Jobs Previews Displays, Tiger at WWDC 832
DonaldGelman writes "Apple has just announced a 30-inch Studio Display capable of displaying a resolution of 2560x1600. The display requires a new Nvidia card with 2 parallel DVI connections. The display is going to retail for $3299 in August, and the Nvidia card for around $599." Jobs also announced new 20- and 23-inch displays, for $1299 and $1999 in July. All three feature a new aluminum enclosure, and DVI. Also from WWDC...
Jobs also previewed Tiger, with Spotlight (fast iTunes-like searching in all apps, and systemwide), Dashboard (Konfabulator-like widgets combined with Exposé for fast showing/hiding), Automator (visual AppleScript, combining prewritten actions into scripts), H.264 code for QuickTime (high definition scalable video from MPEG), iChat AV conferencing (up to 10 for audio, four for video), RSS reading in Safari, Core Image and Core Video (realtime filters at the core OS level), and system-wide Sync Services. All of this is extensible (except for iChat conferencing), with SDKs available for developers.
There's a lot here, and a more detailed description is forthcoming. Tiger will be available in the first half of 2005.
Re:iPod SDK! (Score:2, Insightful)
Could you please stop making stuff that only 2 people in the world will buy? (i.e. that $3500 30" Display that requires a special graphics card).
Thank you.
Good move to DVI (Score:4, Insightful)
I've been contemplating one of these screens, but never wanted to commit because I couldn't just slap in a KVM for my other machines (mainly the Windows 98 Box fo' Games and my wife's Windows 98 Box fo' Work Crap). Now, I don't have any excuse!
(Looks at price tag.)
Well, I guess I still have one....
Comment removed (Score:5, Insightful)
Longhorn like requirements! (Score:4, Insightful)
ATI Radeon 9800 XT
ATI Radeon 9800 Pro
ATI Radeon 9700 Pro
ATI Radeon 9600 XT
ATI Radeon 9600 Pro
ATI Mobility Radeon 9700
ATI Mobility Radeon 9600
NVIDIA GeForceFX Go 5200
NVIDIA GeForceFX 5200 Ultra
Seems some current Mac models will not support this! You can bet there will now be users who think that 10.4 will not run on their machine just because core image/video does not. They just won't get the advanced new graphics.
Gates is going to kill all of us trying to keep up (Score:2, Insightful)
Now if only auto-detection worked with Linux boxes. Then I'd be happy.
Apple Did It Again! (Score:4, Insightful)
nVidia SLI (Score:4, Insightful)
Aha! So this is why nVidia has been working on the 2 card video load balancing system.
Okay (Score:3, Insightful)
How is "Konfabulator" anything other than a direct ripoff of the OS 9 Control Strip?
That's a serious question. I've never used Konfabulator.
What about the widget developers? (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:SHHHH.... (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:HFS+ support, SQLite, etc. (Score:1, Insightful)
Re:iPod SDK! (Score:5, Insightful)
This is because Slashdot is a community for people who don't realize that "doing something nobody else does" is worth it to many consumers.
Re:2 DVI's? (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Now this is exciting... (Score:4, Insightful)
This is about as insightful as saying BMW can't compete with a used Hyundai.
To lessen the Flamebait aspect, quality costs money or time. If you want to build your own hot-rod in the back yard over a year that's great, but don't go pooh-poohing my brand new Corvette over it.
Re:iPod SDK! (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Gates is going to kill all of us trying to keep (Score:1, Insightful)
it's untrue. MS, outside of their windows+office, hasn't dominated any significant market. PDAs? it's arguable they're in the lead now, over Palm, but it's not what you'd call domination. And, considering everything's merging into the "smartphone" category, dominating here's pointless either - and the smartphone category looks more like Symbian's game, now.
media centres? tablet PCs? nope. about the only thing i can think of that they stand a chance of "dominating" in, is... xbox2. Sony had better be taking the threat seriously, because you don't survive losing to Microsoft.
Re:Okay (Score:5, Insightful)
http://folklore.org/StoryView.py?project=Macint
So yes, it's a rip off of Konfabulator. But Konfabulator was a rip off of Apple's original. Sort of like how Apple did labels in pre-OS X and Unsanity provided them as an APE module. Then Apple re-integrated them in OS X.
What matters here is it's still an opportunity for 3rd parties to provide a superior alternative to a basic function provided by Apple. Watson is better than Sherlock. xPad is better than stickies. Camino is better than Safari. ( of course, these are all arguable )
Ho hum. I don't really care. But from a usability standpoint it's a *great* idea to have my sticky notes *appear* ( rather than fly away ) when I move my mouse cursor to a certain corner. I like the sound of that, since I use stickies all the time.
Re:iPod SDK! (Score:2, Insightful)
Well that is the problem when you make OS Tools. (Score:4, Insightful)
So if you want to make a living off your tools you better copyright or paten it, so Apple will need to pay for it to put it in their next OS.
Re:Why do they keep doing this. (Score:3, Insightful)
How many big-name developers would include support for Konfabulator's interesting features? How many when it's a default part of Tiger?
There you go then.
Re:Sent to Apple Feedback (Score:4, Insightful)
I don't know where you get the idea that Apple is replacing these programs. When they released Safari, did everybody stop using other web browsers? Does nobody use Entorage or MailSmith or Eudora just because Apple includes Mail? Are people going to stop using NetNewsWire just because you can read RSS feeds in Safari now? Don't people use VLC dispite QuickTime?
crushing the very developers that make people switch to the Mac because of the cool things that shareware developers do.
I don't know about you, but I switched because of the things that Apple had developed.
Re:Now this is exciting... (Score:3, Insightful)
And Apple didn't abandon the midrange. They keep reducing the price on last year's best until it's at the midrange level. I can't speak for their LCD prices ( I dunno what a good price is for an LCD with the warranty, connector, refresh rate, footprint, power draw, resolution and viewing angle of a mac LCD ), but their laptops and desktops are very competetively priced. Not "cheap," certainly not on par with slim margin commodities market PC offerings that you might find at New Egg, but comparable with what you'd get from other sources.
Even so, innovation drives prices down, not vica versa. There is no reason to charge less for high end goods unless there is a HIGHER end good people care putting their money towards. And since the demand for things like "big fucking LCDs" exists regardless of the price, Apple can almost print their own money with this stuff.
Re:Apple is 1337! (Score:3, Insightful)
And it's Hollywood too. The contact card/info displayed has a name of "Alan Smithee"
Re:Okay (Score:5, Insightful)
If Apple wants the developers code, it will purchase. Its done so with Soundjam (which became iTunes) and other applications. If your idea just furthered their idea, then obviously they just go with theirs. According to the preview Dashboard will have its on SDK kit. That said, it may be possible for people to develop simultaneously for both Dashboard and Konfabulator, but that depends more on the backend engine.
I really LOVE Konfabulator, but that said, Apple has already addressed the one biggest issue I have with it--desktop clutter. Sure its cool to have the weather, newsfeeds, post-its, etc. all providing you continous data on your desktop, but they also just clutter up your desktop, having them exist off-screen and come on with a function key is a perfect idea. A bring the widgets out to play, now put your toys away concept.
8 million pixels? Chump.... (Score:4, Insightful)
Hell, if you want to spend some real money, buy one of these babies [viewsonic.com].
3840 x 2400. 9,216,000 pixels for about $6,300. Per pixel, that's cheaper than buying two 30" Cinema displays.
Re:see konfabulator (Score:4, Insightful)
Now on the other hand all this looks surprisingly similar to my own application Watch It. [verticaleye.net] But I'm just going to rewrite it-- no bitching here. I was even thinking about writing a calculator using the same basic design, transparent and resizable. But I thought no one would use it so I haven't created the application which would be trivial. Now, however, I might reconsider writing it, because there are going to be a lot of users still using Panther and earlier after this comes out.
Re:iPod SDK! (Score:4, Insightful)
A.) It'll drive down the price of current LCD's.
B.) It's not for you Mr. Sixpack, it's for us artists. We plunk down $3000 -- $4000 once in a while for stuff like this.
ATTN: Mods on crack [Way OT] (Score:2, Insightful)
There is one of two reasons for my parent to be moderated "insightful"
Either way, this comment is far from insightful. Mod it Overrated, or Funny. I don't care. I don't need the karma.
P.S. if you fix the parent, go ahead and mod this one down as Offtopic.
Re:Now this is exciting... (Score:4, Insightful)
Take the hook off a Mac desktop and compare the internals to any PC desktop. Looks the same -- from three feet away. Get any closer and you realize how different the "commodities" really are.
If you don't care about such things, fine. Use what you want to use. Just realize that you can throw together eggs, ham and butter and still make a shitty omelette.
Re:iPod SDK! (Score:3, Insightful)
Don't forget coders. I'd love to fill that 30" of goodness with 9 point fixed with font. But unlike with those designers and video editors, $3k is a bit out of my budget (not to mention the $3k mac to go with it -- need linux support for that new vid card first).
Re:should work on software (Score:3, Insightful)
I _HATE_ it when people bring up Darwin as if its equivalent to Mac OSX. Using Darwin is _not_ like using Mac OSX, and that is what is important to the user.
You want people to switch to Linux??? Make gnome work as well as Aqua and you're half-way there.
-B
Re:Cost too dam much. (Score:1, Insightful)
No Sony CRT match this newest display though
Re:Good move to DVI (Score:4, Insightful)
You can chain four ATA-100 drives in firewire enclosures into one daisy-chain running into a single firewire jack and you'll barely saturate the bus. Compare to USB, which can't be chained.
Holy hell! (Score:2, Insightful)
Plus, it took me months to get into the groove of using expose and the new finder design! I like it, but give me time to appreciate the system in it's entirety before releasing a new one. I don't think I'm going to buy this update - a lot of the new features just seem superfluous.
An operating system shouldn't be 100% old news after only a year or so. Panther still looks, feels, and acts spiffy and new to me. If there's a small update or addition to be had, make it a downloadable update. Most of these features just aren't worthy of an entire new release.
I'm not saying I miss Micro$oft's inconsistent OS updates, but I definitely think Apple should slow down and take their time a little more than they are.
but but... (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:iPod SDK! (Score:5, Insightful)
1. Editing
2. Digital imaging studios
3. Medical imaging
And incidently, those are markets where people (or companies) are likely to spend $3500 in big screens.
It looks like M. Jobs is not that stupid after all. It looks like it's a good think he is leading Apple and not you.
:| Damn it Apple. (Score:4, Insightful)
Dashboard is practically a direct rip-off of Konfabulator. It comes with similar default "widgets," widgets are transparent and glossy, and new widgets can be developed with JS.
Moreover, Apparently Konfabulator is very popular at Apple and Pixar (lots of registered Apple and Pixar users). Schiller supposedly loves the damn thing.
I have no problems with Apple adding something like this into MacOS. However, once they start stomping on the rights of small developers, that's fucking low. This is the second time they've done this, and this time it's an even more blatant case of copyright infringement.
If Apple had developed Konfabulator, and Arlo had developed dashboard 1 year later, Arlo would've been nailed by Apple's legal department.
Why should we even attempt to develop platform specific utilities and software for OS X? If it becomes popular, Apple is going to snag it, make money off of it, and not compensate the original authors.
Re:Okay (Score:5, Insightful)
Yes, it's such a shame that Apple "ripped off" an idea that they developed in the first place! Talk about bad apples on the part of the Konfabulator folks. They rip off Apple, hope no-one calls them on it, then flip out when Apple puts the functionality back into their OS because they discovered that people found it useful.
To the Konfabulator folks: deal. Or innovate. Don't rip off an idea a company implemented over ten years ago and complain when they implement it again.
Re:Okay (Score:3, Insightful)
I don't care who did it first. Like I don't care who created the window GUI first. I hate the idea that someone owns an idea.
People wanted something like Konfabulator but without the problems that follow Konfabulator. Apple now gives it to them. And I really don't care if it is similar in some way. Konfabulator took an old idea and made it better. Apple now does the same. The Konfabulator guys have no rights to start a riot about this. Now they are forced to make their product better. So basically the users win.
If Apple had been successful at stopping everyone else using the window system we never would have gotten a window systems we now have. If it is possible to completely own an idea there would never be any innovation. There would be no progress.
How would the world be if the Beatles would have registered Rock'n'Roll and no one been allowed to make anything similar.
To take an idea further you must first steal it. And I don't give a damn who made it first. Sure. Give them credits. Don't take it and say you made it first. But take the idea and make it better.
Otherwise we would still be trying to fish up ants with treebranches. Or no wait. The chimps already have registered that and copyrighted.
Re::| Damn it Apple. (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:iPod SDK! (Score:5, Insightful)
I wrote a set of C++ classes for dealing with the iPod's data files, and with the help of Aero, we've refined it to cover just about everything in a plug-in for foobar 2000 called foo_pod [hydrogenaudio.org].
We're almost there with real, live updating, smart playlist support now (which no other third party iPod-capable app has yet, that I know of). Just a few minor things left to be done on the back end, and the interface sounds like it is coming along nicely.
There's very little an actual SDK could add at this point. When the iPod is connected to the computer, it just appears to be a hard drive to the computer. No special communication channels we can find at all.
Re:but but... (Score:4, Insightful)
Apple doesn't include any activation or copy protection system in OS X, so it just takes one alpha geek to buy a copy and then it filters down when people see something cool and ask them to install it on their Mac, usually proffering beer and liasons with loose women in gratitude. Remember, most Mac users, like most Windows users, don't have much idea what version of the OS they're using.
I suspect this is part of Apple's distribution strategy, otherwise they'd at least ask for a serial number or something.
This is Apple's feature integration strategy (Score:2, Insightful)
Watson did Sherlock better, Apple did Watson better.
Konfabulator
Re:iPod SDK! (Score:5, Insightful)
After all these years, Macs still run that industry. Sure, there are people that use PC's in the industry, but they are very few and far between.
But, from what I've seen in my travels around printing, it's dying a slow death thanks to online content. Packaging is the place to be in printing/graphic arts now adays...just FYI for you youngsters out there looking to get into the industry.
Re:Spotlight != LaunchBar (Score:3, Insightful)
Re::| Damn it Apple. (Score:5, Insightful)
ControlStrip on the classic Mac OS, DesktopX, and many other projects have provided lightweight "applets" in various ways for years. In fact, these are also quite similar to the menu bar applets on OSX, though now liberated from the cramped menu bar.
What are the "rights of small developers"? Which aspect of Konfab is unique in the scope of computing? This reeks of the Watson/Sherlock "controversy", but only in that a developer creates a relatively sexy but not novel UI, and Apple eventually adopts a similar approach to solve the same problems for its users.
It's hard to define where Apple should stop and third-party tools should begin. I see people confusing superficial similarities for innovation being crushed - at what point does Apple stop improving OSX and require its users to buy third-party products?
There will no doubt be others crying about the RSS aggregator, but again these are similar solutions because they are solving the same problems for users. Should Apple just stick to the desktop and the Dock and leave all future goodness to shareware authors?
I love shareware on OSX, I support it religiously, but at some point there has to be an acknowledgement that OS vendors will encroach as user needs are identified. I would love to see Apple develop a grant program or something similar, to honor those developers who lead the way, but I don't think it's an option to just hold back the OS.
Re:iPod SDK! (Score:3, Insightful)
The iPod is a very, very cool toy, and you can do a lot with just a scroll wheel and a button...
Re:Microsoft... (Score:5, Insightful)
Just like menubar clock. It's a great idea, almost natural. But does that mean it's worth a ton of money? No.
The real money is, and should be, in real user-centric applications, like spreadsheets, word processing, graphics processing, etc. Typically OS vendors move into "utility" space, but NOT into application space. The exception is Microsoft, which dominates both. Apple only dominates when there is a "missing or poorly supported piece", such as Keynote and Safari.
Not original at all (Score:5, Insightful)
Konfabulator is not an original idea at all, sorry. Classic Mac OS had desk accessories since 1984, Windows 98 had its Active Desktop (which nobody ever used because it was too unstable, but did much the same thing). The only thing new here is using Javascript, and Windows did that almost a decade ago.
I have sympathy for Perry and Arlo, but I'm not about to vilify Apple over bringing DAs into the 21st century.
Re:iPod SDK! (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:iPod SDK! (Score:5, Insightful)
I'm sorry man, but in a capitalist society, the "true value of things" is set by how much people will pay for them. People will pay more than the selling price to get their hands on an iPod Mini. Most people won't even pay MSRP for a Creative Zen. This is because the iPod Mini is not, as you suggest, "worse" than most major mp3 players, but because it is better in every way the counts for a consumer device. It is easy and quick to learn, load and use. It has sufficiently long life and sufficiently good sound quality. It is small but sturdy and controllable with one hand. There are only two connectors to hook up and few external controls to break. It looks clean and nice(and isn't the least bit shiny, mind you). And it has a great warranty.
How is it worse than other players? Each of its competitors fails in one or more of the above strengths. Some have more features but a hideous interface. Some have a nice interface, but are too delicate. Only the cost, which enough people seem willing to pay to make it foolish for them to charge less, is consistantly "worse" than its competitors...but if you care so much about cost that you're willing to buy inferior goods, go get whatever RCA device they're selling at WalMart and give up the pretense that you want a hi-tech device. Price and quality are, aside from some really good deals, mutually exclusive -- because any company that cares enough to make real quality gear should be smart enough to charge for it.
Re:Microsoft... (Score:5, Insightful)
Konfabulator is just desk accessories, using Javascript instad of C. Sorry, that refinement is not worth a wheelbarrow of cash. I have every sympathy for Arlo and Perry, but it just isn't that unique an idea. I mean, Mac has provided desk "widgets" without Javascript in 1984... and Windows did it with Javascript in 1998.
On the other hand, Spotlight sounds nothing like Launchbar. TFG. Have you actually tried Launchbar?
Re:still no virtual desktops? (Score:5, Insightful)
Re::| Damn it Apple. (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Cost too dam much. (Score:4, Insightful)
The cost, sure it's expensive, but two things; one, it's Apple, Apple users expect to pay more, and most of the time prefer to pay for quality over quantity, two, for the percieved effect it will have on productivity, a couple of decent paying clients will cover the cost of one of these.
Konfabulator yes. Other UI innovations? (Score:3, Insightful)
I mentioned an idea like Dashboard / Konfabulator, without consciously knowing about Konfabulator. Now that I know about it, I am trying it out and I will pay for it if I continue using it.
What about other innovations? I also use Workstrip [softchaos.com], which solves a few weaknesses in the Dock.
I'm still waiting for CDE-like 'workspaces' however -- where windows and desktops can be hidden easily according to function. Expose is a good feature, but I would also like workspaces.
Another thing I wonder about: why hasn't Apple done a better job of integrating the GUI with the CLI? I just found out about open(1), which can send an open message to any Finder application. But it's much easier on other Unix systems to simply type "edit
What about shells / terminal apps? Why are we still having to use only the keyboard to navigate the Command Line Interface? The only GUI elements that seem to have made it into the terminal are a scroll bar and a split window. I could imagine at least two improvements: a split window with the history buffer, and better navigation of CLI text (perhaps using table cells).
It's possible that I'm the only guy in the world who wants better GUI/CLI integration, but I suspect not.
Re:iPod SDK! (Score:4, Insightful)
Contrast this with Sun ("Let's 'standardize' an impractical Java API and leave it up to somebody else to implement our mess!") or Microsoft ("Let's keep everything under lock-and-key so no other vendor can interfere!").
Re:Wheel Barrel of Money? (Score:0, Insightful)
APPLE IS KILLING ANOTHER THIRD-PARTY APPLICATION. That's the FACT. Konfabulator is DEAD. Just like Watson is DEAD. Just like MS gave up on IE for Mac when Apple started bundling Safari. And the list goes on and on and on and on.... Apple pushes their OS control advantage to steal ideas from the little guys, just like Microsoft does. There is NO difference. NONE. And if you weren't such an Apple fanboy, you'd realize that this is very bad for Apple over the long-term. My boss knows I'm a mac user, and asked whether we should port our business software over to the mac. I TOTALLY discouraged him. I know for a fact that Apple waits to see what's popular, then apes the idea nearly perfectly without apology, killing the TRUE innovators, who quickly fade into nothingness and bankruptcy. So the OS X platform has lost a much-needed piece of business software. Apple users can suffer for all we care. Someone else can risk their company on serving a fickle and ungrateful 2% market. We won't. We would've, but not with the shark we call Apple hunting everybody who wanders into their waters. We'll port it to Linux FAR before we support Apple.
Mac fanatics crucify Microsoft for stealing "their" icons and a GUI; mac fanatics crucify Linux for some rogue users who copy the Aqua look and magnifying icons on their taskbars; but the same Mac fanatics steadfastly defended Apple after they stole Watson. They defended Apple for treating their employees like crap. They defended Apple for often making shoddy products and charging through the nose to fix them. They defend Apple for everything they won't let anyone else get away with.
And now, when Apple has OBVIOUSLY ripped off Konfabulator, right down to duplicating [konfabulator.com] the same widgets nearly icon for icon, mac fanatics jump in to defend them again. Un-BEE-LEEV-able! What hypocritical arrogant bullshit.
I wouldn't be surprised if you also said the Holocaust never happened; you all seem to get your kicks out of rewriting history.
Getting more leg room out of Hide (Score:3, Insightful)
Agreed. I don't feel the need for multiple desktops now I've got Expose either. But to make my window management experience complete, I'd like to see 2 (small) extra features added:
1) The ability to map the Yellow window button to Hide instead of Minimize. I never use it anymore, as it's much quicker to double-click on the title bar.
2) MOST importantly, once I've Hidden an app, I'd like to be able to unHide selected windows from that app. I'll give you an example. Open the Terminal app and start several instances that you then use to login to remote systems. I use a connection script that automatically sets the title to the connection name, and I can view/select the any one of them from the list presented by Ctrl-Click on the Terminal icon in the Dock. It would be VERY useful to Hide the Terminal windows and then just open up the ones I want to work on leaving the rest hidden. The advantage of this is that it doesn't clutter up the "iconized" portion of the Dock.
If you want all the Terminal windows back on the screen then (as now) you can just click the icon on the Dock to unHide them.
Another example where this would be useful is with Mail. Currently if I Hide Mail.app and then use Ctrl-Click to select "Compose New Message" from the Dock menu, then I get a new compose window, but it also unHides Mail.app in the process. I then have to iconsize Mail.app before I can continue because I didn't want to see it in the first place.
Is any of this making sense?
Re:iPod SDK! (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Wheel Barrel of Money? (Score:4, Insightful)
Konfabulator is DEAD.
Nonsense. There are things Konfabulator does today that Dashboard won't do at all, such as displaying content on the desktop while you're working. Konfabulator can continue to have a long and healthy life if the developers keep pushing its feature set ahead of Dashboard's.
Just like Watson is DEAD.
Amazing how Watson remained alive long enough for the author to sell it to Sun, eh?
Just like MS gave up on IE for Mac when Apple started bundling Safari.
Oh, puleeeze. Microsoft wasn't doing any work with Mac IE even before Safari came out -- hell, it was Microsoft's penchance for sitting on its ass that prompted Apple to develop Safari in the first place, remember? And let's not forget the truckload of third-party web browsers currently available for the Mac, none of which are "dying" just because Safari's available. Some of them even use the same Webkip API Safari does, fer crissakes.
Bottom line: Your notion that Konfabulator is "dead" because Apple announced Dashboard today (and won't release it until sometime next year) is premature and unsupported by history. Quit nailing your palm to your forehead, the neighbors are complaining.
Re:Microsoft... (Score:4, Insightful)
I hope it's not Konfabulator. It seems like a great idea, but on my 17" PowerBook G4 1.33Mhz, it either slows the machine to a crawl or crashes it outright.
The people behind Konfabulator may have had a good idea, but I'll trust Apple to code it so it works fast and reliably.