Is iPad the beginning of the end of OS X?

[doug in albq]

I actually voted for the third option, even though I am a power OS X user.

iPhone-style touch GUIs are the future for consumer computing devices. I actually see a future where only professionals with a strong need for power computing will continue to use desktop computers and Desktop computer OS's.

...posted from my iPad

 

[GoCubsGo]

It would not surprise me at all if they somehow felt as though the iPhone OS could actually replace a full fledged version of OS X. However no, not unless all you do is surf the net and read e-mail. Some of us have more serious things to do on our computers.

 

[harry*333]

In the next decade or so I think Apple will renovate its whole mac OS around a new user interface, now this new interface could be somewhere linked around multi-touch or something we can't even imagine yet
I think that in the coming years Apple may start to merge iPhone OS and OS X, probably for use on the iPad or a new product such as a "macbook touch"
but Apple is never going to move completely to one OS, thats the reason iPhone OS is so good because it is completely separate from OS X

 

[doug in albq]

In the next decade or so I think Apple will renovate its whole mac OS around a new user interface, now this new interface could be somewhere linked around multi-touch or something we can't even imagine yet
I think that in the coming years Apple may start to merge iPhone OS and OS X, probably for use on the iPad or a new product such as a "macbook touch"
but Apple is never going to move completely to one OS, thats the reason iPhone OS is so good because it is completely separate from OS X

You are totally correct, and it is going to born from the iphone os not OS X.

This is Mac replacing command line prompt all over again, kids.

 

[cal6n]

No.

It is the end of the beginning though...

 

[Spudracer]

It just amazes me that haters and fans alike are having trouble distinguishing a new category of computing device (iPad) from traditional desktops and laptops. The iPad is not trying to be those things. You can't make an iPad like an OSX device without killing what makes an iPad great. You can't make an OSX device like the iPad without killing it's superior functionality. Why is it seemingly impossible for so many people to comprehend a new product category?

 

[MikhailT]

It would not surprise me at all if they somehow felt as though the iPhone OS could actually replace a full fledged version of OS X. However no, not unless all you do is surf the net and read e-mail. Some of us have more serious things to do on our computers.

In the next decade or so I think Apple will renovate its whole mac OS around a new user interface, now this new interface could be somewhere linked around multi-touch or something we can't even imagine yet
I think that in the coming years Apple may start to merge iPhone OS and OS X, probably for use on the iPad or a new product such as a "macbook touch"
but Apple is never going to move completely to one OS, thats the reason iPhone OS is so good because it is completely separate from OS X

You are totally correct, and it is going to born from the iphone os not OS X.

This is Mac replacing command line prompt all over again, kids.

iPhoneOS is OS X with a Cocoa Touch GUI. They are at the core essentially the same OS. They are not different from each other, just two different optimized interfaces for their target markets. I don't know how many times I can say it in different ways. iPhoneOS = OS X + Cocoa Touch. You can't have one without the other.

 

[peestandingup]

You are totally correct, and it is going to born from the iphone os not OS X.

This is Mac replacing command line prompt all over again, kids.

Thats my feeling as well. People need to remember that even though Apple's touch OS was built from OS X, its a whole different beast function-wise & likely what their future full featured OS will be (in a more supped up form obviously before it totally replaces any "classic" desktop OS). So it doesnt make a whole lotta sense for them to continue on with Mac OS 11 (or whatever it would be called).

And thats another question. If we're all using these slate-like portable devices & the desktop/mouse goes the way of the dinosaur, they wouldnt even call it "MAC OS" anyway seeing that we wouldnt really be using "Macs". Would "the Mac" as we know it be retired too? Wouldnt it kind of have to be??

Too much future stuff. My head hurts.

 

[doug in albq]

iPhoneOS is OS X with a Cocoa Touch GUI. They are at the core essentially the same OS. They are not different from each other, just two different optimized interfaces for their target markets. I don't know how many times I can say it in different ways. iPhoneOS = OS X + Cocoa Touch. You can't have one without the other.

how come every time one of these types of thread comes up some "smart guy" has to come along and try and explain the difference between the term "OS" and "GUI"

you do not need to say it any more, because we ARE TALKING ABOUT INTERFACE, not some strict definition of what "Operating System" is.

and from an interface point of view the iPhone OS and OS X are completely different, and I do not know how many times I need to say THAT.

from an interface point of view, "iPhoneOS = OS X + Cocoa Touch" is completely false.

So it doesnt make a whole lotta sense for them to continue on with Mac OS 11 (or whatever it would be called).

agree with most of what you say, but as long as there are enough people that are power users, or want to pretend to be power users, there will still be OS X, I do not think it will go away, just be less important.

 

[chrono1081]

I don't think Apple will ever stop making a desktop os. iPhone OS is perfect for handheld devices with touch capability, and it does it wonderfully.

Mac OSX or 11 or whatever will always be around because there is a huge need for it.

As for cloud computing, its never going to be big like companies like to think and here is why:

1. People are suspicious of putting all their data on mysterious "cloud servers".
2. Most countries do not have unlimited internet like in the U.S. Imagine living in New Zealand and having to pay what they pay for bandwidth and going over that monthly limit just by doing schoolwork! No thanks.
3. Internet speed is not fast enough and web based apps are slow.
4. What if there is an internet outage? You can't get any work done.

Cloud based computing I honestly don't think will leave the concept stage. Granted, there are some cloud based solutions that work well for companies but outside of companies and universities it's just not going to happen.

 

[chrono1081]

It just amazes me that haters and fans alike are having trouble distinguishing a new category of computing device (iPad) from traditional desktops and laptops. The iPad is not trying to be those things. You can't make an iPad like an OSX device without killing what makes an iPad great. You can't make an OSX device like the iPad without killing it's superior functionality. Why is it seemingly impossible for so many people to comprehend a new product category?

+1

The reason so many tablets and tablet laptops failed in the past is because they tried to be a desktop OS with a tablet interface. Nobody likes to click through windows with a stylus.

Not to mention extremely limited app support.

Apple got it right buy building an OS around a touch interface and by focusing on the fact that iPad is a media consumption device, not a computer, drove the point home that this was a different kind of machine.

I ordered an iPad yesterday (out of the blue, no idea I was gonna buy one) and got flack from co-workers about "you have a netbook!, you have 9340932 computers!, the iPad is just a big iPod, blah blah blah"

They obviously don't get it...