The great leap forward for the PowerPC-based Mac finally happened and it wasn’t smooth nor painless. Many critics called it a paid-public beta; a very old accusation of every OS or application. All the powers-that-be at Apple knew this too so it probably explains why Classic (Mac OS 9.2.x) was incorporated. Many might see this as a cynical move to cover up the OS not really being ready for prime time. I disagree, I think it was a great move to help the customer base ease into the changes. All too often, a new standard will get implemented and pow! You have to jump into it completely or stay behind, no in-between! Like it or lump it! It’s how the transition from Windows 3.1 to 95 was. So if there was a critical piece of software you need for your livelihood? Tough! You had to choose.
Apple had split the difference before when the first PowerPCs rolled out. They ran the same OS as the 68K-based Macs. However, Systems 7-9 just didn’t make the PowerPC processor kick ass as promised. Speed and reliability would happen when the original System 8 (aka Coupland) hit the market. Sadly, it became the Chinese Democracy of the industry…delayed again and again until I think a Duke Nukem sequel took the record.
As 1996 was drawing to a close, Apple had to rip the bandage off and give up on Coupland. This meant starting all over (unlikely) or acquiring somebody else’s software. Either choice was difficult since Apple was in a precarious situation. One more major blunder and a rival corporation would devour Apple; going out of business was a myth due to all the intellectual property Apple owned/created. I was with PowerComputing then and everyone there was cheering for BeOS from Gassé’s company. I witnessed some people running BeOS on their PowerWaves but I didn’t see the point, it didn’t run any practical apps so it was a car without wheels. Then Apple announced it was acquiring NeXT, Steve Jobs’ company. Allegedly, Gassé wanted too much money and Jobs’ deal included all of NeXT (software, employees, IP). One co-worker said, “Apple decided to buy something at a garage sale instead of a real product.” He wasn’t alone, the SCLM thought Jobs’ return meant Apple’s demise was eminent.
For the following five years, the NeXT and Apple people worked vigorously together in making this OS work on PowerPCs since it already operated on Intel for a decade (hint about the future). Previews of what was to come appeared in a server version around late 1998 but it wasn’t Apple enough in its interface. It did a good job being a hub for Macs running Systems 8.5 thru 9.2. By 2000 Mac OS X looked pretty good. The colors, familiar locations for menu items, same icons, etc.
It rolled out on this day. People bought it. Kicked the proverbial tires. Many went back to System 9 saying it was far from ready. By Fall 10.1 appeared and it was free. This appeased many. Seeing the OS from both sides (working support and being a user), there was a steep learning curve. I even took a Unix 101 course via ACC to get a better understanding what was happening beneath the GUI, a new frontier for Macs; old news for the Apple II SuperDOS crowd. Every iteration smoothed things out and by 10.4, Classic wasn’t going to continue as Jobs introduced Intel-based Macs. I was ready to give up the ghost at 10.3 since 90% of what I liked to use made the jump.
My personal favorite was 10.6 yet I have a huge bias. I was heavily involved in helping out my co-workers preparing for what became the last true server version. It inspired me to run more than just file sharing and QTSS at home too since the calendar, contact and group weblog features were pretty bitchin’. We bought a new Mac Mini and it did a killer job organizing the household for at least four years. I felt having a proof of concept helped convince customers to buy it, how to think about supporting it and made me more comfortable figuring out their difficulties.
Twenty years later, Mac OS X continues to evolve. Now it’s macOS and after 16 versions with dozens of modifications, it’s number is now 11 not X and Intel is being replaced for M1 processors to bring more seamlessness with iOS devices. Once again Classic lives on through Rosetta 2 to help everybody’s expensive software (Photoshop is a common one you hear about) catch up with the pending OS changes. My favorite element is how the general look and operation has remained pretty solid ever since I first used a Mac in the Fall of 1988 with System 6. I honestly can’t say that about Windows 10 which is puzzling after being accustomed to 3 thru XP/ME’s layout.
I do wonder what the next ten, 20 or 30 years hold for all GUIs. If we aren’t killed off by the planet being uninhabitable is becoming my bigger concern.