Apple will release Mac OS X Tiger at retail stores on Friday, April 29. The new software is expected to have an immediate impact on Apple’s revenue, according to Wall Street analysts.
“‘I think Tiger is going to be a far more important upgrade than previous versions,’ said Charles Wolf, a financial analyst with Needham & Company in New York, who holds shares of Apple. He estimated that there were about 20 million Macintosh computer users and that as many as 2 million to 3 million might be expected to upgrade their operating systems to Tiger within the next two quarters,” John Markoff reports for The New York Times. “That would generate more than $200 million in revenue for Apple and would easily cover the software’s development costs, he said.”
Markoff reports, “Tiger adds pressure on Microsoft, which is developing a new version of its Windows operating system called Longhorn. The Microsoft software is reported to have many of the same features as Tiger, but will not be available until next year. Apple executives said on Tuesday that they believed the new program gave them a significant technical lead on Microsoft, the world’s dominant software publisher. ‘This has created even more distance between us and Microsoft,’ said Philip W. Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president for worldwide product marketing. ‘We’re becoming a tiny dim red light in their headlights.'”
Markoff reports, “David Caulton, group product manager in for Microsoft’s Windows client division, said ‘Apple is obviously doing interesting stuff within a closed solution.’ By contrast, Microsoft, he said, prefers ‘to take on the problem of platform solutions with a lot of different partners.'”
“Both Apple and Microsoft have focused on adding file retrieval and graphics technologies to their operating systems. Analysts have said that this is partly a response to the growth of Internet search, which has transformed the way computer users hunt for information,” Markoff reports. “Apple’s new Spotlight retrieval feature automatically indexes information without regard to whether the information is in a word-processing document, spreadsheet, digital image or any other file type. Microsoft has a similar feature available with its MSN service and has said it plans to integrate it into Longhorn.”
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Microsoft sure says a lot about their plans, huh? Lots of talk, lots of plans, lots of hopes and dreams that sound like features from Apple’s Mac OS X Public Beta (released September 2000) and zero action. Microsoft is good at sending out stooges to mumble FUD about “closed solutions,” but how ’bout shipping something? Something that actually works well, is secure, and benefits its users’ productivity and not just Microsoft’s coffers, by the way?
Microsoft’s “Stillborn” — or whatever they call it — “is reported to have many of the same features as Tiger,” Markoff writes? Reported by whom, Bill Gates? Steve “Monkey Boy” Ballmer? John Dvorak, perhaps? Compare Apple’s Mac OS X Tiger’s features to whatever’s left in the vaporous and constantly shrinking “Longhorn” blueprint and it’s clear that Microsoft should just rename their stripped-down “Longhorn” to “Windows XP SP3” and release it for free.
Related MacDailyNews articles:
Will Mac OS X Tiger add fuel to Apple’s recent momentum in the computer business? – April 13, 2005
Why doesn’t Apple advertise Mac OS X on TV? – April 12, 2005
Analyst: Tiger proves ‘Apple is light years ahead of Microsoft in developing PC operating systems’ – April 12, 2005
Apple to ship Mac OS X ‘Tiger’ on Friday, April 29; pre-orders start today – April 12, 2005
Apple Announces Mac OS X Server ‘Tiger’ to ship Friday, April 29 with 64-bit application support – April 12, 2005
Analysts: Apple’s new Tiger operating system could really impact Mac sales – April 12, 2005
Piper Jaffray raises Apple estimates on Mac OS X ‘Tiger’ release news – April 12, 2005
Microsoft’s Longhorn fantasy vs. Apple’s Mac OS X reality – September 14, 2004
Apple has zee best operating system… For me to POOP on!
Yeh-hehhh-heesssssss
Nice metaphor, Phil. Everyone’s favorite Canuck at Apple comes through again with another pithy quote. Apple’s already at the quarter-mile marker, while M$ is back at the start line fiddling with their alternator!
I must agree with a post from several weeks ago…Triumph is so annoying, he/she deserves to die, post haste.
Unlike the suggestion from before, why wait for an accident? A free iPod mini to whomever can find Triumph and produce photographic evidence of the slaying. The more brutal, the better.
Yes..I know…I know…you’re gonna poop on me, right? You see, it’s just not funny if it’s predictable.
rogozhin,
When suddenly they realize that the reason why they’re having problems with the alternator is because horse drawn carriages don’t HAVE them!
>’ By contrast, Microsoft, he said, prefers ‘to take on the problem of platform solutions with a lot of different partners.'”<
In other words.
Apple is Shakespeare
Msft is a million monkeys with a million keyboards that stumble upon something that’s close.
With so many different partners no one knows the final solution, let alone everyone knowing the final product.
‘Cmon guys….
Lets give “Monkey-Goy” Ballmer his due….
ShortHorn WILL do one thing (for sure) more efficiently
than Tiger can ever hope to do…..
And that is…. to attract more of the next gen malware !!
You go monkey boy !!
OS X 10.4 should be compared to the current version of Windows, not the upcomming one. Apple has a next-generation OS today, featuring “file retrieval and graphics technologies.” As for the Mac being a closed system, open source projects like Open GL and Java have worked very well on this platform.
[I]Apple is obviously doing interesting stuff within a closed solution.’ By contrast, Microsoft, he said, prefers ‘to take on the problem of platform solutions with a lot of different partners.'”[/I]
Meanwhile, back at Whistling In The Dark Towers, the Dark Lord sends his minions out to spread more meaningless, illogical FUD in the marketplace: I’m sure Stac Technologies see MS as a “partner”, or Netscape, or Real, or Sun or Sendo or any of the dozens of companies who Microsoft has “partnered” into submission or bankruptcy.
In any case, his statement actually works against MS. Because – even if you believed him (which I don’t) – MS’s collaborative approach with its “partners” seems to be resulting in a lot of heat, but not much light.
Either that means that MS isn’t leading the effort in an effective way or their partners are incapable of working effectively in partnership.
So, to recap, either Caulton is a liar. Or his team isn’t effective at leading partnerships. Or he’s got the wrong partners.
Yep, Davey, you really made a great case for MS there: Please feel free to drop in and act as a defence witness for Michael Jackson anytime you’re in the Southern California area. Or alternatively, shut the fsck up. Whichever works best for you.
I agree that Windows users are going to be dissappointed with the next version that comes out. Certainly won’t be worth the $300.00 price tag that they usually charge for there major upgrades.
Keep posting Triumph!
I love em
I think this about sums it all up…..
http://www.esm.psu.edu/Faculty/Gray/graphics/movies/Gates-Praising-the-Macintosh.mov
Microsoft needs to understand that the most closed system of all is one that doesn’t actually exist.
Until they finally ship something, they’re just huffing and puffing about theoretical possibilities.
As they’re unable to build what they promise, their only strategy is to snipe and be negative.
Microsoft’s spokespeople become more like the Iraqi Minister of Information every day, but without being so endearingly amusing.
The Register said it best last June
“Redmond blogs…. Cupertino codes.”
See you all in line on Friday the 29th.
Triumph you scat-brained child, I’ll have you know that I’m not a “flabby Mac mo”!
Wynn Suddenly,
But Microsoft, in the person of Steve Ballmer, is in a Longhorn drawn carriage. And the Longhorn is laying down chewing its cud. So there is Ballmer, fiddling with the useless alternator he’s holding in his hands.
Ready? Set? Go!
The race is on. Tiger leaps forward, moving at Panther speed due to initial Spotlight indexing. Despite this handicap, he is way ahead of Ballmer who is going nowhere fast. Longhorn continues to lie there and chew his cud contentedly.
Tiger completes the first round, and his indexing. With a great leap, he pounces on the Longhorn, killing it. Then he Dashes forward. Ballmer continues to fiddle with his alternator.
With every round, Tiger dismantles Ballmer’s carriage. What’s the matter, Ballmer? Need an Automator instead of an alternator?
On the round before last, Tiger pounces on Ballmer and gives him a big, wet, slurp; the alternator flying out of his hands. Then Tiger slowly paces through the last round as the crowds chant “Tiger! Tiger!”. Daintily, Tiger steps over the finish line, and the crowd goes wild! Ballmer continues to lie there in the dirt next to the remains of Longhorn. Steve Jobs proudly hands Tiger the prizes: a juicy steak (quite fresh and still warm), and the first PowerMac GCell. The crowd throws flowers as Tiger roars his victory to the heavens.
That’s how far ahead Tiger is from Longhorn.
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Triumph offers great comic relief! I luv his takes!
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Keep on POOPin’, Triumph!
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Have you noticed that EVERY person at Microsoft that is allowed to publicly comment on Apple refers to it as a ‘closed’ system, as if their software was open to all. They always seem to include it in their comments. I wonder if it is a standing directive from on high.
Microsoft sure says alot of things, there’s always a plan… kinda like that last guy who lost the Presidential Election. Its all vapor, really.
crazy larry:
oh boy i bet he regrets ever saying those words, that was a very long time ago and the only thing thats changed is m$ has got worse
hope M$ rot like the rumour a few months ago
NoPCZone: it’s simply that the marketing function at MS has all of the product/business unit managers extremely well trained at staying “on message”.
Now maybe if they spent as much time concentrating on managing the development of a stable, secure operating system and accompanying applications as they do being “media trained”, maybe they wouldn’t feel the need to be quite as defensive.
However, at MS, propaganda has long since overtaken programming as the most important output of the company so I guess it can’t be helped.