leopard GUI?

[v-ault]

The leopard screenshots on apple.com seem to indicate that the GUI is going to stay the same. Is that really the case, or is apple just trying to keep their new gui secret? I kind of want Apple to make the GUI a bit nicer considering vista has some things within its GUI that surpass tiger. I've only had my mac since December '06, and I don't really know how apple operates 100%, so I'm just wondering if those leopard screens on apple.com are final.

[epochblue]

Is that really the case, or is apple just trying to keep their new gui secret?

The screens reflect what they've currently shown the public, that's all. They're keeping any "new GUI" they might have under wraps for the time being.

[spencecb]

I do not think there will be a radical difference between OS X 10.4 and 10.5 as far as the GUI. There will be differences and enhancements, for sure, but it will not undergo a heavy makeover.

That will come in the next release, Mac OS 11. Leopard is the last major release of OS X, after-all.

[Erendiox]

That will come in the next release, Mac OS 11. Leopard is the last major release of OS X, after-all.


Where did you hear that? I've heard no such thing.

[epochblue]

Where did you hear that? I've heard no such thing.

Phew, glad I'm not the only one...I hadn't heard that either.

[spencecb]

Phew, glad I'm not the only one...I hadn't heard that either.

According to an article on ARS, they stated that it has been public knowledge for some time that OS X 10.5 will be the last release of OS X.

I don't have anything else to back that up, but ARS is a reliable source of information.

[shecky]

The screens reflect what they've currently shown the public, that's all. They're keeping any "new GUI" they might have under wraps for the time being.

is this possible for them to do? i don't know jack about programming + GUI development. can they have seeded out versions of 10.5 to the developers with the current GUI and then pull an entirely new/dramatically altered GUI into the final release without anyone knowing?

[capone2]

Where did you hear that? I've heard no such thing.

I heard the same thing years ago.

6 verisons of OSX.

10.0 to 10.5. makes 6.

[dejo]

According to an article on ARS, they stated that it has been public knowledge for some time that OS X 10.5 will be the last release of OS X.
Do you have a link to that article? Hmm, AFAIK, that is not public knowledge. Otherwise, why are so many of us questioning it? :)

[cwedl]

I love it when people ask questions no one can answer, will leopard be like this etc etc? well on apple knows!

[spencecb]

Do you have a link to that article? Hmm, AFAIK, that is not public knowledge. Otherwise, why are so many of us questioning it? :)

Here is the link:

http://arstechnica.com/journals/apple.ars/2007/04/01/naming-scheme-for-os-11-leaked

[shecky]

Here is the link:

http://arstechnica.com/journals/apple.ars/2007/04/01/naming-scheme-for-os-11-leaked

interesting.

maybe you should check the date on when that article was published.

[dejo]

Here is the link:

http://arstechnica.com/journals/apple.ars/2007/04/01/naming-scheme-for-os-11-leaked
Umm, yeah, notice the publish date of that article? :D

[spencecb]

Umm, yeah, notice the publish date of that article? :D

Yes, I saw that. But there is no indication whatsoever that ARS is playing an April Fools joke. If they had, it would have been cleared by now.

[shecky]

Yes, I saw that. But there is no indication whatsoever that ARS is playing an April Fools joke. If they had, it would have been cleared by now.

did you know the word "gullible" is not in the dictionary?

[siurpeeman]

Yes, I saw that. But there is no indication whatsoever that ARS is playing an April Fools joke. If they had, it would have been cleared by now.

if you read the article, it should have been clear that it was an april fool's joke. just look at the names for the 11.x releases. sloth?

[daveL]

I, I say - it's a joke son, it's a joke. 11.4 is "Sloth"? Give me a break. Switching to Linux to gain access to a wide range of hardware components? Right.

It would make more sense for Apple to adopt the OpenSolaris kernel and name the releases after planets.

[dejo]

It would make more sense for Apple to adopt the OpenSolaris kernel and name the releases after planets.
Ooh, I can't wait for OS 11.7 Uranus! :D

[dr_lha]

did you know the word "gullible" is not in the dictionary?
It isn't? Hang about let me check.... Wow, you're right. I wonder why?


PS: Steve Jobs had said on many occassions that he expects OS X to last for 20 years.

[zblaxberg]

hey guys check out my new macbook pro with 8 cores and 6 gb of ram and a 300gb hard drive...its also white, with black spots, furry and cuddly...pssshhh such an april fools joke...so gullible

[AppleMatt]

When they released OS X Steve Jobs said it would be Apple's OS for the next decade.

AppleMatt

[Lixivial]

Yes, I saw that. But there is no indication whatsoever that ARS is playing an April Fools joke. If they had, it would have been cleared by now.

Except for the fact that they changed their name to Urs Technica during April Fool's and all their posts (http://arstechnica.com/search.ars?Tag=bear) incorporated bears. I don't know if you find amusement in the confusion of others, or you are genuinely confused, but it was an April Fool's joke.

[spencecb]

PS: Steve Jobs had said on many occassions that he expects OS X to last for 20 years.

No, he said that he expected for OS X to lay the ground work for the next 20 years, not for OS X to las that long.

Big difference.

[spencecb]

Okay, I see that it was a joke. Some of you guys on here can be such *******s though.

[dpaanlka]

I highly doubt there is going to be any sort of massive overhaul of the UI, because the UI is just fine... and has been refined over the last seven years.

Like translucent window borders and titlebars? Yeah, we had that, and thankfully Apple got rid of it in Panther, because it sucked.

http://veerle.duoh.com/images/uploads/Jaguar.jpg

The menus used to also be a lot more translucent, closer to 50%, which was eye-bogglingly atrocious.

http://veerle.duoh.com/images/uploads/cheetah.jpg

Think the Finder is bad now? Should have seen it in Mac OS 9 and early Mac OS X!

Other than that, I don't really see what's so great about Windows Vista's UI that would make Apple want to change anything. We already have a way better method of switching between programs (Expose) and have always had visually entertaining minimizing and stuff.

[Zwhaler]

Apple won't stop OS X at 10.5, that article was a joke. As far as a new UI, I personally think that Leopard will have the new UI as one of the secret features. With Vista out, I can't picture Aqua lasting another 2 years...

[Mgkwho]

I think everybody just needs to stop treating blogs as equivalent to cold hard fact.

-=|Mgkwho

[CaptainHaddock]

As far as I can tell, there are a few bits of evidence that hint at a new or revised GUI in Leopard. It's not all weblog rumors, but all these things have sparked discussion on the topic.

• Apple has been experimenting with a dark look already, particularly the grey and black glossy controls found in Aperture, Front Row, and the new iPhoto inspector palettes. (A GUI based on the Aperture look would rock, I think.)

• Leopard builds have vector-based, resolution-independent Aqua buttons and graphics, but they look like incomplete makeshift versions. Temporary placeholders, perhaps? Circumstantial, but suggestive.

• Apple has a patent for an interface design application with actual screenshots showing vector buttons with customizable light angles, reflections, textures, etc. It's a very advanced approach to GUI design and would necessitate a ground-up redesign to incorporate.

• A prominent Mac theme and icon designer (the Rad.e8 guy) got hired by Apple and shut down his own website. They also hired Delicious Monster's Mike Matas, who was responsible for their fresh GUI design.

[Scarlet Fever]

As far as I can tell, there are a few bits of evidence that hint at a new or revised GUI in Leopard. It's not all weblog rumors, but all these things have sparked discussion on the topic.

• Apple has been experimenting with a dark look already, particularly the grey and black glossy controls found in Aperture, Front Row, and the new iPhoto inspector palettes. (A GUI based on the Aperture look would rock, I think.)

• Leopard builds have vector-based, resolution-independent Aqua buttons and graphics, but they look like incomplete makeshift versions. Temporary placeholders, perhaps? Circumstantial, but suggestive.

• Apple has a patent for an interface design application with actual screenshots showing vector buttons with customizable light angles, reflections, textures, etc. It's a very advanced approach to GUI design and would necessitate a ground-up redesign to incorporate.

• A prominent Mac theme and icon designer (the Rad.e8 guy) got hired by Apple and shut down his own website. They also hired Delicious Monster's Mike Matas, who was responsible for their fresh GUI design.
if you're right, i really, really can't wait for leo :D

[epochblue]

I think everybody just needs to stop treating blogs as equivalent to cold hard fact.

Say, that's dangerous thinking there, Mgkwho...I'd just as soon let blogs tell me what's true and what's not...the less thinking I have to do, the better :D

(disclaimer: that was not intended as a slight to the OP, I really just wanted an excuse to use the phrase "that's dangerous thinking"....it's Family Guy reference, you see, and I rarely have occasion to use it in casual conversation)

[AEagleX7]

hmm.. leopard ... will probably resemble itunes 7 (with theme variants a la OS 9). Would welcome the black glossy dock as shown on apples website www.apple.com/macosx. remember the action button introduced in Panther(or was it tiger? :D) i could visualize similar methods throughout the whole OS...(for example that little black button that has appeared in recent Safari builds). all such function will have the black glossy effect in Leopard. Remember Apple's hints last summer on their site? "A Leopard doesn't change his spots". In my opinion this was the most obvious of hint's that Apple could give us, suggesting that yes there will be an interface overhaul, but the OS will still be just as stunning and elegant and, most importantly, will be simple and even easier to use.

whoo i feel better, I needed to get that out.:D

[Kilamite]

I find Vista's GUI has too much candy - does look good but it has too much in it, and the overall interface is pretty poor to be honest. Navigation isn't worth even commenting on.

[Chris Bangle]

itunes 7 + illuminous + 3d=Hurry up Apple I want to buy it.

[AEagleX7]

I find Vista's GUI has too much candy - does look good but it has too much in it, and the overall interface is pretty poor to be honest. Navigation isn't worth even commenting on.

I totally agree...honestly its amateur kinda how Mac OS X was way back when. The transparent titlebars and bright buttons! TOO MUCH! :p

[tombarnes]

I think there are 2 things that give any sort of hint at a new GUI;

iTunes
iPhone

They both have similarities...an aqua type theme (coverflow [iTunes] and see through glass-type 'bubbles' [obvious with iPhone]).

I beleive that one of the reasons iphone is being released in June is because Leopard will be ready then, and there are thigns in iPhone that will be VERY similar to leopard, so it is all part of apple's secretiveness.

Even Steve Jobs said that FCC certification only takes 3 weeks, and iPhone was being put through that process in January.

[MLeepson]

• Apple has been experimenting with a dark look already, particularly the grey and black glossy controls found in Aperture, Front Row, and the new iPhoto inspector palettes. (A GUI based on the Aperture look would rock, I think.)I definatly agree!

• Apple has a patent for an interface design application with actual screenshots showing vector buttons with customizable light angles, reflections, textures, etc. It's a very advanced approach to GUI design and would necessitate a ground-up redesign to incorporate.Can you post a link to the patent or just the number?

[crees!]

I think there are 2 things that give any sort of hint at a new GUI;

iTunes
iPhone

They both have similarities...an aqua type theme (coverflow [iTunes] and see through glass-type 'bubbles' [obvious with iPhone]).

Uh, you mean like Dashboard's GUI, which Tiger already has?

[tombarnes]

Uh, you mean like Dashboard's GUI, which Tiger already has?

Hmmmm, kinda, but more glassy. You know what I mean by glass, right?

I think FrontRow and CoverFlow are better examples of apple alrady adopting this type of GUI. Dashboard has the ripple effect, but its not really that 'bubble' thing that iPhone seems to have.

Note the transluscent menu bar and glass dialogue box.

[Xavier]

I will be perfectly happy with whatever change Apple has in store. I'm sure it will be sweet

[vohdoun]

if you read the article, it should have been clear that it was an april fool's joke. just look at the names for the 11.x releases. sloth?

Sloth! :D

http://www.wilson06.freeserve.co.uk/sloth.jpg

[CaptainHaddock]

Can you post a link to the patent or just the number?

Patent 20060284878

The screenshots are particularly interesting. Apple has a secret development tool that lets you define all these 3D texture values for GUI elements.

http://ideogramme.ca/temp/Apple-gui-1.png

[MLeepson]

I tried looking up that patent on the uspto.gov (http;//uspto.gov) site and it returned as nadda (http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO2&Sect2=HITOFF&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsearch-bool.html&r=0&f=S&l=50&TERM1=20060284878&FIELD1=&co1=AND&TERM2=&FIELD2=&d=PTXT). And, that number was 11 digits, while patent numbers are only 7 (http://patft.uspto.gov/netahtml/PTO/srchnum.htm). ("All patent numbers must be seven characters in length, excluding commas, which are optional.")

Also, is that a utility or design patent?Nevermind, I just found it.

[dejo]

Nevermind, I just found it.
Where? Linky, please! :)

[GeeYouEye]

If they do make a major change, it's going to piss off a lot of developers who have spent the past 8 months making apps with the new IB (which is awesome beyond awesome).

[MLeepson]

Where? Linky, please! :)

Go to pat2pdf.org (http://www.pat2pdf.org) And put "20060284878" in the "Enter Number(s):" field, and click "Fetch Patent"

[swingerofbirch]

I agree that Mac OS X will begin to look more like Front Row and iPhone. Maybe the menu bar at the top of the screen will be a translucent gray, partially displaying the desktop image beneath. And maybe the dock will incorporate some changes. I think it would be quite logical to turn the left half of the dock into an area to launch ALL aliases, not just applications, so that documents added to the dock would appear there as well. And the other side would remain for minimized windows.

I've also envisioned something whereby windows would turn round in a carousel like movement using perhaps the left and right key to circle through them, and the up and down key to quickly switch between two documents.

Also, I would love a feature that instead of a screensaver your computer automatically after 5 minutes or so did Expose all windows so when you come back to work it's all there at a glance.

Sorry--I know random tidbits!

[zap2]

Pff...Brushed Metal still looks hot to me...maybe thats because until late March I was using Uno. Still I'm eager to see what 10.5 will bring, however I bet 10.6 will be a whole new GUI. Brushed Metal should be killed off by then, maybe even soon!

[ctango]

http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/gullible

I also found it in the Mac dictionary. Are you all spelling it correctly?


gullible |?g?l?b?l| adjective easily persuaded to believe something; credulous : an attempt to persuade a gullible public to spend their money. DERIVATIVES gullibility |?g?l??bilit?| noun gullibly |-bl?| adverb ORIGIN early 19th cent.: from gull 2 + -ible .

[phillipjfry]

IMO I think that we will see something with more transparency.
An "improvement" on vista looks (more candy with less system resources) so to speak
This generation of OS's that are being released (vista, leopard, whatever) will be in comparison to the muscle cars "back in the day"
All that power, at just 3 mpg :p
I know that Apple can pull off a nice GUI and not need all the resources that Vista requires.
Let Apple work their magic and release an OS that will send Redmond back to the photocopiers :)

[SSpiro]

Am I the only one not losing sleep over Leopard?

[LillieDesigns]

Am I the only one not losing sleep over Leopard?

Yes.

[SSpiro]

Heh. We'll see. Once it comes out, it could be a totally different story for me.. and maybe its because i'm so new to Mac's...

Just due to the lack of info, I'm having a hard time getting excited over what could possibly be some minor changes and additional apps..

OSX 11 would seem like a different story.. but as I said.. I'm so new, I have no idea what I'm talking about. Just talking out of my ass right now.

[dpaanlka]

Tons of transparency = Bad thing. We had it before, now we don't, for good reason.

[iJawn108]

When I first got my macbook I didn't realize there was transparency in OS X. I thought my display was acting up. :o