FACT OR WACK Mac OS

What's Mac OS X? What are the key features of Mac OS X? This article will introduce Mac OS in details and show you how to make full use of Mac OS features.

  • Mac OS, operating system (OS) developed by the American computer company Apple Inc. The OS was introduced in 1984 to run the company’s Macintosh line of personal computers (PCs). The Macintosh heralded the era of graphical user interface (GUI) systems, and it inspired Microsoft Corporation to develop its own GUI, the Windows OS.
  • Mac OS X launched on March 24, 2001. The 1990s were rough for Apple. Until 1997, when Steve Jobs took the helm again, the company attempted to right itself by creating a plethora of CE products.

OS X, also macOS, is the Unix-based graphical interface operating system developed by Apple Inc. to exclusively power every Mac computer. It's engineered to make the utmost of what the hardware is capable of and to deliver the most intuitive and comprehensive computer experience in the world.

Mac OS X, X on behalf of the Roman numeral for 10, was the successor to Mac OS 9 (released in 1999) and its first version released was Mac OS X Server 1.0 in 1999, followed with Mac OS X v10.0 'Cheetah' in 2001. Former releases of OS X were named after big cats, such as OS X v10.8 referred to as 'Mountain Lion'. Yet, with the exposure of Mavericks in June 2013, this was dropped in favor of Californian landmarks and this codename tradition lasts to 10.10 Yosemite. In 2015, we eventually wait the day of 10.11 El Capitan's arrivial.

Mac OS X, X on behalf of the Roman numeral for 10, was the successor to Mac OS 9 (released in 1999) and its first version released was Mac OS X Server 1.0 in 1999, followed with Mac OS X v10.0 'Cheetah' in 2001. Former releases of OS X were named after big cats, such as OS X. Mac OS – Complete History of Mac OS. On January 24, 1984, Apple Computer Inc.’s chairman Steve Jobs took to the stage of the Apple’s annual shareholders meeting in Cupertino, to show off the very first Macintosh personal computer in a live demonstration. Macintosh 128 came bundled with what was later called the Mac OS, but then known simply as the System Software (or System).

Part 1: Mac OS X Versions up to Now

Fact Or Wack Mac Os Download

Mac OS X Version

Codename

Release date

Server 1.0

Hera

March 16, 1999

10.0

Cheetah

March 24, 2001

10.1

Puma

September 25, 2001

10.2

Jaguar

August 24, 2002

10.3

Panther

October 24, 2003

10.4

Tiger

April 29, 2005

10.5

Leopard

October 26, 2007

Crystallis mac os. 10.6

Snow Leopard

August 28, 2009

10.7

Lion

July 20, 2011

10.8

Mountain Lion

July 25, 2012

10.9

Mavericks

October 22, 2013

10.10

Yosemite

Fall 2014

10.11

El Capitan

September 30, 2015

macOS Sierra

Sep. 20, 2016

macOS

Autumn, 2017

From the table, you can see Apple insists on continuously surpassing itself that promptly upgrades its OS X nearly every one or two years and each OS X upgrade brings you a better combination of your software and hardware on Mac computer. An obvious example is that using DVD ripper to rip and copy DVD on your MacBook Air, MacBook Pro or iMac is seemingly much quicker and easier with the enhanced OS X. And when you apply MacX YouTube Downloader to download YouTube video on Mac, you can also find the YouTube downloader works seamlessly with your Mac to jointly aid you to effortlessly download YouTube video on Mac with amazing fast speed up to 83X faster.

Part 2: Main Features of Mac OS X

Software and Hardware Seamlessly Work together

Fact Or Wack Mac Os Update

OS X is designed to bring the best Mac experience for you, so you get a fully integrated system in which software and hardware work together perfectly. It has a cordial working with the processor in your Mac to deliver the most amazing performance. It goes well with the super-responsive trackpad in Mac notebooks such that Multi Touch gestures feel extremely natural to use. And also it's upgraded for the high-resolution Retina display in the high-performance MacBook Pro.

Brain-Dead Easy to Use and Enjoy

With Mac OS X installed, you are tethered to do everything on Mac with simple, intuitive gestures needed. You see, the Dock takes it opening your favorite apps like a duck to water. The Finder lets you browse and organize your files easy as rolling off a log. And Launchpad makes you access to your full library of the whole apps in a flash. The mentionable Spotlight search lets locate the file you're searching for without any hitch. Actually, a Mac does plethora of things automatically, among which you don't even have to have a finger in.

Inseparable Mac OS X and iOS 9.3 Devices

Well, if you already have a shot on an iPhone or iPad, you will be not unfamiliar with its big brother Mac OS X since OS X and iOS have plenty of the same apps and features — Safari, Mail, Contacts, Calendar, Maps, to name a few. Attributing to the feasible iCloud, the apps on your Mac work together with the apps on your iOS devices. To illustrate you, no matter what you do in apps on your Mac will happen on your other ios devices, as well. By the same token, a contact or a calendar event you add on your iPhone will appear on your Mac, too. That's why we say OS X and iOS are inseparable brothers.

Terrific Apps for Everything You Do

Mac

Generally speaking, you do everyday things on computer usually ranging from surfing the Internet, sending messages to managing your contacts, reading e-books and alike. With Mac OS X standing by, you enable to do things by exerting its ultrafast Safari, message app, Contacts app and iBook with a few mouse clicks. In addition, there are still a slew of other amazing apps like Maps, Reminders, Time machine, Face Time, Photo Booth and more for you to address your needs.

Security Comes First on Mac OS X

Every Mac is wrapped up with advanced technologies that work together to continuously scrutinize and ultimately safeguard your Mac safer. OS X covers a glut of mighty features to protect your Mac and all the information on it, and so does Gatekeeper when it comes to download and install apps. Additionally, Sandboxing guarantees your system secure by segregating apps from each other, as well as from your system and data. Pretty sure, the previous versions of Mac OS X being problem-free in security, hence its latest Mac OS X El Capitan will do far better on security and much easier than ever to keep your Mac safe.

The above mentioned statements talk about the general features OS X has, and for numerous Mac users who are using the latest Mac OS X El Capitan but have little knowledge about OS X 10.11, it's seemingly necessary to specify Mac El Capitan for them. Here the focus mainly rests with its enhanced features it has. Let's have a look now.

What's New in Mac OS X 10.11 El Capitan?

Enhanced Features

Safari

Mail

Messages

Finder

Mac OS X 10.11 El Capitan

With an enhanced Nitro JavaScript engine and support for the latest web standards, it's the fastest, most advanced way to browse the web with less toolbar and more web.

Assisted by the new Markup feature, you enable to quickly add an attachment you receive and send it back — without leaving Mail. And a new feature called Mail Drop makes you send large attachments (up to 5GB per message) quickly and smoothly.

What message appears on your iPhone, you can also see it on your Mac.

Thanks to iCloud Drive in the Finder, you can store any file in iCloud Drive and seek out it on any device.

macOS brings the Mac users with countless features and apps for them to make computer experience much easier and more wonderful. But the latest Mac OS X 10.10 bothers a crowd of Mac users, for their previous video converter for Mac is not compatible with Mac OS X 10.10, let alone the 10.11 or higher. In such case, the solid yet first rate video converter for Mac -MacX Video Converter Pro can deliver the assistance to you such that converting SD or HD video to MP4, MOV, FLV, AVI, MKV on Mac is just a piece of cake.

Operating System

The Mac operating system — earlier called OS X and now renamed macOS — has traditionally been viewed as more stable than Windows. The main reason for this was that Apple produces both the hardware (Mac computer) and the software (Mac operating system); so they have better control over the integration of the entire system. Apple is also known to use only the best parts for its computers.[1]

Since the Windows operating system can run on hundreds of different types of computers, variations in hardware configurations within those computers can cause stability problems. There are dozens, if not hundreds, of PC manufacturers and so there is a wide variety in hardware quality of PCs.

Another reason for Macs being traditionally more stable is that since PCs are the more popular choice in the desktop market, most hackers and computer virus makers target PCs. As the popularity for Mac computers increase, it can be expected that the incidence of hacker and virus attacks will increase.

It should be noted that you can run Windows on a Mac but cannot run macOS on a PC. Apple has also released a software kit called Bootcamp for running Windows on the Mac. Other software virtualization applications used to run Windows on Macs include Virtualbox and Parallels.

Another factor contributing to a better user experience on the Mac is that there is no software cruft i.e., there are no third-party applications that are pre-installed on your Mac. PCs usually come with several 3rd-party apps pre-installed. For example, antivirus software from McAfee or Symantec, or DVD reading/writing software. Some of this software can be downright dangerous for the security and privacy of the user; case in point: Lenovo's Superfish scandal. Interestingly, this feature of Apple devices also applies to the iOS vs Android debate; Android devices ship with 'crapware' (3rd party applications that many people don't ever use) while iPhones and iPads ship only with Apple software.

User Interface

The most noticeable difference between Macs and PCs is in the user interfaces. While many computer users will proclaim one or the other “superior” or “best,” this is ultimately a matter of personal preference. Highlights of the UI in Mac OS X include Launchpad (a screen full of app icons for easily launching your favorite apps), hot corners that can be customized for various types of views, a 'dock' that has icons for your favorite apps, full screen mode for apps, and 'spaces' that create as many desktops as you like so you can minimize clutter. With Windows 8 UI highlights include a touch-friendly 'metro' interface that contains 'live tiles', rectangular boxes of varying sizes on the screen that represent an app and get refreshed with the latest content from the app. Several apps utilizing the 'metro' interface are full screen apps like in tablet computers.

Security

Macs have a reputation of being more secure than Windows PCs. In the 90s and early to mid-2000s, Windows was plagued with adware, malware and viruses that were mostly a result of users downloading compromised software, opening malicious email attachments or other malicious files downloaded from the Internet. Macs had a lower market share so malware-makers and distributors focused on the Windows platform.

Today the situation is not so lopsided. Windows security and Microsoft's Defender anti-virus program have made great strides and made Windows a safe platform. Macs have had security problems of their own, like the admin login vulnerability discovered in November 2017. And because of the growing popularity of the Mac platform — especially among high-value targets like computer programmers — malware-makers are increasingly homing in on Macs as targets.

Irrespective of whether you're on a Mac or PC, it is not advisable to open files from unknown sources or any files downloaded via email or on the Internet that seem suspicious. If you're on Windows, it is further recommended to not use anti-virus programs other than Microsoft's Defender because they introduce security vulnerabilities of their own.[2]

Uses

Mac computers are most widely used in the creative professional market, including in journalism and desktop publishing, video editing and audio editing, but have also made inroads into the educative and scientific research sectors. Macs are also popular with computer programmers — a majority of web and app developers tend to use Macs.

PCs are also used with some of the video and audio editing and research purposes but are found largely as the Home or Office Computer. PCs are also widely used in gaming due to a wider variety of games available for the Windows platform.

FACT OR WACK Mac OS

Market share

Apple's share of the U.S. personal-computer market nearly tripled from 2004 to 2008 but hasn't gone up significantly since then, and stands at around 8.5 percent in August 2009, according to IDC. Free on slots. (Source: Associated Press)

In Q1 2008, worldwide PC shipments were around 70 million (up from 61 million in Q1 2007) whereas worldwide Mac shipments were around 2.3 million (up from 1.5 million in Q1 2007). Historical charts for PC vs. Mac shipments are available at http://blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com/microsoft/archives/137350.asp

The market share of Mac for the July-Sept 2007 quarter was estimated at 3.2% for worldwide sales. While of PCs ( including major companies like HP, Dell, Lenovo, Acer and Toshiba) was a total of around 56%.(Refer: http://www.systemshootouts.org/mac_sales.html)

Interoperability

PCs and Macs can usually share peripherals if they connect via USB, FireWire, or Bluetooth, three industry standards available on every Mac. Most popular applications for Mac and PC use the same file formats, making it simple to exchange documents with friends and coworkers or move existing files from a PC to a Mac.

Applications

Macs major applications include Ilife and Time Machine while the PCs most widely used application includes MS Office. Some popular games provided on a Mac are Mac Crack Attack, 3D Klondike while on PC are Solitaire and Virtual Pool.

There is a variety of software available for PCs, which are better than a Mac machine for use as gaming machines since most high-end games are created for the general PC. PCs and Macs can usually share peripherals if they connect via USB, FireWire, or Bluetooth, three industry standards available on every Mac. Most popular applications for Mac and PC use the same file formats, making it simple to exchange documents with friends and coworkers or move existing files from a PC to a Mac.

Gaming

Traditionally PCs have had the upper hand when it comes to gaming because more publishers developed games for the PC platform. Dollar for dollar, PCs have also provided more powerful processors and speed is an important criterion when it comes to gaming. Some popular games that are available only on PCs are Age of Empires III and Crysis. Games that have both Mac and PC versions include Call of Duty 4: Modern warfare, Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock, LegoStar Wars II, Starcraft and World of Warcraft.

Productivity Software

Microsoft Office, Adobe Creative Suite & Cloud are available for both Windows and Mac platforms. Other productivity software like OpenOffice and StarOffice is also available for all platforms. Apple's iWork office suite, which includes Pages (word processor), Numbers (spreadsheets) and Keynote (presentation maker) are only available on the Mac and iOS platforms.

Mac vs. PC War

Macs were hugely popular when the Macintosh was introduced in the mid-80s. They pioneered the GUI and the mouse. With Windows 3.1 and the wildly popular Windows 95, Microsoft gained a large market share. In the 1990s, Windows grew by leaps and bounds and Apple went downhill. After Steve Jobs was brought back to Apple, he introduced the iMac and revived Mac sales. Microsoft bought a 5% stake in Apple with a $150mn investment in non-voting shares in 1997.

Apple's Macs have always had a small but passionate fan base. In 2007, Apple released Mac vs PC ads showcasing the “cool” factor of Macs. These have been parodied online, often with a 3rd character (a woman) for Linux.

The Mac vs. PC ads

In September 2008, Microsoft responded to the Apple campaign with a campaign of their own to break the PC stereotype.

A MAC into a PC (and vice versa)

By installing software like Boot Camp, or a virtualization solution, such as Parallels Desktop, a Mac can function like a PC machine. In other words, a MAC can run Windows on it.

Apple does not allow the use of its operating system on non-Apple hardware. So a Windows PC cannot run Mac OS X. However, the Hackintosh project allows users to run Mac OS on any supported Intel-based PC.


Price

The MacBook Air starts at $999, whereas the MacBook Pro costs $1,199 and up, depending on the model. See MacBook Air vs MacBook Pro and MacBook vs MacBook Pro.

Current prices of various models and accessories are available on Apple.com and on Amazon.com.

PCs usually cost significantly less than Macs with comparable hardware. This is mostly because PCs are manufactured by a large number of hardware manufacturers, resulting in increased competition and lower prices. A wide selection of PCs with varying costs is available on Amazon.com.

References