“Although OS X is now an integral part of the Mac experience, it represented a big gamble for Apple when the first general release version — code-named Cheetah — arrived on March 24, 2001,” Ryan Faas writes for Computerworld.
“It was also a gamble that Apple had little choice in making — and one that has paid off in the 15 years since, becoming, directly and indirectly, one of the critical factors in Apple’s success,” Faas writes. “Still, there were many points at which things could have gone awry and decimated the company.”
“Apple faced three major challenges in transitioning its core product line to a completely new OS, whether it was developed internally or by acquisition. The first was getting the new OS out the door quickly. Apple was in dire straits in the mid-’90s and was losing market share to Microsoft. It needed a quick win,” Fass writes. “That led to the second challenge: Keeping developers engaged enough to write or rewrite apps for a new platform, something made more challenging by Copland’s delays and cancellation. Finally, Apple needed to convince its user base to adopt the new OS.”
Much more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Happy Birthday, OS X!