Vista Vs. OS X Cage Match

Posted:
in macOS edited January 2014
I have been running RC2 on BC for a few days now and I am ready to give a verdict. On behalf of Vista, I am going to just throw in the towel early because it's taking a beating in there. I will say, however, that it is a huge leap forward for Windows users and every one of them needs to upgrade as soon as it becomes available. Compared to XP, Vista is a giant leap forward in pretty much every category that matters. People who are worried that it will give Leopard a run for its money need not give it another thought. The best Vista can do is compete wit Tiger. Even at that, it can only produce a respectable second place.



UI



The big UI elements in Tiger that changed the way we compute are Dashboard, Spotlight, and Expose'. Vista introduces its own version of these elements. Gadgets is Vista's answer to Dashboard. Not bad, but not great. The gadgets such as clock and calendar sit on top of the desktop. As near as I can tell, they are available only from the desktop. This makes them somewhat more inconvenient to access than Dashboard Widgets. Dashboard sits underneath the desktop, ready to surface from anywhere you happen to be with just a press of a button or a flick of the wrist. Dashboard also gives you more real estate for you Widgets as they do not have to compete with desktop icons or background pictures. Dashboard is the clear winner.



Spotlight and Windows Search are functionally the same. Here, the real difference is accessibility. There are many places in Windows where you can search. In Tiger, Spotlight is available from anywhere with a simple key command.



Flip 3D, the Vista version of Expose', is the best of the improvements for Windows users. I also felt the same way about Expose' for Mac users when Tiger came out. F3D allows you to see all of the windows that are currently open in a 3D tile view. The implementation of this view is very Mac-like. This is the highest praise I know to give it. With a simple key command, this view is activated from anywhere in the system. Because the windows are displayed at an angle and slightly overlapping, you may not be able to make out everything in all of the windows. Thus, you flip through them like a rolodex. Think Coverflow for open windows and you will be close. It is very easy to flip through these windows. Besides a couple of different key commands, you can also use your mouse scroll wheel. Very cool. As good as it is, it gets another beat down from OS X. Expose' is Just plain superior. Expose' can be activated in even more ways. Because of hot corners, it is just a flick of the wrist. Expose' provides more options such as just showing the windows for the app you are currently working on. It also allows you to see the whole window and choose any window at any time, not just the one in front. No contest.



One would think that Apple copied these features from Windows after several years of them being out and subtly improving on them. It is inconceivable, but true, that MS is adding these features to its next generation OS after seeing how Apple implemented them. Instead of improving on any of the features, they make there version, slightly, but noticeably worse. In not a single area does MS match, let alone improve upon the feature it copied. How is that possible?



A couple of final notes. IE7 is the real deal. For the first time, I feel somewhat safe when browsing with an IE product. They are finally starting to catch up with other modern Web browsers.



Finally, though WMP could be better, I have always preferred its single-app media player approach to Apple multiple-apps method. WMP was made for playing media from the ground up. It is a media player with organizational features. iTunes is a media organization program with a player thrown in. Why do we need iTunes and Quicktime? Give me one, well designed app any day. I am giving Windows a win in the media handling department. That has nothing to do with Vista.



I would love to know what everyone else thinks.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 29
    dacloodacloo Posts: 890member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Mac Voyer


    Finally, though WMP could be better, I have always preferred its single-app media player approach to Apple multiple-apps method. WMP was made for playing media from the ground up. It is a media player with organizational features. iTunes is a media organization program with a player thrown in. Why do we need iTunes and Quicktime? Give me one, well designed app any day. I am giving Windows a win in the media handling department. That has nothing to do with Vista.



    Cool to read your review, I think indeed its a great step upwards from Windows XP. Competition is good!



    As for WMP, I agree. Personally I think iTunes could be thrown away for regular use, just like Quicktime Pro, and should be integrated with the Finder. The Finder could be some sort of media viewer.

    For example, in iTunes the list of music is simply another way to browse for my files. With Spotlight 2, I expect to be able to add a folder and select which columns should be inside that folder (e.g: genre, album, artist). For my photo directory, this could be subject, year, aperture, etc.



    Let's say I am expecting the new Finder to be a better media browser and player.

    But, when I want more *control*, I would need to be able to switch to an application specially designed for a certain media type. iPhoto for more convienent browsing and editing, QuickTime for import/export, iTunes for converting to AAC and equaliser...etcetera



    IMHO the Finder should be plugin based, with plugins for iTunes, iPhoto, etc delivered by Apple. Third party developers could write their own plugins.
  • Reply 2 of 29
    mac voyermac voyer Posts: 1,294member
    I like it. Great ideas.
  • Reply 3 of 29
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by dacloo


    As for WMP, I agree. Personally I think iTunes could be thrown away for regular use, just like Quicktime Pro, and should be integrated with the Finder. The Finder could be some sort of media viewer.

    For example, in iTunes the list of music is simply another way to browse for my files. With Spotlight 2, I expect to be able to add a folder and select which columns should be inside that folder (e.g: genre, album, artist). For my photo directory, this could be subject, year, aperture, etc.



    Let's say I am expecting the new Finder to be a better media browser and player.

    But, when I want more *control*, I would need to be able to switch to an application specially designed for a certain media type. iPhoto for more convienent browsing and editing, QuickTime for import/export, iTunes for converting to AAC and equaliser...etcetera



    IMHO the Finder should be plugin based, with plugins for iTunes, iPhoto, etc delivered by Apple. Third party developers could write their own plugins.



    I like these ideas a lot, except tht it wouldn't work too well on Windows, and it might be odd for a switcher not having iTunes as integral as it is on windows.





    Nice review too, but lets see if the final version of vista has anything new, or improves.
  • Reply 4 of 29
    thanks for the review..







    "One would think that Apple copied these features from Windows after several years of them being out and subtly improving on them."





    but i beileve you were trying to say that MS copied Apple?..
  • Reply 5 of 29
    mac voyermac voyer Posts: 1,294member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by BMWintoxication


    thanks for the review..







    "One would think that Apple copied these features from Windows after several years of them being out and subtly improving on them."





    but i beileve you were trying to say that MS copied Apple?..



    It was a poorly constructed sentence. I take pride in my writing and so I hang my head in shame.



    Actually, I meant that by just looking at the different implementations, logic suggests that Apple copied MS. This is so because Apple's implementation is more refined in every way. That is the amazing part about it. We all know that in fact, MS copied these features from Apple. MS saw these features being used for some time and still could not manage to improve upon any of them. They couldn't even do as well. Windows users will laud these features as brilliant, never suspecting that they are but poor copies of Apple's leftover tech. It is like the new iMovie commercial. No matter how hard MS tries, they just can't get it quite right. Apple doesn't even need to produce Leopard to blow away Vista. I will touch on a few other features in a later post.
  • Reply 6 of 29
    Great post, MV. Nice to see a credible comparison of existing features... but just wait until the world sees what Apple unleashes with Leopard. MS is at least 1 or 2 generations behind Apple at this point.
  • Reply 7 of 29
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Mac Voyer


    It was a poorly constructed sentence. I take pride in my writing and so I hang my head in shame.



    Actually, I meant that by just looking at the different implementations, logic suggests that Apple copied MS. This is so because Apple's implementation is more refined in every way. That is the amazing part about it. We all know that in fact, MS copied these features from Apple. MS saw these features being used for some time and still could not manage to improve upon any of them. They couldn't even do as well. Windows users will laud these features as brilliant, never suspecting that they are but poor copies of Apple's leftover tech. It is like the new iMovie commercial. No matter how hard MS tries, they just can't get it quite right. Apple doesn't even need to produce Leopard to blow away Vista. I will touch on a few other features in a later post.



    haha please don't hang yourself.



    (or at least only do it after you post more reivews? )



    I enjoyed reading your post, it was I who failed to co-relate your logic.



    thanks again!
  • Reply 8 of 29
    lundylundy Posts: 4,466member
    You're right - if they have Vista on their new PC, the unwashed masses will look over your shoulder as you are using Tiger and make the idiotic comment that Tiger looks "just like Windows". I've had it happen many times.



    And that is why MS copies Mac - so that if a buyer glances at a person running a Mac OS, they will just assume it is Windows -- bolstering the impression that "Windows is everywhere".
  • Reply 9 of 29
    aquaticaquatic Posts: 5,602member
    Great idea--integrate QT player in to iTunes. It's already heading that way. Hope the transition is complete by QT 8/iTunes 7/Leopard. Add all the QT player exporting options, player controls, etc. in to the video mode in iTunes.
  • Reply 10 of 29
    dmberdmber Posts: 204member
    what makes you feel safe in IE 7?
  • Reply 11 of 29
    sandausandau Posts: 1,230member
    using the last RC, gaming was more than the 15-20% (that MS said Vista would be in comparison to XP) - more like dropping from 107fps in CS:S to 47.7fps on the same exact hardware.



    Based on that alone: no go.



    Also, last report was you cannot install the OS more than once because of the updated WGA (windows genuine advantage) rules for Vista. This makes it a no-gamer OS as gamers update all the time.



    It may look slick, and it is, but its not that much of an improvement over XP to make it a 'must upgrade'.
  • Reply 12 of 29
    kickahakickaha Posts: 8,760member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Aquatic


    Great idea--integrate QT player in to iTunes. It's already heading that way. Hope the transition is complete by QT 8/iTunes 7/Leopard. Add all the QT player exporting options, player controls, etc. in to the video mode in iTunes.



    Ack. I can't think of anything worse. Why make iTunes the bloated Office of media?? Why should I have to load up iTunes just to quickly playback a video file? No thanks. That's just an awful idea.



    Much better to have a suite of small, dedicated tools that work well together than to smash everything into one big mess ala MS. I already think iTunes is getting entirely too bloated, but I can understand the necessity, given the requirement of running under Windows. (And besides, on Windows, it isn't bloated by comparison...) But why make it worse?
  • Reply 13 of 29
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by dacloo


    Cool to read your review, I think indeed its a great step upwards from Windows XP. Competition is good!



    As for WMP, I agree. Personally I think iTunes could be thrown away for regular use, just like Quicktime Pro, and should be integrated with the Finder. The Finder could be some sort of media viewer.



    as someone who uses a lot of apps concurrently i'm not fond of that idea. i really like having itunes and the finder separate. i wouldn't want to constantly have to open new finder windows to keep from disturbing my music play.
  • Reply 14 of 29
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Kickaha


    Ack. I can't think of anything worse. Why make iTunes the bloated Office of media?? Why should I have to load up iTunes just to quickly playback a video file? No thanks. That's just an awful idea.



    Much better to have a suite of small, dedicated tools that work well together than to smash everything into one big mess ala MS. I already think iTunes is getting entirely too bloated, but I can understand the necessity, given the requirement of running under Windows. (And besides, on Windows, it isn't bloated by comparison...) But why make it worse?



    I agree with you completely. Quicktime should remain a seperate program. However, I would like to have video thumbnail previews just like I have image previews. Say you have a folder with 10 videos. Click on one and it begins to play the video. Click on a different one, and the preview freezes and provides a thumbnail preview of that frame that sticks until the video is selected again, even if the finder is closed and reopened to that folder. This way, you can build custom thumbnails for videos. Even better might be a right click option to save thumbnail preview at that frame in the video.
  • Reply 15 of 29
    kickahakickaha Posts: 8,760member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Daffy_Duck


    I agree with you completely. Quicktime should remain a seperate program. However, I would like to have video thumbnail previews just like I have image previews. Say you have a folder with 10 videos. Click on one and it begins to play the video. Click on a different one, and the preview freezes and provides a thumbnail preview of that frame that sticks until the video is selected again, even if the finder is closed and reopened to that folder. This way, you can build custom thumbnails for videos. Even better might be a right click option to save thumbnail preview at that frame in the video.



    Column view's preview provides the playback, but I agree that custom icons based on selectable poster frames would be nice.



    Oh wait... we have that. Quicktime Player Pro: View->Set Poster Frame.



    I disagree that playback should be tied to selection in icon view however. Single-clicking an icon should not trigger an action.
  • Reply 16 of 29
    MarvinMarvin Posts: 15,310moderator
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Daffy_Duck


    However, I would like to have video thumbnail previews just like I have image previews.



    I've always wanted that but movies usually start with a black frame so you'd almost always need to manually set the icon and I don't think I ever would.



    One thing I'd love to see is a coverflow style implementation in the Finder that let you flip through your photo collection.



    I still quite like the idea of an all-in-one app. Imagine the itunes app but on the left you get added choices called photos and files where music is. This integrates itunes, iphoto and the Finder.



    The Finder view could have a column view up top and list view down the bottom. One problem is how do you see the contents of multiple folders at once? Maybe the list view could be tabbed or something.
  • Reply 17 of 29
    benroethigbenroethig Posts: 2,782member
    To use the wrestling analogy, Vista vs Leopard is like a handicap match. Leopard may be a much better wrestler pound for pound, but when its facing 19 of Bill Gates' minions, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out who's going to walk out of that ring with the title.
  • Reply 18 of 29
    mac voyermac voyer Posts: 1,294member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by dmber


    what makes you feel safe in IE 7?



    Besides the built-in pop-up blocker and anti-fisching stuff, (whatever that is), I have personally taken it to sites that no wise person would ever go with an IE product and have lived to tell the tale. I will not go into any more detail than that lest my wife and pastor read this post.
  • Reply 19 of 29
    mac voyermac voyer Posts: 1,294member
    I was all set to do a review on Media Center. The review was going to give MC the victory over Front Row. I was prepared to talk about all the things that MC has the that FR doesn't. Then, I started using MC, or at least trying to. Now I have to write a very different review.



    One of the major differences is that FR was designed from the ground up to be used from a distance. I remote control comes with almost every Mac. The icons and lettering are quite large, large enough to be seen from across the room. There is no functionality in FR for anything that cannot be worked from a distance with a remote. MC was designed to be used from a keyboard connected to a computer in short range. This is evident because FR must be controlled by a mouse. There may be third party remotes designed for MC but the interface is primarily mouse driven. In FR, you cannot use a mouse. Distance vs. short range. MC icons and lettering are substantially smaller as well. MC has quite a bit more functionality built in. For instance, you can play games from within MC. Clearly, you have to be sitting at your computer in order to take advantage of this. Also, MC has built-in TV management. If you have the appropriate hardware, you can tune into TV stations, record, save, and play your own playlist of favorite shows. Imagine if Apple were to buy EyeTV and integrate it into FR. MC also allows you to connect to radio stations. When I tried this on my iMac, I just kept getting a message telling me that I didn't have the appropriate hardware set up. I was expecting internet radio. Not sure what the deal is with that. Internet radio would be a nice feature for Apple to integrate with FR, by the way. I played around with some music and photos. It offered plenty of options for things to do in MC. Most of them were unavailable. Still, after using it for a while, I realized that the interface was just too cluttered and convoluted like everything else MS does to be intuitive or fun to use. I seriously could not figure out how to use the keyboard for simple things that you would expect to be able to do. Finally, I popped in a DVD, Spiderman, and took it for a spin. I could not scrub through the video. I could not figure out how to skip forward or backward through the video. Stop, pause, eject, and menu were also lost to me. I had to use the mouse for everything and I still could not find a way to do some of it. All in all, it was a horrible experience. The thing is, it has incredible potential to be much better than FR. It has just been Microsofted to death. There is one area of development where MS is the undisputed champion. I will save that for later.



    Good night all.
  • Reply 20 of 29
    Windows MCE has one advantage over Front Row: PVR capabilities. That could be remedied fairly easily if Apple would wise up and buy Elgato Systems.
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