Microsoft Copies Mac OS Again with Vista
If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, Apple must be proud
Microsoft is set next week to launch the consumer version of its new Windows Vista operating system. Vista's release will mark the first new consumer OS shipment for Microsoft since 2001 when it debuted Windows XP. Microsoft's new operating system sports an new destop windowing sytem that the Redmond company expects to revolutionize desktop computing. However, a closer look at Vista reveals an operating system not much different in functionality than its predecessor, Windows XP.
Microsoft promised its new operating system would deliver a weath of new features including a database backed file system, WinFS. However, the Vista release schedule has been riddled with setbacks that ultimately pushed the originally planned 2004 release back three years into the first quarter of 2007, and the drop numerous planned features. WinFS is among those features that are notably absent from the final product. So what has Microsoft been working on for the past five years? Apparently, Microsoft has been busy playing catch up with Apple's Mac OS X operating system. As a matter of fact the majority of features actually shipping in Vista appear to be borrowed directly from Apple.
A quick review of the Vista website reveals a list of features identical to those found in Apple's two year old Mac OS X Tiger operating system. Comparing the features between these operating systems reveals that Vista contains features already available in Mac OS X:
Don't expect to see the lawsuits start flying again when Vista hits the shelves. With both corporations firmly established in the desktop market, Mac OS X's influence over the latest Windows will most likely provide positive press for Apple and maybe even prompt more users to switch rather than upgrade to Vista. Additionally, with Tiger already established on the market, Mac OS X development hasn't been standing still. Apple has been working for almost two year's on the next release of Mac OS X, code named Leopard, scheduled for release mid-2007. While Apple has been holding the details of Leopard tighly under wraps, we expect its feature list to blow Vista out of the water.
Microsoft promised its new operating system would deliver a weath of new features including a database backed file system, WinFS. However, the Vista release schedule has been riddled with setbacks that ultimately pushed the originally planned 2004 release back three years into the first quarter of 2007, and the drop numerous planned features. WinFS is among those features that are notably absent from the final product. So what has Microsoft been working on for the past five years? Apparently, Microsoft has been busy playing catch up with Apple's Mac OS X operating system. As a matter of fact the majority of features actually shipping in Vista appear to be borrowed directly from Apple.
A quick review of the Vista website reveals a list of features identical to those found in Apple's two year old Mac OS X Tiger operating system. Comparing the features between these operating systems reveals that Vista contains features already available in Mac OS X:
- Desktop Search, conceptually similar to Mac OS X's Spotlight, allows users to search their computers quickly for programs, documents and media.
- Sidebar and Gagets, a direct copy Mac OS X's Dashboard Widgets, is a set of small, special purpose applications that allow users to quickly find stock, weather and other informatnon "at a glance."
- Vista's Aero User Interface, a concept from Mac OS X's Aqua playbook renders desktops in 3D but fails to deliver the intuitive touches found in Mac OS X.
Don't expect to see the lawsuits start flying again when Vista hits the shelves. With both corporations firmly established in the desktop market, Mac OS X's influence over the latest Windows will most likely provide positive press for Apple and maybe even prompt more users to switch rather than upgrade to Vista. Additionally, with Tiger already established on the market, Mac OS X development hasn't been standing still. Apple has been working for almost two year's on the next release of Mac OS X, code named Leopard, scheduled for release mid-2007. While Apple has been holding the details of Leopard tighly under wraps, we expect its feature list to blow Vista out of the water.
Posted in Technology
by scott
on Jan 26, 2007
