Version 10.1 Brings Much to the OS X Party

Bit by bit, Mac OS X is gaining momentum. Apple’s new operating system still isn’t ready to take over full-time desktop duties from its predecessor, but there were encouraging signs at the Macworld Expo in New York last month. Numerous software developers previewed OS X versions of their products, and Apple announced OS X version 10.1, a major upgrade due in September.

These developments certainly don’t add up to the OS X coming-out party that Apple chief Steve Jobs predicted for this expo in January, but they do show that progress is being made. And since Apple includes both OS 9 and OS X with every Mac, there’s no reason to delay a Mac purchase until OS X matures. When that day arrives, a few mouse clicks will boot you into the future.

Jobs demonstrated version 10.1 in his expo keynote address. Now, Jobs could make a cat-litter scoop look like a technological breakthrough, but even with the hype filter turned on, version 10.1 is impressive. It appears to be dramatically faster: Programs launch faster than under the current OS X and the entire user interface appears more responsive. If 10.1 delivers the speed Jobs demonstrated, Apple will have fixed one of the biggest flaws of its new operating system.

Version 10.1 also brings usability improvements. To eliminate fuzzy-looking text, you can turn off font smoothing for small type sizes. The dock--that row of icons along the bottom of the screen--can be positioned vertically along the screen’s left or right edge. Given that computer displays are wider than they are tall, a vertical orientation makes better use of screen space.

Speaking of screen space, OS X version 10.1 takes advantage of some unused real estate in the menu bar to provide menus for adjusting speaker volume and monitor settings. These menus work like their counterparts in the old Mac OS 9 control strip, but they don’t take up space in the dock.

And then there are file-name extensions, which have caused controversy since OS X debuted. Apple says extensions are necessary in today’s multi-platform, Internet-oriented world. But many Mac veterans hate file extensions and prefer the invisible file-identification codes used by earlier Mac OS versions.

To appease this group, version 10.1 will let users hide file extensions--much as Microsoft Windows does. On online discussion boards, though, some users are complaining that this is a Band-Aid solution. I agree and would prefer that Apple simply rely on the file-type mechanism that has served us since 1984.

Mac OS X version 10.1 also will play better with others. The new version will support more printers and digital cameras and finally will be able to play and burn DVDs. Indeed, version 2 of iDVD, the free DVD-burning software included with SuperDrive-equipped Macs, will run only under OS X.

So version 10.1 will be what Mac OS X should have been all along. What about third-party programs? Let’s just say patience remains a virtue. At the Macworld Expo, Microsoft showed Office 10 for the first time. It ships this fall, it’s gorgeous and it, too, will run only under OS X.

Adobe Systems showed OS X versions of some of its software but not of its Photoshop image editor--one of the Mac world’s most popular programs. Until Photoshop goes native, a vast number of Mac users won’t be booting up under OS X.

IBM demonstrated an OS X-native version of its ViaVoice speech-recognition and dictation software. Roxio showed an OS X version of its Toast CD-burning software. And Connectix showed an OS X version of its Virtual PC emulation software. All three programs ship--you guessed it--later this year.

Comparing the months of the year to the hours on a clock, Steve Jobs says Apple is at 4 o’clock: four months along in its 12-month operating system transition. By this measure, the Mac OS X party won’t get really interesting until the evening hours, when the programs demonstrated at the expo become available. And after that? Well, everyone knows the best parties don’t get going until after midnight.

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Jim Heid is a contributing editor of Macworld magazine.

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