O’Reilly Network’s Managing Editor Derrick Story admits to being a technology cheerleader and enthusiast of Apple’s forthcoming Mac OS X 10.2 in a new editorial entitled Jaguar: Time to Stop Pussyfooting Around. He also outlines some practical reasons why he thinks Mac users should start using OS X full time if they’re not already.
Story is aghast that Mac users who have adopted OS X are still in the minority overall — 20 percent, according to Apple, with another 20 percent headed towards X by year’s end. He calls that conversion “terrible” and said that after 17 months, he would have expected at least 50 percent of Mac users to have made the switch.
Reasons abound to go to OS X now that 10.2 is almost ready, however. A rewritten finder, greatly improved Mail application, Rendezvous — Apple’s zero-configuration networking technology, and other under-the-hood changes rank high on Story’s list of reasons why OS X 10.2 is definitely ready for prime time.
“There isn’t much fooling around in this upcoming version of the operating system. It is as solid as the Titanium resting on your lap,” said Story.
Switching to OS X has practical benefits for Apple, as well, according to Story. With recalcitrant users still depending on Mac OS 9, “it’s difficult to motivate struggling developers” to create OS X applications.
And if you feel you need to get your OS X skills up to speed, said Story, you can think about attending O’Reilly’s forthcoming Mac OS X Conference, coming to Santa Clara, Calif. at the end of September. Apple engineers and staff will be on hand to lead numerous discussions and conference sessions on various aspects of how OS X works.