[WinMac] Re: MacOS 9: Upgrade now or wait? ALSO: NT4/SP6 is out

Welch, John C.(jwelch[at]aer.com)
Fri, 29 Oct 1999 13:02:54 -0400

Okay, Microsoft hasn't *Charged* for the bugfixes...but what new
features have they added as compared to what YOU are calling *bugfixes*

hmm....well, sp3 made you do registry hacks to keep clear text
passwords...that's a fun feature...not much else

now, let's just see what Apple's *bugfixes* did, starting with 7.6.1 as
the base

8.0
        multithreaded finder
        PPC native finder
        sticky menus
        popup windows
        threaded file copies and trash empties
        cut out the '030 macs, long time coming, unlike the intel bolt-on
theory

8.1 (free, but you *forgot* this one)
        New file system, HFS+
        VM system improved, using actual paged VM, nice performance increase
        Open Transport upgrade, allows for single link multihoming
        ppc native filemanager

8.5
        no more 68K macs!!(yay!)
        PPC native applescript
        actual appearance controls, allowing for better customization
        Desktop printing and Network setups scriptable
        Radically faster Finder copies and Network I/O
        Sherlock
        SNMP

8.5.1
        FREE bug fixes
         Fixed random, and uncommon disk corruption
         Fixed some applescript memory leaks

8.6
        Free
        Fixed a lot of DHCP errors
        Fixed a *long* standing ethernet driver bugs
        more code transitioned to PPC Native
        Cron - type scheduler included on CD
        FTP/HTTP up and downloads now scriptable

8.6.1
        Actually, a fix for a single problem, font corruption, not an OS
            update. 8.6.1 is what folks called it.

9.0
        Apple Event manager native
        Control panels now background applications, not part of the finder
            heap
        OT upgraded, better performance
        Stereo 3D sound support
        Digital sound support
        Better USB storage support
        Network Browser allows you to see LDAP directories, and entries
        Licensed Shareway IP, and integrated it into the OS
        installer makes it easier much to do remote installs
        Fixed some DVD bugs
        ColorSync supports multiple profiles, and automatically uses the
            correct one
        ALL language kits included with the OS
        Better speech recognition
        Better font matching
        OpenGL part of the OS
        Carbon support
        Max filesize went from 2GB to 2^38 bytes
        Max open files from 384 to 8192+
        Max fonts in font folder from 128 to 512
         
         

Gee, some actual new features...worth paying for, and a more than a few free
bugfixes. So in 2 years, we went from 8.0 to 9.0, shed a boatload of 68k
code, fixed a LOT of longstanding bugs. Did some stuff break, yes. Is that a
surprise, no. Has NT done any better? Not even close, and heck, Win2k is not
even half the OS that NT 5 was promised to be.
         

"Daniel L. Schwartz" wrote:
>
> Aw shucks, John...
>
> First off, Micros~1 froze the code for SP6 before officially releasing
it
> - That's why you see Post-SP6 HotFixes!

Yeah, but holy moly, each SP is hundreds of bugs, mostly security, and then
you still see new hotfixes *daily* almost. That's insane

>
> Next, Apple works *very* closely with Adobe on MacOS "features:" After
> all, if you wrote an OS, wouldn't *you* work with your single largest ISV
> to ensure compatibility?

Apple has for *years* told people that that FCB loophole was going to close,
esp. in OSX, and they better stop using it. SURPRISE, they weren't kidding.

>
> This is the *SECOND* time iCEO Job's Apple dropped the ball with ATM:
> Apple also screwed the pooch with MacOS 8.6 (MacOS 8.5/SP2?!) breaking ATM
> Deluxe 4.0.

ATM is NOT ATM Deluxe! ATM is a control panels that deals with on-screen
font rendering of postscript fonts. ATM deluxe is a font management system.
ATM was NOT broken by 8.6, ATM deluxe WAS. Again, the font changes that
happened in 8.6 were clearly documented in at least one TIL that came out
with 8.5.1. Adobe chooses to ignore this, and ATM Deluxe and PageMaker both
break. Photoshop, Illustrator, Acrobat, and thousands of other apps did NOT
break.

>
> Fool me once - Shame on You. Fool me twice - Shame on Me.

"Doctor, it hurts when I stick this fork in my eye." "Well, stop sticking
the fork in your eye." "No, you don't understand, I want you to make it stop
hurting"

>
> By the way, since NT4 was released in early 1996, M$ (sic) has
released
> six Service Packs... All for FREE.

And all told, how many THOUSAND bugfixes are a part of these, how many had
to be withdrawn and re-issued, because MS QA can't be freaking bothered to
test them adequately, and how many actual *new* features were included? Why
can't NT *still*, on a BRAND new Dell P-III boot off a partition that is
over 2 GB in size, while I have Win98 machines that are OLDER booting from 4
- 10 GB partitions, and Macs booting off of 10 GB partitions? WHY can't NT
change an IP address without rebooting? Why hasn't Microsoft made dealing
with the registry, something you HAVE to do WAY too often, a better, SAFER
process?

>
> Apple: MacOS 7.6 $99
> MacOS 8 $99
> MacOS 8.5 $99
> MacOS 9 $99
> ------------------------
>
> TOTAL MacOS bugfixes: $396

You get what you pay for
>
> Cost for NT4/W: $178

Considering AGAIN that NT 4 sp0 is essentially the same as NT4 sp6, I would
certainly HOPE that I didn't have to pay for bugfix after bugfix.

>
> Now, where's the "value" for MacOS?!

Gee, almost 2.5 full versions of the OS for $396. Lets see, if we start with
NT 3.1, and go to NT 4, let's see...3.1, 3.5, 3.5.1, 4.0, and ALL the *free*
bugfixes in between, (anyone want to take a crack at THAT number?), and
assuming the price hasn't gone up any...

NT 3.1 $178
NT 3.5 $178
NT 3.5.1 $178
NT 4.0 $178
Total $890 dollars

Oh...I almost forgot...If you had a 386 for NT 3.1...which MS assured you it
would run on, that's another $2000 for a new box.

True, if you had a 68K Mac with 7.6.1, you would have also had to by a new
box for 8.5...$1300

If you bought your Mac new when 7.6 came out...$0...it would have been a
PowerMac.

The Mac's value still holds up fairly well I think, and at least Apple
ADMITS when it screws up....Microsoft just lies louder and faster

Hey Dan, how much is it going to cost your Alpha Clients who need Win2K?
Them high end Intel boxes ain't cheap. Oh well, at least the OS is a
value....

john

>
> At 03:57 PM 10/28/99 -0400, my good friend "Neutron Jack" wrote:
> >Sigh...gee...Adobe had the needed updates on their sight within 24 hours of
> >9's release. Must have missed that Dan. Also, make sure you wait for the
> >obligatory Microsoft "Oops, the service pack is broke, we're pulling it,
> >sorry if you already installed it and hosed your system. The fixed service
> >pack will be out real soon now"

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This archive was generated by hypermail 2.0b2 on Fri Oct 29 1999 - 12:16:26 PDT