Mountain Lion

<p><pre><code> &#62; That mindset and development schedule — “What can we do &#62; to make this nicer by next year?” — may well be the most &#62; important thing from iOS that Apple has taken back to &#62; the Mac. </code></pre> Did they really take that from iOS though?<p>From Wikipedia:<p><pre><code> Version Codename Release Date ------- -------- ------------ Mac OS X 10.0 Cheetah March 24, 2001 Mac OS X 10.1 Puma September 25, 2001 Mac OS X 10.2 Jaguar August 24, 2002 Mac OS X 10.3 Panther October 24, 2003 Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger April 29, 2005 Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard October 26, 2007 Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard August 28, 2009 Mac OS X 10.7 Lion July 20, 2011 OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion July 25, 2012 </code></pre> I could just as easily say that Apple was "learning from their early development," or "getting back to basics."

&#62; <i>How else can they (Microsoft) compete with the iPad but than to switch to an Apple-style schedule of annual incremental updates?</i><p>&#62; <i>That mindset and development schedule — “What can we do to make this nicer by next year?” — may well be the most important thing from iOS that Apple has taken back to the Mac.</i><p>His last couple paragraphs got me thinking... If Microsoft wants to sell hardware, they'll have a better chance of succeeding if they release Windows versions faster... Apple sold a ton of 4Ss, because it was faster, had more ram and a much better camera. But, also because of Siri, a software feature.<p>And Google/Asus Nexus 7, from everything I hear, is a fabulous 7" tablet. But much of its greatness is because of Android 4.1. How can Microsoft compete with these devices if they want to take their time releasing new versions of Windows every 2-3 years?

&#62;&#62; (Facebook integration is not included in OS X 10.8; Apple says it will come in a software update “this fall”.)<p>sudo rm -rf facebook_integration &#38;&#38; say 'not on MY machine'

This has been the first Gruber article I didn't want to claw my eyes out while reading from blatant fanboyism. I honestly felt like it was a good overview of what Mountain Lion represents. I (much like Gruber) do not think Microsoft's $XXX strategy on pricing Windows is sustainable. When you can buy a new computer for almost the same price as the OS, that's a serious problem. That then says, "How much should this computer really be?"<p>I really wish Microsoft would truly and sincerely evaluate the 3-day redsign/rebranding done by the design student/individual that doesn't work for them.

I expect Apple to go "free" with OSX updates sooner than later. Their OS revenue is barely a blip on their quarterly balance sheet. iOS's <i>free</i> OS releases have been a coup in terms of both usability and press attention. People who don't necessarily think of upgrading their OS can still be lucrative customers and can benefit the most from simplifying usability enhancements. And of course, it would be a great card to play against Microsoft, who have a lot to lose if free OS updates become the norm.

* Apple claims it took Windows 7 26 months — three times longer — to reach 40 percent of the PC installed base, and Windows 7 is the most popular and highly-touted version of Windows in over a decade.*<p>This seems like a dumb comparison. Snow Leopard sold for $29; 7's base pricing was -- IIRC -- $120.

Yawn...