glass". Or better yet, an even more interesting website.
If your article had been entitled "Vista and Leopard looks like Project Looking Glass", I would have taken more interest. The new OS X dock looks pretty much identical to the dock on PLG. The "Flip3D" technology in Vista looks pretty much identical to the flipping windows on PLG.
Furthermore, Vista's ability to preview documents as thumbnails seems no different to Windows XP's ability to preview documents as thumbnails. Most modern GUI Operating Systems seem to have this functionality. Quick look is basically a new extension of the Preview program in OS X, without having to have a new icon open on your dock which takes up space and annoys you. I don't seem to recall anything at all like Flip3D in this years WWDC. Hang on, let me watch the webcast again...
.. Nope. Nothing at all. Or are you referring to Stacks and Spaces? Stacks instantly reminded me of that program that was demoed with the touch interface a couple years back, and you could fan out thumbnails of your files. Spaces just reminds me of VirtueDesktops (And also happens to be the main reason development was given up on it.)
I will admit, Steve Jobs has a flair for the dramatic. That's his talent and gift. But lets face it, are Microsoft Developers really that enthused about yet another new operating system that will break compatibility with all their software causing months of retesting and recoding? Probably not. Before I drift off back into rant land, let me continue with dissecting your article.
"But if you’ve seen Vista, there’s no way you could help but compare the feature-complete Leopard beta Jobs showcased with Windows Vista. And — surprise — Vista looked pretty darn up-to-date in comparison."
I've seen Vista, I don't really see the comparison, other than the choice of Background on the machine he was using. Vista looks up-to-date. Looking is different from being. I was able to make my windows, taskbar, heck anything I wanted semi-transparent in Windows XP, it was supported in the Windows API. What's new?
"Jobs told WWDC keynoters that he would show ten of the best of the 300 new features coming in Leopard when it ships in October this year. Here’s what Jobs’ hit list looked like to this Windows user:
1. New Leopard Desktop: Not a whole lot different from Vista’s Aero and Sidebar."
I concede that this is your opinion, and as such I will only state facts.
I agree that the semi-transparent menu-bar is lame. And yes, that is to directly combat Vista' semi-transparent task bar. But if you're trying to infer that the Dashboard is copying the Sidebar in any way, might I refer to you the timeline of release of Tiger, (2006), and Vista (2007).
As well featured in the Desktop exposé was the new Dock, and Stacks. There is nothing like the Dock in Vista/Windows at all. Unless you make the task bar unusable and big and make the icons on quick launch massive, you're not going to get anything like it. Sorry. Stacks are like nothing that's been produced on a commercial OS so far, so I'm not quite sure what you were smoking when you decided that opinion. Were you listening to the conference or playing Pictochat with all the other Windows developers there?
"2. New Finder: Many of the same capabilities as the integrated “Instant Search” in Vista (the subsystem that Google is trying to get the Department of Justice to rule as being anti-competitive). The new Leopard Coverflow viewing capability looked almost identical to Vista’s Flip 3D to me."
Again, you're not remembering who stole what from who. The search capabilities you're thinking about is Spotlight, that's what it does now, save for multi-computer searching. It's been in Mac OS X since Panther, get used to it. Google suing Microsoft is a good thing, Microsoft have a tendancy to that kind of crime anyway.
Cover flow in the finder is simple evolution of how a good technology and system wide intergration, that's it. That's why it's there. They basically turned all their applications into iTunes. That's a good thing, iTunes has an amazing user interface that most people are able to pick up straight away, let's not detract from the fact that it's gods damn cool.
It's okay, I didn't miss out the fact you compared it to Flip3D. I was saving that particular nugged of bullshit to last. Flip3D is a glorified Alt-Tab, and don't you ever forget it. It tabs between windows. Cover flow flips between Album Covers, Applications, Files, inside a window. It's far more usable and intuitve than Alt-Tab. Most people I know who use Vista spend hours looking around the screen for the windows they've lost without even knowing about Flip3D. Sorry but that's just Microsoft's Key Demographic. Clueless people who don't know any better than to use Microsoft Products.
"3. QuickLook: Live file previews — just like the thumbnail preview capability available in Vista."
Did we not cover this as bullshit before? Tell me, can you look through a word document or an excel file or a PDF whilst being able to flip through the pages smoothly and seamlessly in Vista? If you can, send me a youtube video and I'll send you a written apology. I've yet to see it. Perhaps it's in the Ultimate-Premium-BFG version.
"4. 64-bitness: Leopard is the first 64-bit only version of a desktop client. Vista comes in 32-bit and 64-bit varieties. And most expect Windows Seven will still be available in 32-bit flavors. Until 32-bit machines go away, it seems like a good idea to offer 32-bit operating systems."
I believe he actually said, that you could run your 64 bit programs on any version of leopard, be the computer 32 bit or 64 bit or whatever. That seems like a nifty feature to me. Windows Seven? Haha.
"5. Core animation: Not sure what the Vista comparison is here. The demo reminded me of Microsoft Max photo-sharing application. The WWDC developers attending the Jobs keynote didn’t seem wowed with this functionality."
Actually, here seems like a part where you're misinformed about a Microsoft Product. Core Animation is pretty much Leopards answer to the anticipated yet never quite delivered in a way anyone could use it technology known as Windows Presentation Foundation. It was going to be an easy way to get 3D applications working in Vista. It kind of dried up over the century or so it took Vista to turn from Longhorn into what it is today.
They didn't seem wowed, because they weren't. It's gimmicky.
Reading the rest of your article started to pain me, espescially the part where you again likened the Sidebar to the Dashboard, but in a rather long winded form, this is more than slightly every subtlety you've missed whilst not researching Apple at all.
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