I have Vista installed on my Tablet PC, and using it next to my G5 iMac I have to agree with Jack, Vista makes Tiger look gray. I never had any complaints about tiger’s lack of color before, and still don’t, but side by side, Tiger is gray.
Vista isn’t bad, its a step up from XP, and yes, you can (as I did) turn off the nagging.
Is is a better or more modern OS than Tiger? No.
Is it only “Good Enough”? No.
I still prefer OS X, but Vista is a very pleasant alternative for applications where there isn’t an appropriate Mac (like Tablets or ultralights).
I thought the OS was the stuff that drives the computer and allows us to get stuff done with the technology. I quite liked Win95 and the last version of Windows that I have any respect for was Win98SE.
OSX looks lovely and has done since 10.1. Got it with the Cube.
But functionality matters, and as long as it looks nice, I don’t give a rats whether its grey/aqua or brushed metal etc. I trust Apple to design this stuff so that it looks right and does the job. They do have a bit of a track record here.
As long as its not fluro or eye jarringly awful. Like the default XP. Yuk.
I thought the OS was the stuff that drives the computer and allows us to get stuff done with the technology. I quite liked Win95 and the last version of Windows that I have any respect for was Win98SE.
OSX looks lovely and has done since 10.1. Got it with the Cube.
But functionality matters, and as long as it looks nice, I don’t give a rats whether its grey/aqua or brushed metal etc. I trust Apple to design this stuff so that it looks right and does the job. They do have a bit of a track record here.
As long as its not fluro or eye jarringly awful. Like the default XP. Yuk.
The default XP theme is quite annoying, but fortunately is easy to turn off. My Windows XP machines, my Windows Server (2003 Small Business) and my old Windows 2000 machines all look essentially the same, with only very minor icon differences immediately noticable. Vista’s theme on lesser machines that do not support full Aero, or on any machine with the Home Basic version is much like XP, a bit annoying. Fortunately again, it is easy enough to set the thing to “Windows Classic” and get that old Windows 2000 look, which has aged well.
Windows 95 and 98 had the interface down, but like the classic Mac OS were based on clunky old DOS and lacked stability. I suffered with Windows NT instead of using 98, and once Windows 2000 came out I banished DOS-based WIndows forever. OS X was the reason I went back to the Mac, bnot for the style, but for the substance.
Tiger is gray, but the substance is there. Vista is bright and colorful in Aero, ugly in non-Aero, but the substance appears to be there and the theme can be disabled. I wish Tiger had a theme control like OS 9 did, it would be nice to make everything consistent.
Roughly 30-percent of Mac360’s readers hit the site via Windows, so we know we have plenty of Windows users checking out the Mac world.
Oh, come on, Jack. I check 360 from work all the time where I use - you guessed it - Windows XP. You won’t find any of the dozens of computers in my house running any version of Windows. You can’t take log stats for reality ...
I like modern so I’ll chime in and agree that aero is a nice improvement over XP. I wonder if the translucent windows would wear down the eyes after a while? And it’s hard to tell the active window sometimes. But overall, much better than XP. And it does point our attention to the lack of consistency in OSX at this point.
I like the way iTunes 7 plays movies with no borders on the side. It’s almost 100% movie and nothing else, unless you move your mouse near the bottom, which brings up the controls.
I also liked OS 9 where you still had all that gray, but you had themes that would ‘stain’ the gray so it was cool shades of green or red. I’m referring to the CD player. If Apple implemented this, they would have to make it adjustable so we could make the hues barely noticeable or stark. A transparency slider, of sorts.
I love color though. One of the main ‘features’ I wanted to see in Leopard was the interface tweaks! Aero Glass has raised the bar in the one area of color and visual punch. Let’s hope Apple has some cool stuff so we can show off some tricked out eye candy! With Core Image, Audio, Video, etc, it should be awesome.
I’ve been using Vista Ultimate in a virtual machine for my windows coding since it came out and i have to say that Tiger does feel positively dull when you go back to it. It does however still feel considerably more refined, even higer resolution (but that may just be down to the virtual machine!) in comparison, probably better to say it feels like a higher class of interface.
Now, as many will be keen to jump down and say, eye candy doesn’t at all make an OS. Of course not. It IS what’s underneath that counts and that’s where we currently win at first glance. I can’t comment on deeper down than first glance as i don’t know Vista to that level (and don’t really need to either). So what Leopard needs is both. It needs to continue with the excellent behind the scenes work that we have in Leopard whilst also giving a nice boost to look and feel and eye candy whilst probably needing to maintain options to continue with graphite schemes or just a “Tiger” scheme for those that are in love with what we have now but still want to move with the times.
I don’t see it yet, but i have a feeling it’s coming. Most people say spaces for instance is just what linux has been doing with virtual desktops for years and i have to say that it is pretty much, but when you use it it’s obvious that it’s pulled off with the usual pzaz (SP?) that you can expect from Apple and Core Frameworks so i honestly hope (and expect) that we will see some lovely enchancements to what has been released to the developer community thus far but i suspect it may be a last minute reveal
I’ve been using Vista Ultimate in a virtual machine for my windows coding since it came out and i have to say that Tiger does feel positively dull when you go back to it. It does however still feel considerably more refined, even higer resolution (but that may just be down to the virtual machine!) in comparison, probably better to say it feels like a higher class of interface.
Now, as many will be keen to jump down and say, eye candy doesn’t at all make an OS. Of course not. It IS what’s underneath that counts and that’s where we currently win at first glance. I can’t comment on deeper down than first glance as i don’t know Vista to that level (and don’t really need to either). So what Leopard needs is both. It needs to continue with the excellent behind the scenes work that we have in Leopard whilst also giving a nice boost to look and feel and eye candy whilst probably needing to maintain options to continue with graphite schemes or just a “Tiger” scheme for those that are in love with what we have now but still want to move with the times.
I don’t see it yet, but i have a feeling it’s coming. Most people say spaces for instance is just what linux has been doing with virtual desktops for years and i have to say that it is pretty much, but when you use it it’s obvious that it’s pulled off with the usual pzaz (SP?) that you can expect from Apple and Core Frameworks so i honestly hope (and expect) that we will see some lovely enchancements to what has been released to the developer community thus far but i suspect it may be a last minute reveal
Total agreement here. It doesn’t have anything to do with performance, just the looks. Looks as in plural. Vista looks unified, even though the colors are somewhat a shiny version of Fisher-Price. OS X is a mess of four or five different gray patterns.
It’s color vs. gray, just like it was back in 1995 with Windows ‘95 and the gawd awful looking MacOS.
Leopard needs to shine AND work better than Vista.
Clearly, the one area that Vista’s improvement over OS X with Aero is simply consistancy. One of OS X’s greatest shortcomings is its jumbled interface differences between aqua, brushed alluminum, and the new plastic. If Apple simply settled on one look, it would appear much less stale.
It would be wise to consider the different audiences for these two OS’s when considering interface “blandness”. Apple caters to creative individuals...most of which would readily tell you that too much color is distracting from the work they are trying to get done. Windows targets business, internet, and gaming audiences, most of which would prefer more color just to obviate the amazingly dull applications they are using, or because they wan’t something that just looks “cool” and enhances the gaming experience. These are broad generalizations, but they certainly aren’t huge leaps from the norm.
Could Mac OS X look nicer? Sure. It should start by deciding WHAT it wants to look like. From there, it could integrate themes in a respectable way. I think the iPhone may provide some glimpses into what kind of interface and appearance might be ahead for the Mac OS down the road. Look for Leopard to worry less about colors, and take more advantage of Core Animation. I expect the Mac OS will start providing new and innovative forms of animation as useful feedback to on screen functions...creating an awe factor far beyond the polished glass appearance Vista has to offer.
Meh. It’s definitely an improvement over XP. I don’t think it makes OSX look as old and dull as you say. OSX is extremely familiar. I agree that OSX needs some consistency appearance wise across the board. I’m a bit tired of the aquafied buttons and the horrible lozenge buttons in Mail have to go. But, OSX dull? Hardly. We’ll have to wait and see how Leopard turns out but I doubt anyone will be disappointed.
I have Vista on our family PC at home and I am really impressed. While it hasn’t been problem free, it works very well, and on my PC, its pretty fast. I was especially impressed by Windows DVD Maker. It doesn’t have the options that iDVD has, but its very, very simple to take your photos and movies and make a DVD that will play on any DVD player. The only drawback is that it only takes AVI and WMV movies, which means I have to covert the Quicktime movies from my camera, but its a great app none the less. I agree with everyone, the interface is way more consistent than Tiger. Apple has some work to do in this regard, and hopefully Leopard has a better finder.
I mean, by using ShapeShifter for starters, you can change the entire look of OSX. There are more than enough options out there to customize your Mac. Google is your friend.
I for one just don’t fall for eye candy alone. I want things to work. Period. Macs not only “work” they don’t look half bad either! If anyone is going to go gaga over Vista over the “pretty things” then Mr. Gates and Mr. Ballmer love you! Just ignore the plethora of oncoming “patches” and be fascinated with the lipstick on a pig that Windows is. (Sorry, I can’t help myself)
FWIW, I am currrently using PCLinuxOS on my old “retired” PC box. Everyone comments on how beautiful is is and how easy it is to use. It’s free and simply runs everything well. No viruses. No spyware. No artery clogging crap to destroy it. I simply see no advantage to purchase a (upwards of) $400 OS that may run on my PC. I tell you, if you are fascinated by the mere “look” of Vista than you’re no geek in my book. I want an OS that works and works well. With nary a thought to viruses and other assorted goodies.
I have used about every Linux distro there is. Ubuntu, PCLinuxOS, LinuxMint, Dream Linux and Saboyan are the new champs IMO. 100% free and unless you absolutely have to run the most graphics intensive games out there, they do everything better than Vista. Including sharing office docs.
Maybe Vista does look “pretty”. I say wait and see. Already there are issues with iPods and iTunes. Not unexpected but, for upwards of $400, I’d be pissed about that.
Lipstick on a pig? Count me as one to bet on that.
I was recently in my nearest Best Buy, and I took a moment to fiddle with a laptop that had Vista installed. It is, I will admit, the best looking version of Windows to date. It is not, in my opinion, better than the Mac OS. I found that I had to click too many times or use too many subtle mouse moves to accomplish simple tasks (this is a holdover issue since Windows 95 added the Start menu) and that the UI was not as satisfying as perhaps it could be.
Now, before you point out that a laptop is probably not going to be capable of taking advantage of the full Aero features set, let me say that the last time I bought a desktop machine was in days before people realized that Y2K was a bunch of nothing. I want a UI I can use on a laptop, and Aero is not it. Worse, with so much dependent upon the graphics card, I worry what happens when that card fries (and Windows users, far more often than Mac users, proportionally, seem to have this happen)? I don’t want my graphics card to hold my ribbon interface (when and if I ever go there) hostage. Finally, even with some graphics features turned off, when I opened a folder, there was a quite noticable hitch in its draw speed right before it reached final position. If the best thing Best Buy will offer is a laptop without the full version of the OS enabled and even then incapable of handling it, I don’t want either the box or the OS.
Jack’s premise is probably spot on, based on the little special effects, color, shadowing, and the consistency of look and feel-- not a strong point of Tiger.
That said, I was one of those that added Uno to my Mac and I’m very pleased with the consistent look it provides. I expected OS X Leopard to improve on the overall look of applications and utilities.
