I would hope you could at least opt to disable it--it causes a lot of problems. OTOH, I would hope it's included too.
Otherwise, how will I use my HP printer? (;
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Mac OS X Snow Leopard Drops PowerPC Support
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I would hope you could at least opt to disable it--it causes a lot of problems. OTOH, I would hope it's included too.
Otherwise, how will I use my HP printer? (;
Well if it is true, it is for the best, you need to drop older stuff to move forward in most cases. Leaves me pretty bitter because it is much, much sooner than expected.
Just sucks for me because I really can't afford a Mac Pro, that's a very steep price for having a computer I can actually upgrade. Least my G5 was reasonably cheaper...
Being stuck with 10.5 on my G5 makes it useless now because I won't be able to run the latest software after 10.6 hits. Sure, I may be fine with new apps for awhile but sooner or later applications are going to saying '10.6 or newer' or 'Intel only.'
Makes me wonder what will become of universal binaries. I guess developers are going to choose between continuing their product as universal, start offering alternative intel-only downloads for smaller sizes or just totally drop PPC all together.
Oh well, computer/technology life goes on.
Just sucks for me because I really can't afford a Mac Pro, that's a very steep price for having a computer I can actually upgrade. Least my G5 was reasonably cheaper...
Being stuck with 10.5 on my G5 makes it useless now because I won't be able to run the latest software after 10.6 hits. Sure, I may be fine with new apps for awhile but sooner or later applications are going to saying '10.6 or newer' or 'Intel only.'
Makes me wonder what will become of universal binaries. I guess developers are going to choose between continuing their product as universal, start offering alternative intel-only downloads for smaller sizes or just totally drop PPC all together.
Oh well, computer/technology life goes on.
If indeed they are dropping PPC support I'd also expect rosetta to be dropped completely. If the OS doesn't support PPC, there's no reason it should have to run PPC applications right?
If we're to the point of Apple not needing to support PPC, then there shouldn't be any applications that are PPC only left.
It will save space and improve performance since apps will all have to be native, no?
If we're to the point of Apple not needing to support PPC, then there shouldn't be any applications that are PPC only left.
It will save space and improve performance since apps will all have to be native, no?
And let the b*tching begin...
Yeh, and why not.
Apple releases a slow, bloated OS and then realizes it needs to do something about it. So lets cast off all the millions of pre Intel users. Who cares about them anyway. After all they aren't buying new computers so screw them.
Yeah, except that the Classic support transition lasted for 6-7 years, not 2-3.
Personally, I'll be majorly pissed. I buy computers with an expected 4-5 year lifetime (on a rotating schedule). My main workhorse machine is up for replacement next year (from a dual 2GHz G5, purchased early 2004), but the kids' machine won't be up until at least the year after that (late model G5 iMac, early 2005).
In the iMac range, moving the OS to Intel-only in Jan 2009 gives a max machine lifetime (unless you want to run an older, less-secure OS) of 3 years for those who bought fresh off the assembly line, and about 2 years for those who bought last-model closeouts in the refurb and discount sections. That's way too short.
Every other model went Intel later than the iMac over the course of 2006.
3 years or less effective lifetime is a knock in the teeth to prospective buyers. I'm not willing to spend $2500-3500 on a machine which will be dropped from support in three years. That damned well would affect my next-round buying decisions.
PPC users are not losing support!!! They can still run Leopard, Tiger, and even Panther if they so choose to. Snow Leopard brings no new features to current Leopard users. Snow Leopard is an optimized version designed specifically for Intel processors. Apple will still support Leopard for a while, which means that PPC users still get support. Had Snow Leopard brought some new feature equivalent to Time Machine that will not be available to PPC users, then you have a right feel miffed. But Leopard remains and so does the support. Quit complaining and acting like Chicken Little claiming the sky is falling.
Edit: The new features that will come out in 10.7 is when PPC support will officially be dropped, and that could be 2+ years from now.
Edit: The new features that will come out in 10.7 is when PPC support will officially be dropped, and that could be 2+ years from now.
Really? What ones are those? I tried installing Vista on a 3 year old DELL, and although it loaded on, many of the drivers were not available. Plus, it was dog slow because the processor wasn't of the latest and greatest.
It may install, but is it usable? That's another story.
If Vista is that great, then why is MS extending XP? I was told by our HP rep that they will continue to sell XP with all their new business notebooks/desktops for sometime to come, based on that statement.
Well then it would be goodbye to VisualBasic until the next MS Office is out of the door, because Office 2004 wouldn't run.
Don't forget virtual machines. You can accomplish a lot with those. I wouldn't be opposed to using some kind of VM for rarely-used legacy support. You could, theoretically, run a Leopard VM to run programs that required Rosetta, Carbon or other deprecated APIs.
As for the PPC issue, well, that's life in the big city. It wasn't so long ago that a year old computer was hopelessly outdated. Things have slowed a little, but there's no reason to expect they won't speed up again.
Personally, I like that. It means new stuff is happening.
Anyway, I think the complainer folks obsession with long term support is overstated. Their current machines with Leopard will continue to work.
yes but support for Classic hasn't been dropped until 10.4 (not even, if you upgraded from 10.3). Now, 10.5 drops Classic support, 10.6 will drop PPC support, maybe we can expect 10.7 to drop Intel support...
Well up until 10.4, with classic you could run even the oldest 68k programs from 20 years back...
How is it stupid to buy a machine that natively supports all current applications and expect to get 3-4 years out of it? At the time of the announcement there were many, many good reasons to stick with the G5 architecture, and even after the Intel versions started shipping there were good reasons to stay with G5. Most people don't necessarily expect the long haul, but 4-5 years on an Apple computer isn't uncommon.
I know it's bound go happen sometime but it seems like this is about a year or two too early (and I am taking the fact that it won't be out until next year into account).
So my work has 3 older Protools rigs that all use G5's and have 4 PCI HD cards in them... if we want to stay current with the newest version of Protools (which requires the newest version of OSX) then not only will we have to upgrade to Mac Pros, but we'll also have to upgrade the cards (which are $4,000 each) because the Mac Pros have PCI-e...
... kinda sucks ...
... kinda sucks ...
hmmm
I'm just a layman, but is 9GB of disk space for the operating system (for mac) pretty big? I assume that this will over take the existing disk space that regular leopard already uses right? I do want to say that it is awesome that the minimum Ram is 512MB! Doesn't Vista take like 4GB if you want it to run correctly (on pc)?
I'm just a layman, but is 9GB of disk space for the operating system (for mac) pretty big? I assume that this will over take the existing disk space that regular leopard already uses right? I do want to say that it is awesome that the minimum Ram is 512MB! Doesn't Vista take like 4GB if you want it to run correctly (on pc)?
Apple made their Java 6 preview releases intel 64 bit only.
I (quite naïvely) presumed that for the final release PPC and 32 bit intel machines would be supported.
They weren't. The final release was intel 64 bit only.
If Apple is saying intel only for the developer previews then don't expect it to magically change for the final version. There is no logical reason to do this. If they were intending on supporting PPC they would support it in the preview.
PPC support is gone and won't be coming back, so please don't hang onto a hope that it will as you will only be disappointed. A precedent has been set.
I (quite naïvely) presumed that for the final release PPC and 32 bit intel machines would be supported.
They weren't. The final release was intel 64 bit only.
If Apple is saying intel only for the developer previews then don't expect it to magically change for the final version. There is no logical reason to do this. If they were intending on supporting PPC they would support it in the preview.
PPC support is gone and won't be coming back, so please don't hang onto a hope that it will as you will only be disappointed. A precedent has been set.
Horrible Headline
I keep up with MR daily, and I generally enjoy the "rumors" posted here, but this headline is pure shock value. Just because Apple chooses to release a VERY EARY, developer only, version of an OS that isn't due in a year for a single processing platform does not mean the PPC will not be included in the final release.
Come on guys - dial back the drama. Sure, PPC will be dropped at some point as many have noted, but this release does not necessarily guarantee that it will occur with Snow Leopard. I bet this release doesn't have a full driver pack for printers, camera, etc. either. Does that mean Apple is going to drop support for HP and Canon? Why not use that as a headline...
Certainly, Snow Leopard could mean the end of the PPC era, but with the current facts this is not known for sure. As such, such a strong assertion in the headline of this article is in poor taste.
Composed on PowerMac G5...for the record.
I keep up with MR daily, and I generally enjoy the "rumors" posted here, but this headline is pure shock value. Just because Apple chooses to release a VERY EARY, developer only, version of an OS that isn't due in a year for a single processing platform does not mean the PPC will not be included in the final release.
Come on guys - dial back the drama. Sure, PPC will be dropped at some point as many have noted, but this release does not necessarily guarantee that it will occur with Snow Leopard. I bet this release doesn't have a full driver pack for printers, camera, etc. either. Does that mean Apple is going to drop support for HP and Canon? Why not use that as a headline...
Certainly, Snow Leopard could mean the end of the PPC era, but with the current facts this is not known for sure. As such, such a strong assertion in the headline of this article is in poor taste.
Composed on PowerMac G5...for the record.
This is how it will go
Snow Leopard is going to be a leaner, faster version of Leopard.
1. Apple drops PPC support.
2. Recompiles everything for Intel only. Resulting binaries are smaller because they don't have to create Universal binaries.
3. Sell it for $129.
4. Profit.
Snow Leopard is going to be a leaner, faster version of Leopard.
1. Apple drops PPC support.
2. Recompiles everything for Intel only. Resulting binaries are smaller because they don't have to create Universal binaries.
3. Sell it for $129.
4. Profit.
It won't have major features that the user will see, but it will have major changes under the hood. Code written for the new OS optimizations won't run on 10.5, meaning that users won't be able to run the latest apps.
On the bright side, apple has had a horrible record of taking advantage of new things like this, so it may be years before they actually ship an app that uses this stuff.
I disagree that 2 years is that long, especially when there are machines sold back then that are faster than some machines being sold now.
I agree that it was unwise to buy PPC after the switch was announced. But even machines bought before the announcement are only about three years old now. Before the announcement, was it stupid to expect apple to support machines for a few years? I guess then it's stupid to expect long term support for machines you're buying NOW?
Well... it's Mac. They should've seen it coming. Anyone who is concerned about legacy support should stick to Windows, where surprises are few and minor. When you take the Mac route you volunteer to replace your machine at frequent intervals, or be cut off with no advance warning.
They've been doing this for ages now. I still remember the puzzled look on a colleague's face as he unboxed his new Mac and went about pluggin in his $500 MIDI interface, only to find that the 9-pin serial port had somehow magically disappeared. Those unlucky souls had to have holes drilled in their Macs to install something called a "stealth port". Couple of years later, another colleague unboxed his new Mac and was about to connect his two Apple CRT monitors with VGA cables, but all he found on the back of the Mac was this wide white thingamabob now known as a DVI port. My first Mac was a Mini G4, I woke up one morning shortly after buying it and discovered that Apple had switched to Intel.
Apple wants to stay on the cutting edge, and if you wanna make an omelet you gotta break some eggs. Now the turn has come to G4 and G5 owners to be the eggs.
Hm. I suppose it is good for some of us, but the people who bought Powermac G5s must be annoyed.
Quite soon for a new operating system, my mac mini shipped with tiger and leopard in november, any idea when this will be released? Macworld? Or this time next year?
Quite soon for a new operating system, my mac mini shipped with tiger and leopard in november, any idea when this will be released? Macworld? Or this time next year?
Um.....so you are moving over to Windows right now correct? Since right now you are saying your machine is useless. Right?
C'mon, Snow Leopard is the....wait for it....FUTURE of OS X. Nothing that Snow Leopard does is going to change how your machine runs today, right now, as I type.
Even after Snow Leopard comes out, you can keep on running Tiger, like many people do. Or even Leopard. Snow Leopard isn't going to make your current machine go away.
-Kevin