Back when Copland was to be the next-generation Mac OS, Windows 95 users found some irony in the fact that the OS' feature-set seemed to be derived directly from Windows 95. Well, Copland was cancelled last year and the NeXTStep OS was bought to provide Apple with a new solution. In the meantime, however, Apple is planning on releasing incremental updates to the aging System 7.x line. System 7.7, code-named "Tempo," will add some of the user-interface elements that were promised for Copland, and I think any Windows 95/NT 4.0 user would recognize them:
- Explore folders by Option-clicking them (remember, the Mac has no right mouse button)
- Click on any edge of a window to resize it
- Option-click objects to get a properties list
In other Apple news, CEO Gil Amelio implored developers at the Software Publishers Association today to continue supporting the Macintosh despite the fact that "many of \[them\] have invested in \[the Mac\] and have yet to see a return." Amelio mentioned that the next release of the Mac OS, code- named Tempo, would integrate both Java and a multithreaded Finder.
If you're interested in Apple, you should also check out a compelling article in UPSIDE called "Apple's Big OS Mistake." You can find it at:
http://www.upside.com/companies/ted.html
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