Mac OS X v10.1
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Mac OS X version 10.1, code named Puma, was the second major release of Apple Computer's Mac OS X operating system. It superseded Mac OS X v10.0 and preceded Mac OS X v10.2. It was released on September 25, 2001, as a 'free update', due to the heavy criticism of the last version of Mac OS X. Starting with version 10.1.2, Apple made it the default operating system on new Macs. [link]
The operating system was handed out for no charge by Apple employees after Steve Jobs' keynote speech at the Seybold publishing conference in San Francisco. It was subsequently distributed for no price to Macintosh users on October 25, 2001 at Apple Stores and other retail stores that carried Apple products. The operating system was better received than Mac OS X 10.0, although many critics claimed that the operating system was still lacking features in many areas and still plagued with bugs, and errors.
System Requirements
- Supported Computers - Power Mac G3, G4, G4 Cube, iMac, PowerBook, or iBook
- RAM required - 128 megabytes
- Hard Drive Space - 1.5 gigabytes
Features
Apple introduced many features that were missing from the last version, as well as improving overall system performance.
This system release brought some major new features to the Mac OS X platform:
- Performance enhancements everywhere in the system - Mac OS X 10.1 introduced large performance increases throughout the system.
- Easier CD and DVD burning from within the Finder as well as iTunes
- DVD playback support
- More printer support (200 printers supported out of the box) - One of the main vices of Mac OS X 10.0 users was the lack of printer drivers, and Apple attempted to remedy the situation by including more drivers, although many critics complained that there were still not enough drivers.
- Faster 3D (OpenGL performs 20% faster) - The OpenGL drivers, and handling were vastly improved in this version of Mac OS X, which created a large performance gap for 3D elements in the interface, and 3D applications.
- Improved AppleScript - The scripting interface now allows scripting to be done to many more system components, such as the Printer Center, and Terminal, thus improving the customizability of the interface. As well, Apple introduced AppleScript Studio, which allows a user to create full AppleScript applications in a simple graphical interface.
Criticisms
Although Mac OS X 10.1 was a much better operating system than its predecessor, it still received its share of criticism.
- System Performance: Although system performance in Mac OS X 10.1 was greatly improved, it was still deemed 'not enough' for many to adopt Mac OS X as their main operating system.
- Not a Large Enough Leap Forward: While Mac OS X 10.1 made some significant headway, many users criticized the step between Mac OS X 10.0 and Mac OS X 10.1 as not large enough. The user interface was said to have barely changed at all, and significant bugs still existed, some that caused entire system crashes.
Mac OS X 10.1 as a main operating system
Critics claimed that Mac OS X was still not ready for primetime, and as such could not be used as a main operating system under normal conditions. They believed that Apple's use of Mac OS 9 as the default booting operating system on new computers illustrated their point. Apple switched to using Mac OS X as the default with the 10.1.2 release.
Version history
- September 25 2001 - Mac OS X v10.1 (build 5G64)
- November 13 2001 - Mac OS X v10.1.1 (build 5M28)
- * [Apple: Mac OS X Update 10.1.1: Information and Download]
- December 20 2001 - Mac OS X v10.1.2 (build 5P48)
- * [Apple: Mac OS X Update 10.1.2: Information and Download]
- February 19, 2002 - Mac OS X v10.1.3 (build 5Q45)
- * [Apple: Mac OS X Update 10.1.3: Information and Download]
- April 17 2002 - Mac OS X v10.1.4 (build 5Q125)
- * [Apple: Mac OS X Update 10.1.4: Information and Download]
- June 6 2002 - Mac OS X v10.1.5 (build 5S60)
- * [Apple: Mac OS X Update 10.1.5: Information and Download]
References
- John Siracusa (2005). [Mac OS X 10.1]. Retrieved October 31, 2005.
- Amazon.com, Inc. (2005). [Product Description: Mac OS X 10.1]. Retrieved October 31, 2005.
External links
| History of the Apple Macintosh Operating Systems |
|---|
| Mac OS>Classic Mac OS (History): System 6 · System 7 · Mac OS 8 · Mac OS 9 |
| Mac OS X (History of Mac OS X>History): Public Beta · v10.0 · v10.1 · v10.2 · v10.3 · v10.4 · v10.5 |
| Mac OS X Server: Rhapsody (OS)>Rhapsody · Mac OS X Server 1.0 · Mac OS X Server |
| Other OS projects: A/UX · Taligent · Copland · Darwin (operating system)>Darwin |
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