Disappointment over Apple’s 4-month delay of Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard, “while understandable, may be misplaced, according to tech industry analysts. ‘A delay in an operating system is not much to worry about,’ said Tim Bajarin, president of Creative Strategies, a high-tech consulting firm. ‘If they were a year late, I’d be concerned, but not a few months,'” Jim Dalrymple reports for Macworld.
“Rather, analysts were cheered by the news that the iPhone appears to be on track, and that Apple is committed to delivering that mobile device in June. A phone that also doubles as an iPod and an Internet communications device, the iPhone potentially reaches customers beyond Apple’s core base of Mac users. That, coupled with the fact that AT&T is involved with the iPhone as a service provider, makes it much more critical for Apple to meet the June ship date,” Dalrymple reports.
Dalrymple reports, “‘I think that one issue we may not be aware of are the contract terms between Apple and AT&T,’ said Ross Rubin, director of industry analysis at The NPD Group. ‘Apple may have committed to delivering the phone at a certain time creating a legal liability if they don’t deliver, which might explain the shifting of resources.'”
“The Leopard delay is the first significant delay in Apple’s operating systems since it replaced OS 9 in 2001. However, it is the second high-profile product delay in 2007 for Apple; the release of Apple TV slipped a few weeks from February to mid-March,” Dalrymple reports.
Dalrymple reports, “Still analysts remain convinced that getting the iPhone on the market makes more sense for the company than pouring its resources into the Leopard. ‘Apple has a lot of good things going on right now,’ Bajarin said.”
More in the full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Another Irish Dude” for the heads up.]
John Markoff reports for The New York Times, “‘This throws a little bit of water on their parade,’ said David Smith, an analyst who tracks operating systems at Gartner Inc., a market research firm. But he noted that large software projects were frequently late and said that the slip would not prove damaging to Apple over the long run.”
“In the past, Apple under Mr. Jobs’s leadership has executed several earlier technology transitions relatively flawlessly, including the introduction of the conversion of his Next operating system to Macintosh and the shift from Power PC to Intel microprocessors,” Markoff reports.
Full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Fred Mertz” for the heads up.]
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Apple delays Mac OS X Leopard until October 2007, blames iPhone – April 12, 2007
Hey “WiseGuy”, have you ever fallen asleep reading your own words?
Every time I see one of your posts I quickly browse through, realise you’re talking shit and move on. Except this time I thought I’d let you know that’s what I do so maybe you’ll stop posting your paranoid drivel on this site.
Go outside, breath in the fresh air and get laid. You might relax a little then.
But please, Mr. “WiseGuy”, do us all a favour and stop spreading FUD about Blu-Ray.
I have to agree with those saying that if you’re holding off on a $1,000+ computer purchase just to save $129 on an OS update, you’re being more than just a bit ridiculous. Besides, it’s not like Tiger isn’t already vastly superior to the alternative (Vista) as it is.
And we’re coming up with the $129 price because that is exactly what Apple has charged for their last 3 OS X upgrades, so there is no reason to believe that’ll change.
NOw all pressure at Apple is on the success of the iPhone.
If it is not a 1000% homerun, out of the box unbelievable blowout success with zero problems and defects this is going to be the major crack in the Apple facade.
In reality, I am suspecting major problems/bugs/glitches with the iPhone and this is causing Apple to stop everything else to focus on it. Fire alarms are going off with the iPhone in Apple land. Delivery date is just about 80 days away and they just realized they have a problem? Now that is a problem.
Cpt. Obvious:
there’s just not enough bodies to go around at Apple
You’ve obviously never worked in software development. Any developer who has worked on any significant software knows that adding more people to an already late project only makes it later.
That’s an axiom fro The Mythical Man-Month, by Frederick Brooks, a landmark book in the field of software engineering. That book came out more than thirty years ago; so little has changed that a special 25th anniversary edition was put out. In the years since then, things still haven’t changed.
Obviously, you’ve never read it.
Complaints about spending a lousy $129? You probably complain about gas prices, too, instead of buying Exxon. If you’re so cheap, take the bus. Just don’t expect me to stop and give you a lift whether my Escalade is empty of passengers or not.
@Plain Truth
Wow! I am so impressed with your finances.
And I bet your personal equipment is huge too!
Call me.
——————
If you are so successful how do you have time to hang out at a Mac chat room filled with teenagers and school boys?
It’s simple: If you are delaying buying a new computer, because you are waiting for Leopard (which features are largely unknown), you do not really need that new computer anyway, and can happily wait longer.
If you need a computer to get work done, you couldn’t care less whether it comes with 10.4 or 10.5.
Delays, Delays……
Ah the Vista Experience.
“there’s just not enough bodies to go around at Apple”
Then, how do you explain MS’s multi-year delays? They have the most resources being the largest software developer in the world. </facetious question>
Buster: AppleSoft is bad. AppleSoft Smackintush is worse!
John Gee What the heck is over the M in MacDailyNews….look at it..!
I think it’s supposed to be a Band-Aid.
@ Plain Truth (you, know, the guy who forgot to buy a golf membership)
If I lost $129, I’m pretty sure I’d notice. That’s probably because I’d be throwing up.
That’s 129 iTunes songs.
That’s 25 little magnetic Thomas the Tank Engine Trains for my son.
That’s FIVE good meals at one of our local steak houses (and I promise you, you only think you know what good is until you’ve had a steak around here).
That’s at least ONE pompous A-hole who doesn’t mind flaunting his brat for a kid talked him into buying a Hummer because it might get one of the two of you laid sometime . . .
Yeah, Leaopard will be worth an extra $129 a month. Let’s just drop the assumptions that any old Apple enthusiast out there can pick up that tab without sacrificing somewhere else. Dick!
P.S. If you’ve got any job openings where you work, I eat crow like a frickin’ champ . . .
Oops.
Leopard will be worth an extra $129 (not $129 per month).
I got lost in the rage there for a second.
Besides, only asses like Plain Truth would welcome a $1,500 price tag per year for an operating system.
@Plain Truth: Ka-chunk!
@MidWest Mac
Don’t fall for it. Plain truth is full of crap and is probably some 14 year old kid popping a pimple onto the mirror as we speak in the hopes that he will look good enough to ask an ugly 13 year old girl to a local dance. Chances are she will tell him to get lost and that she would rather becomae a lesbian that to drop her standards THAT low.
I spend more than $129 on 18-holes of weekday golf. (That is what I tip my caddy)
$129 is less than a good meal for two. $129 is like 1/6th of my monthly vehicle lease. (What? can’t afford to buy a car?)
In short, $129 is pocket change. Meaningless. If I dropped it down the storm drain, I probably wouldn’t even notice it, much less care. (I would notice it because it would be an anomaly. I only carry $1000 bills in my wallet…not chump change like you).
At the end of the day they wouldn’t let trash like you at my Gold Country Club in your rented K-mart car. I admit I can never understand why people like you try to put on airs.
yeah. us fanboys are excited about Leopard, but really…the operating system is already better than Vista, so what is the hurry? it’s only going to enhance an already great system, not fundamentally change how we use a computer. why not delay on a product that has as yet untold advancements, but overall is not going to change one’s business overly much. especially when one has a product that could potentially change an entire market? that seems worth it to me.
I thought “plain truth” was being sarcastic. Surely he isn’t serious, is he?
That is a good point at the end of the article. Apple has in the past released products prior to the original launch dates. I bet the stock never went up 3% when any of that happened.
Plain Truth is Garner Ted Armstrong.
Goodbye, Friends
P.S. Send money.
@Wiseguy
The truth is probably exactly what Apple says it is.
Its not unlikely that iPhone is soaking up resources – and there are a million reasons for Apple and AT&T to want to get iPhone out there on time – that’s how many enquiries AT&T said they already had a while back.
For you to be correct, Apple would have to be lying. And somone at Apple would no doubt spill the beans.
Anyway, if there was a problem with the hacking of movies, if that is what it is, why is that a secret? Also, why couldn’t it be fixed by a patch, just like Apple does every time the iPod DRM is compromised…
In my experience, people who look for conspiracies, or assume other people are lying, are merely imposing their own value systems on others. The people NOT to trust are the ones who assume they can’t trust you…
I’m not as disappointed to see the newest Mac OS being postponed as some Macintosh people. Frankly, I haven’t seen much to make me want to buy Leopard anyway. Leopard doesn’t seem to have many new features to make it worth me paying my Apple tax. Tiger (and even Panther) is still pretty good for me.
The important part is for Apple to get the iPhone out with some of the best software developed for it. I want people who buy the iPhone to see what sort of cool things a Mac OS can do for them and how easy it is to use, with no bugs, or glitches when using it. And to create a brand new hardware, as well as portable OS, there’s bound to be some problems involved with this.
I don’t want this to be like a portable Linux hack or Amgia Anywhere type of digital environment that I see on other smart phones. This has got to make Apple proud to show to the world, and maybe even turn some more Windows users into Switchers.
Do what you’ve got to do, Apple!
Well of course the normal, sane analysts aren’t concerned, but just wait till we’re sitting under the pile of crap that spews from the mouths of Thurrot, Enderle, Dvorak, etc, etc.
All in all, this settles all the speculation of when the top secret features would be announced, and who knows? Maybe they’ll surprise us and get it out earlier!
It’s not like Tiger isn’t good– quite the contrary. Tiger is the best iteration of Mac OS X to date, and things will only continue to improve with Leopard. Patience will truly be a virtue.
@Cpt. Obvious
It’s concerning because it shows that resources weren’t allocated properly to begin with, or time was mismanaged, or there’s just not enough bodies to go around at Apple.
Haven’t you ever planned to do a project that ended up taking you twice as long to finish as you expected? Fix your car, edit your movie, paint the house, replace the tub, make the world’s most advanced operating system; you know, things like that.
I’m not saying I’m an Apple apologist, just that sometimes it takes longer than you expect. And as Qka said, throwing more people at it will not help either.
Hey, what do you guys and gals think about this theory: Apple is working on updated portable Macs (think Multi-Touch aware, etc) that require Leopard to run; but the hardware development has caused the delay (related partly to the push for iPhone, which uses some similar technology).
Just an idea I’m throwing out there. What do you think?
Qka:
You’ve obviously never worked in software development. Any developer who has worked on any significant software knows that adding more people to an already late project only makes it later.
That’s an axiom fro The Mythical Man-Month, by Frederick Brooks, a landmark book in the field of software engineering. That book came out more than thirty years ago; so little has changed that a special 25th anniversary edition was put out. In the years since then, things still haven’t changed.
Obviously, you’ve never read it.
Thanks for trolling. If you’d take a minute to get your head out of your ass, you’d probably notice I never suggested throwing more bodies into development at this stage. I said that it’s pretty evident they don’t have enough people to go around. I didn’t go beyond that.
Eat a dick.
@Cpt. Obvious
You are being disingenuous… What are you proposing they would do / have done with the extra people you say they don’t have then?
Qka makes a very valid point and your accusating of trolling is ridiculous. Worse, your instant resort to childish insults demeans you. If this is going to be your reaction to every criticism of your posts, then you need to develop a thicker skin, or stop posting…
As for your original point about mismanagement of resources:
a) Apple TV was only marginally late. And not all of the release process was in Apple’s hands. It was only “late” because Apple announced a ship date – something they would not have done except that much of the approval process was public.
b) No organisation has expensive, skilled and experienced resources sitting on their hands in case a greater effort is required at the last minute. All Apple have done is reprioritise their development projects. How is that mismanagement?
iPhone is, by all accounts, a radical product. It is also a different kind of product for Apple, where much of the development is being done hand-in-hand with another organisation (AT&T). Perhaps Leopard would have been out on time if Apple had allowed iPhone to slip by a few months. However, in terms of “management” of resources, it is easy to argue a case for slipping Leopard (which will have little effect on revenues, market share or customer satisfaction) instead of iPhone (which stands to bring huge new revenues, new clients, and another halo effect for the Mac).
Mismanagement? I don’t agree – and I think you are just being an armchair critic. Qka is absolutely right about the problems with large development teams, and almost certainly on the nail when he points out you are offering criticism without the expertise to back it up… Software is ready when its ready – its really impossible to squeeze development into a rigid schedule…
Slipping Leopard to keep iPhone on track indicates Apple are capable of making sensible decisions when necessary.