Since the mid-1980s, Apple has been wrestling with Microsoft over which company makes the best operating system. Our head-to-head comparison of the newest Mac OS--OS X--and Windows XP clearly shows the fight is still alive.
We evaluated a beta version of Mac OS X (a final version is now available; AU$229 list, Web site). It retains the extremely user-friendly interface for which the Mac is famous, yet it hides an OS that is a radical departure for Apple. Aesthetically similar to Unix, Mac OS X is built on a customised variant of the mach3 Unix kernel and bsd Linux, providing more stability to programs and demonstrating true multitasking capabilities.
The clunkiness of the Unix operating system is apparent at log-on. Case-sensitive user names and passwords are required, which is a bit of a tedious distraction. But after that hurdle, you get to the desktop--an extremely stylish computing environment that is far different from previous Mac operating systems.
In OS X, the dock at the bottom of the screen is similar to the Windows taskbar. You can attach applications--even open ones--by dragging and dropping to the bar for easy program launch. Minimised applications are sucked down to the dock with a vacuum cleaner effect, and their icons remain viewable for quick access. The Finder also has changed quite a bit; it now includes a Web browser-inspired toolbar and a pop-up list that marks the location of your current folder in the file-system tree hierarchy.
One of the most apparent items in Mac OS X is something you would have never expected to see here: a terminal window that reveals the file system tree of the underlying Unix strain. All too familiar to Unix users, this path reveals /usr and /var directories explored, and it will allow high-level third-party development previously not possible on a Mac system.
Backwards compatibility to OS 9 is provided in the form of the classic mode, which enables you to run OS 9 applications.
OS X includes native versions of the QuickTime player and StuffIt. Among OS X's new applications is Mail, an Internet email client and address book similar to Microsoft Outlook; the new OS also adds support for ldap. One not-completely-successful feature is Music Player, a combination CD and MP3 player. Unlike Microsoft Media Player 8, Music Player does not have DVD support--a serious shortcoming. Internet connectivity and networking can be configured as quickly and easily as those same features in Windows XP. Mac OS X comes with Microsoft Internet Explorer 5, an FTP server, and the Apache Web server. Configuring the Apache Web server, in particular, requires some Unix familiarity.
In the end, OS X won't necessarily make Windows users switch, but it may make loyal Apple users sit a little taller in their chairs. Alternative OS: Red Hat Linux with Nautilus
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