Mac OS X v10.4

Mac OS X version 10.4 "Tiger" is the fifth and latest major upgrade to Mac OS X for Apple's Macintosh computers, and released to the public on 29 April, 2005. It was preceded by Mac OS X v10.3 "Panther".

Apple CEO Steve Jobs previewed Tiger in his keynote speech at the Worldwide Developers Conference on 28 June, 2004.

New features

Apple advertises that OS X 10.4 Tiger has over 200+ new features [1]. The new features include:

• Spotlight, a powerful full-text and metadata search engine, which can search everything from Word documents to iCal calendars to Address Book cards, as well as any text within PDF files. The feature is also used to build the concept of smart folders into the Finder. Spotlight will index files as they are saved, so they can be quickly and easily found through a search-as-you-type box in the menu bar.
• iChat AV that supports up to four participants in a video conference and ten participants in an audio conference. It also now supports communication using the Jabber protocol. A Jabber server called iChat Server is included on Mac OS X Tiger Server.
• Reader for RSS and Atom web syndication feeds built into the Safari web browser.
• A new mini-applications layer based on HTML, CSS, and JavaScript called Dashboard, which returns the desk accessories concept to the Mac OS.
• A scripting tool called Automator to link applications together to form complex automated workflows (written in AppleScript and/or Cocoa)
• VoiceOver, a spoken interface allowing the OS to read from the screen, and to permit operation of the OS by voice command.
• Improved .Mac syncing features
• An upgraded kernel with optimized kernel resource locking, support for 64-bit memory pointers and access control lists.
• A new startup daemon called launchd that allows for faster boots.
• New versions of cp, mv, and rsync which support files with resource forks. Command-line support for features like the above-mentioned Spotlight are also included.
• Xcode 2.0, including visual modeling, an integrated Apple Reference Library and graphical remote debugging.
• Full 64-bit architecture, with backward support for 32-bit programs.
• A new graphics processing API, Core Image, leveraging the power of the available accelerated graphics cards.
• A new data processing API, Core Data, that makes it easier for developers to handle structured data in their applications.
• A new video graphics API, Core Video, which leverages Core Image to provide real-time video processing.
• QuickTime 7, a new version of the product, has support for H.264/AVC which offers better quality and scalability than other video codecs. This new codec is integrated into iChat AV for clearer video. New classes within Cocoa provide full access to QuickTime for Cocoa application developers.
• A new application capable of creating 2D and 3D graphs Grapher
• Support for Access Control Lists (ACL)

Comparison with Windows

Microsoft is said to be working on similar features to Spotlight and Quartz for the next version of Windows, code-named Longhorn, however it is not expected until 2006 at the earliest. This led to Apple mocking Microsoft at the WWDC presentation, with large posters with slogans such as "Introducing Longhorn", "Redmond, start your photocopiers", "Redmond, we have a problem", and "This should keep Redmond busy". Arlo Rose, the developer of Konfabulator (a third-party product similar in function to Dashboard), mimicked this campaign by prominently displaying "Cupertino, start your photocopiers" on the front page of his website. [2]

Tiger trademark lawsuit

Shortly before the release of OS X 10.4, the computer retailer Tiger Direct Inc. filed a lawsuit against Apple Computer. The lawsuit alleged that Apple infringed Tiger Direct's trademark with the Mac OS X Tiger operating system. [3]

The following is a quote from their court memorandum:

Apple Computer's use of its infringing family of Tiger marks to expand sales of products besides its operating system software is already evident — for example, Apple Computer is offering free iPods and laptops as part of its Tiger World Premiere giveaway. In short, notwithstanding its representation to the PTO that it would only use Tiger in connection with their unique computer operating system software, Apple Computer has in recent weeks used a family of Tiger marks in connection with a substantially broader group of products and services, including the very products and services currently offered by Tiger Direct under its famous family of Tiger marks. [4]

The judge in the case ruled in Apple's favor.

External links

• Official Tiger Page
• Tiger 'Developer' Overview
• John Siracusa. "Mac OS 10.4 Tiger". Ars Technica. April 28, 2005. http://arstechnica.com/reviews/os/macosx-10.4.ars
• TigerWiki
• WikiMac: Mac OS X 10.4