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The Secret of Apple's OS X Version Numbering

Toe

Toe

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Mar 25, 2002
1,101
2
This works on so many levels... just knock off the "10." from any OS X version number, and you have the real version.

Rhapsody: Pre-alpha development release.
Mac OS X Public Beta: An alpha with the wrong name.
Mac OS X 10.0 -> Mac OS X 0: Version zero; the real public beta.
Mac OS X 10.1 -> Mac OS X 1: The first genuinely working version, version 1.
Mac OS X 10.2 -> Mac OS X 2: Version two; the first good one.
Mac OS X 10.3 -> Mac OS X 3: Version three; getting mature now.

Makes so much sense, doesn't it? It also explains why they charge a full $129 for a .1 increase in the version number... because it is really a full integer increase (which is obvious, given the hundreds of new features in each .1 increase).

if they ever come up with Mac OS Eleven, it'll have to be a radical shift, like with a 3D-holo-interface, or where the whole User folder is stored on the net, or a fully tablet-based-OS, or perhaps direct brainwave input. Ya know... something new. :D
 
hate to burst your bubble, but it is pretty much obvious by now that OS X's .1 update isn't like regular .1 updates...

yes, they are "full" updates. ".1" being "minor" is just a (popular) convention, not a "law"...

so think different. ;)
 
I think he's confused since he left off...

Mac OS X Version 1.0
Mac OS X Version 1.1
Mac OS X Version 1.2

And the current version is

Mac OS X Version 10.3

If Version 10.0 was Mac OS X Version Zero, what does that make Version 1.0-1.2?

I think he's still holding the answer secret to these first versions on OS X.

Yes that's Rhapsody, but they were not just development releases -- they were "public" releases with the Server name and extensions applied. But they were still useable as a desktop OS.
 
Sun Baked said:
I think he's confused since he left off...

Mac OS X Version 1.0
Mac OS X Version 1.1
Mac OS X Version 1.2
Click to expand...

They were still getting it down then... Those are just version 0.1, 0.1.1, and 0.1.2.


Sun Baked said:
I think he's still holding the answer secret to these first versions on OS X.
Click to expand...

The real secret is that OS X version 1.0 was actually a public beta. Sure, we all know that now, but it was a hundred dollar public beta....


Sun Baked said:
Yes that's Rhapsody, but they were not just development releases -- they were "public" releases with the Server name and extensions applied. But they were still useable as a desktop OS.
Click to expand...
Though hardly the same species as Panther....
 
JamesDPS said:
Just thought I'd add for no reason to a thread that's going nowhere fast. Wasteland, anyone?
Click to expand...

Absolutely! But then again, most threads in most Mac discussion boards are as inane as this one.

I mean really... how many threads are there about Jobs' use of a black turtleneck, to pick one at random....
 
Toe said:
The real secret is that OS X version 1.0 was actually a public beta. Sure, we all know that now, but it was a hundred dollar public beta....
Click to expand...
I think you'll find it was much more than $100 -- I thought is was more like $499/$999 for the limited/unlimited versions.

But it was also two years before version 10.0 came out.

---

And congrats on revealing the OS X secret so many years after it was first released (April, 1999).
 
Toe said:
Absolutely! But then again, most threads in most Mac discussion boards are as inane as this one.

I mean really... how many threads are there about Jobs' use of a black turtleneck, to pick one at random....
Click to expand...

Heh -- are there many threads about Jobs' uniform? Sounds interesting... :D
 
Sun Baked said:
And congrats on revealing the OS X secret so many years after it was first released (April, 1999).
Click to expand...
You're welcome. I know that most people have been waiting for my verdict for lo these many years.

Soon I'll reveal the secret behind Apple's G-x processor numbering (hint: the PowerMac 6100 had a G1). Well, maybe after the G7 comes out... don't want to be over-hasty, ya know.
 
Toe said:
You're welcome. I know that most people have been waiting for my verdict for lo these many years.

Soon I'll reveal the secret behind Apple's G-x processor numbering (hint: the PowerMac 6100 had a G1). Well, maybe after the G7 comes out... don't want to be over-hasty, ya know.
Click to expand...
I beat you to it; check this thread.
 
wrldwzrd89 said:
I beat you to it; check this thread.
Click to expand...

OK, well... then I'll make a website that shows every current Mac model, the average time between model revisions, and the point where the current model fits in it's expected production cycle. And if I'm really clever, I'll also link to recent rumors about revisions to that model.

I'll bet nobody ever came up with that before. So there!

(oops)
 
Toe said:
if they ever come up with Mac OS Eleven, it'll have to be a radical shift, like with a 3D-holo-interface, or where the whole User folder is stored on the net, or a fully tablet-based-OS, or perhaps direct brainwave input. Ya know... something new. :D
Click to expand...

I will agree that the difference between versions are usually pretty radical. Look at the difference between System 7 and OS 8. There have been a lot of huge changes even between the .x upgrades. On 10.0, you couldn't even share printers.
 
Huh ?

I thought the OS X versions were Puma, Jaguar, Pather and soon to be Tiger. Now you're telling me they use a numbering system. That's absurd. It's not natual.
 
Fender2112 said:
I thought the OS X versions were Puma, Jaguar, Pather and soon to be Tiger. Now you're telling me they use a numbering system. That's absurd. It's not natual.
Click to expand...
Those are the codenames for the major versions of Mac OS X. Ever since Mac OS X was released, a numbering system was used for versioning. Apple just used the codenames internally until 10.2 "Jaguar" and continued the pattern with the release of 10.3 "Panther". In fact, most applications (and operating systems, which are merely "super-applications") use a numbering system for versions.
 
Fender2112 said:
I thought the OS X versions were Puma, Jaguar, Pather and soon to be Tiger. Now you're telling me they use a numbering system. That's absurd. It's not natual.
Click to expand...
wrldwzrd89 said:
Those are the codenames for the major versions of Mac OS X. Ever since Mac OS X was released, a numbering system was used for versioning. Apple just used the codenames internally until 10.2 "Jaguar" and continued the pattern with the release of 10.3 "Panther". In fact, most applications (and operating systems, which are merely "super-applications") use a numbering system for versions.
Click to expand...
Some of us just don't have a sense of humor, do we?
 
As Mac OS X derives much of it's heritage from earlier NeXT releases, here is a list of the NeXT/Apple OS from version 0.8 to 5.6:

  • NeXTstep 0.8
    NeXTstep 1.0
    NeXTSTEP 2.0
    NeXTSTEP 2.1
    NEXTSTEP 3.0
    NEXTSTEP 3.1
    NEXTSTEP 3.2
    NEXTSTEP 3.3
    OPENSTEP 4.0
    OPENSTEP 4.1
    OPENSTEP 4.2
    Rhapsody Developer Release (Rhapsody 5.0)
    Rhapsody Developer Release 2 (Rhapsody 5.1)
    Rhapsody Premier (Rhapsody 5.2- never released)
    Mac OS X Server 1.0 (Rhapsody 5.3)
    Mac OS X Server 1.0.1 (Rhapsody 5.4)
    Mac OS X Server 1.0.2 (Rhapsody 5.5)
    Mac OS X Server 1.2 (Rhapsody 5.6)
    Mac OS X Server 1.2 v.3 (Rhapsody 5.6 also)

After the release of Rhapsody 5.1 Apple started work on Mac OS X. The versions for Mac OS X are as follows:

  • Mac OS X Developer Preview
    Mac OS X Developer Preview 2
    Mac OS X Developer Preview 2.6 (aqua demo)
    Mac OS X Developer Preview 3
    Mac OS X Developer Preview 4
    Mac OS X Public Beta
    Mac OS X v. 10.0 (10.0.0-10.0.4)
    Mac OS X v. 10.1 (10.1.0-10.1.5)
    Mac OS X v. 10.2 (10.2.0-10.2.8)
    Mac OS X v. 10.3 (10.3.0-10.3.5)

When Apple started Mac OS X they felt a need to relieve themselves of some undue licensing restrictions that has been following the NeXT/Apple OS from it's conception in the late 1980s. The new foundation was named Darwin. Here are the releases (that correspond to Mac OS X releases):

  • Mac OS 10.0 (Mac OS X Developer Preview)
    Mac OS 10.0 (Mac OS X Developer Preview 2)
    Darwin 1.0 (Mac OS X Developer Preview 3)
    Darwin 1.1 (Mac OS X Developer Preview 4)
    Darwin 1.2.1 (Mac OS X Public Beta
    Darwin 1.3.1 (Mac OS X v. 10.0)
    Darwin 1.4.1 (Mac OS X v. 10.1)
    Darwin 5.1-5.5 (Mac OS X v. 10.1.1-10.1.5)
    Darwin 6.0-6.8 (Mac OS X v. 10.2.0-10.2.8)
    Darwin 7.0-7.5 (Mac OS X v. 10.3.0-10.3.5)*

I think that is a pretty complete listing to date. The Darwin list is the hardest to follow as Apple changed the version numbers with Mac OS X 10.1.1, and that the earliest developer previews displayed Mac OS 10.0 rather than Darwin.


*for some reason 10.3.1 displays Darwin 7.0 when it should have been 7.1
 
RacerX said:
As Mac OS X derives much of it's heritage from earlier NeXT releases, here is a list of the NeXT/Apple OS from version 0.8 to 5.6:

  • NeXTstep 0.8
    NeXTstep 1.0
    NeXTSTEP 2.0
    NeXTSTEP 2.1
    NEXTSTEP 3.0
    NEXTSTEP 3.1
    NEXTSTEP 3.2
    NEXTSTEP 3.3
    OPENSTEP 4.0
    OPENSTEP 4.1
    OPENSTEP 4.2
    Rhapsody Developer Release (Rhapsody 5.0)
    Rhapsody Developer Release 2 (Rhapsody 5.1)
    Rhapsody Premier (Rhapsody 5.2- never released)
    Mac OS X Server 1.0 (Rhapsody 5.3)
    Mac OS X Server 1.0.1 (Rhapsody 5.4)
    Mac OS X Server 1.0.2 (Rhapsody 5.5)
    Mac OS X Server 1.2 (Rhapsody 5.6)
    Mac OS X Server 1.2 v.3 (Rhapsody 5.6 also)

After the release of Rhapsody 5.1 Apple started work on Mac OS X. The versions for Mac OS X are as follows:

  • Mac OS X Developer Preview
    Mac OS X Developer Preview 2
    Mac OS X Developer Preview 2.6 (aqua demo)
    Mac OS X Developer Preview 3
    Mac OS X Developer Preview 4
    Mac OS X Public Beta
    Mac OS X v. 10.0 (10.0.0-10.0.4)
    Mac OS X v. 10.1 (10.1.0-10.1.5)
    Mac OS X v. 10.2 (10.2.0-10.2.8)
    Mac OS X v. 10.3 (10.3.0-10.3.5)

When Apple started Mac OS X they felt a need to relieve themselves of some undue licensing restrictions that has been following the NeXT/Apple OS from it's conception in the late 1980s. The new foundation was named Darwin. Here are the releases (that correspond to Mac OS X releases):

  • Mac OS 10.0 (Mac OS X Developer Preview)
    Mac OS 10.0 (Mac OS X Developer Preview 2)
    Darwin 1.0 (Mac OS X Developer Preview 3)
    Darwin 1.1 (Mac OS X Developer Preview 4)
    Darwin 1.2.1 (Mac OS X Public Beta
    Darwin 1.3.1 (Mac OS X v. 10.0)
    Darwin 1.4.1 (Mac OS X v. 10.1)
    Darwin 5.1-5.5 (Mac OS X v. 10.1.1-10.1.5)
    Darwin 6.0-6.8 (Mac OS X v. 10.2.0-10.2.8)
    Darwin 7.0-7.5 (Mac OS X v. 10.3.0-10.3.5)*

I think that is a pretty complete listing to date. The Darwin list is the hardest to follow as Apple changed the version numbers with Mac OS X 10.1.1, and that the earliest developer previews displayed Mac OS 10.0 rather than Darwin.


*for some reason 10.3.1 displays Darwin 7.0 when it should have been 7.1
Click to expand...

Slow morning eh? ;) Then again, I did take the time to read it. :)

Just think. If it took OS X this long to evolve, you can begin to understand why Microsoft is taking so long with Longhorn. Not that I have sympathy for MS. Just a thought. :)
 
Oh, and how many cat names have they got left to use?

(Just thought I'd throw in more smoke along with the mirrors... funny thread this)
 
Home Assignment #2112

Ok, just to add some spice to the thread. Your assignment is to create a list, simular to that of RacerX, which correlates the Mac OS versions againt Windows versions. Example: OS 7 = Windows 3.1.

And do be creative. :D
 
Blue Velvet said:
Oh, and how many cat names have they got left to use? <snip>
Click to expand...

There are least five which should take us to OS IX. Then we get use bears - Grizzly, Kodiac, Koala, Teddy. Or maybe snakes - Viper, Python, Cobra. Even fish - Guppy, Jelly, Clown, Dolphin.

Someone please stop me aahhhhh .....
 
Fender2112 said:
There are least five which should take us to OS IX. Then we get use bears - Grizzly, Kodiac, Koala, Teddy. Or maybe snakes - Viper, Python, Cobra. Even fish - Guppy, Jelly, Clown, Dolphin.

Someone please stop me aahhhhh .....
Click to expand...
Hasn't Microsoft been stuck on that fish name for years?
 
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