Apple’s Next Gen Products

Apple flashed some guidance that has those of us in the contrails of the iPhone launch reading the tea leaves for heady news once again.

“Product transition” would normally not garner ANY press. But, it’s Apple after all. So, we’re all back to the guessing game of what, when, where and how (we don’t much care about Why: it’s Apple!).

Some speculation is the iMac is about to get an aluminum clad look. Others, the iPhone is about to go 6G and inherit multi-touch. Still others are going way out on a limb and suggesting Apple has an ultra secret UMPC up their sleeves. Whatever it is, it’s enough for Apple to suggest lowered guidance to the analysts in their last call (which I listened to while it was in progress). Total speculation here, but it might just be Apple is now tending toward pre-announcement of product and is wise enough to tell the analysts – in hushed tones – we’re going to announce stuff in one quarter that will tight-hole us till the next. One analyst (Bear Stearns I think) asked why they should put any credence in this guidance since last quarter was such a runaway miss. I love Apple’s answer which was basically, Go pound sand, it is what it is.

If the rumor mill is worth its salt (and often it’s not) then we should be getting a news of the new stuff in the August timeline. One thing is certain, Leopard is going golden master release one of the 31 days in October. The 9A499 seed from Tuesday is SWEET! and once again reminds me… for all the frustrations I have with Apple (there are many)… They have some of the coolest stuff under the hood I’ve ever had the privilege to bang on.

Technorati Tags: 9A466, Leopard, 9A499, UMPC

Leopard 9A499

ADC Members (Select and Premier)… your 9A499 images of client and server are now available at ADC. Come and get it!

Leopard and USB As Startup Volume

In a word… “Don’t.” It’s not that it can’t or shouldn’t… it’s kind of a boondoggle for most.

Use your time to best advantage and begin with restoring to dual layer DVD or IEEE 1394 (FireWire). That’s your best bet.

That said, There have been enough people asking in my other topic “Installing Leopard from DMG” why it won’t work with their USB drive. I don’t know the full technical answer to satisfy those who are truly asking for a technical explanation… I just know Apple has been fairly consistent with prohibiting the booting of Tiger and now Leopard on USB. I vaguely recall Panther launching on a USB mounted drive (could be mistaking that for something else though).

PS – I don’t know how you came by your image of Leopard. I don’t want or need to know how you came by your image of Leopard. I trust yours’ came by the one of two ways Apple has made it available: WWDC or ADC.

9A466 Posted to ADC

Sounds like a Radio Free America announcement doesn’t it? 🙂

For those of you who know what 9A466 means… Run (do not walk) to the ADC!

We Return To Our Previously Scheduled Program

Whew. Our first dosage of iPhone seems to have alleviated the initial symptoms of high expectation, cash-in-pocket and general euphoria.

It’s time for those software engineers to get crack alackin on Leopard. Today marks the first day of July. That leaves four whole months to satisfy an October launch of OSX Leopard. At this point, I’d just like to see 9A466.

WWDC07 9A466 OFFICIAL Image

Just received this from the ADC. Encouraging (and welcome) news. Can’t say that I recall ADC ever sending an email ahead of a pending posting. Wonder if they caught any blowback from their (cough, cough) developers who couldn’t make it to WWDC07 (cough, cough).I know they intended to post it all along. The graphics on the ADC site clearly said the beta was to be distributed “first” at WWDC07. Yeah, OK… fine! Just post this bad boy already. WWDC07 isn’t even being blogged about anymore and I’m anxious as all get out to put some quality time in on the latest Leopard Server.

Leopard Screenshot Gallery

Think Secret’s screenshot gallery of Leopard is now up.One of the things niggling at me these past several days since WWDC07… What happened to all the hoopla over “accessibility”? Jobs was making a big to do (in my mind, rightly so) about the Alex voice in Leopard. Yet, this go round… nada. Wonder why?

Technorati Tags: Leopard, 9A466

Crouching Leopard. Hidden Features.

No, this is not a spoiler posting. I’m pondering what other of the hidden features might leap out at us. What they might (or hopefully, might not) be. The role of Apple’s Developers and how that could change in the near future based on things like Google Gears. The real gem of my screed is at the very end.

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First up? Everyone’s favorite (and hopefully, first) non-Apple app they run to when they buy a new Mac… QuickSilver. Apple has this quirky habit of glomming onto other people’s REALLY good ideas and making them, well, their own. I’m specifcally calling to mind things like Watson (aka Apple’s Sherlock), Konfabulator (aka Widgets) or VirtueDesktop (aka Leopard Spaces). I’m sure there are more which are not top of mind. I can only hope Apple doesn’t do to Black Tree’s QuickSilver or Delicious Monster what they’ve done to these other of their innovative developers.

Have to plead ignorance here… Do Sun, Microsoft or Linux pull these kinds of stunts with their OS builds? Swiping from their developers I mean…

The flip side of that is Apple does do right by some of their developers. CoverFlow for instance. Which seems to be taking more and more prominent positioning in their lineup with the new CoverFlow powered Finder.

Second up – Open Sourcing. When Apple’s not being strongly influenced by the innovations of others (pat on back, nicely politely put) they’re doing some MARVELOUS stuff with open source bedrock. CalDAV. Mongrel. SquirrelMail. Ruby. Java. Blojsom. Some of the Teams components in Leopard Server we’ve been told in the public forum are based on lots of open source goodness. So, please, despite all my dissing on Apple this week… I can diss my own family. Someone else pulls that crap and I’m all over them 🙂 I LOVE Apple. I simply want to see them do right by their developers. I recall someone suggesting Apple’s coming up short in this regard (must look at my CoComment threads – yep, it was The Scobleizer). I happen to think that’s spot on the money.

Which brings me to the third and final point. I’ve been an Apple Developer since I left Apple in 1994. Before that I was firmly in the camp of Apple’s internal developers as one of their “Systems Engineers” (what a GREAT job during such a DARK period… jogs self back to present). Ahem. We were secretive then and that was under Spindler and Amelio. I can only imagine how things have changed under Mr. We Will NEVER Do A Video Ipod. That’s all good and fine and I can certainly appreciate the mystique that promotes. Still, when you’re a developer and you’re trying to build the next best thing to page swapping… well, secrets kinda crimp your style.

This is one of the dirty little secrets of the Mac developer community. We have to route around Apple. Read another way, we have to route around the damage. On the one hand they say they love their developers. And, to a degree I believe them. But, then they do things that don’t match up with their declaration of love. The big example I wave around is probably the most important. I’m not the worlds best coder. I’m largely self-taught. Once upon a time I was among the first hundred or so Newton Messagepad developers. Even then (much as today) there has not been a place for Apple’s Developers to swap experience outside of the WWDC meeting. (EDIT: appears I didn’t finish out the thought… Apple is putting their developers in a position to go akimbo to their NDAs by talking outside of channels)

Why, in this day and age, can’t Apple break off a nice little chunk of their Web Crossing Forum software and make a petri dish for us? That way the conversation is contained in a hermetically sealed space. Apple can control the inning and outing of information. And, most importantly, we developers can discuss stuff like Leopard’s upcoming features under the watchful eye of Apple (but we both know I was thinking Mordor). I want to become a better developer. I want to hire people who share their coding talents with others (net “givers”, not net “takers”).

Anyway… I’m looking at Leopard (OSX in general) imagining all it can become and the pace at which it could get there. Apple’s not doing the platform any favors and they risk losing fine and innovative developers like Mark at ClamXav (and aspiring ones like me) who are expanding the utility of the platform more out of a sense of cause and community than anything. Hopefully, Apple swings closer to the middle for the sake of the platform rather than hang out in the relative safety of the cloister in Cupertino.

One more thing (ouch!)… IF Apple’s approach to developing for the iPhone is really (and I’m skeptical) centered on web deployable apps AND Google’s Gears is emerging as the take-your-web-apps-offline king of the heap AND Google and Apple are deep under the sheets THEN don’t you think it is reasonable to expect some day things like the iPhone and OSX even will no longer require an installed app? Think about that one and get back to me.

Leopard 9A466

Looks like the WWDC seed is 9A466 and Apple is on a takedown tear.I’m taking bets on how long MacShrine’s posting of the “grass” background (taken directly from the WWDC disc apparently) will be online. Anyone willing to bet it lasts beyond 3 p.m. central today?NEWEST EDIT: Some of you might like to know where the Leopard screenshot galleries are… EDIT: Let’s make this EVEN WORSE Apple! You just posted the Java SE6 Release 1 Developer Preview 7 to the ADC Member Site. It explicitly states the WWDC 2007 Mac OS X v10.5 distro is required! Now… you tell me… how the heck am I supposed to help YOU evaluate the DP7 release with no 9A466 distro!? Makes no sense. You’ve essentially limited your helpful audience to your internal panel and the 5,000 or so in-person attendees.Yep. Cupertino’s pinged this page in the night. I’m sure they’ll be back. Opportunist that I am: Will you guys PLEASE make the 9A466 image available to the rest of us ADC Select members? Not all of us could make WWDC you know…Please, consider adding the gwhiz blog to your RSS feed reading. Thanks!