Macintosh operating systems

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The original Macintosh System Software and Finder, released in 1984 Apple Macintosh Desktop.png
The original Macintosh System Software and Finder, released in 1984

The family of Macintosh operating systems developed by Apple Inc. includes the graphical user interface-based operating systems it has designed for use with its Macintosh series of personal computers since 1984, as well as the related system software it once created for compatible third-party systems.

Contents

In 1984, Apple debuted the operating system that is now known as the "Classic" Mac OS with its release of the original Macintosh System Software. The system, rebranded "Mac OS" in 1996, was preinstalled on every Macintosh until 2002 and offered on Macintosh clones for a short time in the 1990s. Noted for its ease of use, it was also criticized for its lack of modern technologies compared to its competitors. [1] [2]

The current Mac operating system is macOS , originally named "Mac OS X" until 2012 and then "OS X" until 2016. [3] Developed between 1997 and 2001 after Apple's purchase of NeXT, Mac OS X brought an entirely new architecture based on NeXTSTEP, a Unix system, that eliminated many of the technical challenges that the classic Mac OS faced. The current macOS is preinstalled with every Mac and receives a major update annually. [4] It is the basis of Apple's current system software for its other devices – iOS, iPadOS, watchOS, and tvOS. [5]

Prior to the introduction of Mac OS X, Apple experimented with several other concepts, releasing different products designed to bring the Macintosh interface or applications to Unix-like systems or vice versa, A/UX, MAE, and MkLinux. Apple's effort to expand upon and develop a replacement for its classic Mac OS in the 1990s led to a few cancelled projects, code named Star Trek, Taligent, and Copland.

Although they have different architectures, the Macintosh operating systems share a common set of GUI principles, including a menu bar across the top of the screen; the Finder shell, featuring a desktop metaphor that represents files and applications using icons and relates concepts like directories and file deletion to real-world objects like folders and a trash can; and overlapping windows for multitasking.

Classic Mac OS

Mac OS 9, released in 1999 Mac OS 9.0.4 emulated inside of the SheepShaver emulator.png
Mac OS 9, released in 1999

The "classic" Mac OS is the original Macintosh operating system that was introduced in 1984 alongside the first Macintosh and remained in primary use on Macs until the introduction of Mac OS X in 2001. [6] [7]

Apple released the original Macintosh on January 24, 1984; its early system software was partially based on the Lisa OS and the Xerox PARC Alto computer, which former Apple CEO Steve Jobs previewed. [6] It was originally named "System Software", or simply "System"; Apple rebranded it as "Mac OS" in 1996 due in part to its Macintosh clone program that ended a year later. [8]

Classic Mac OS is characterized by its monolithic design. Initial versions of the System Software run one application at a time. System 5 introduced cooperative multitasking. System 7 supports 32-bit memory addressing and virtual memory, allowing larger programs. Later updates to the System 7 enable the transition to the PowerPC architecture. The system was considered user-friendly, but its architectural limitations were critiqued, such as limited memory management, lack of protected memory and access controls, and susceptibility to conflicts among extensions. [2]

Releases

The text-only logo for Classic Mac OS starting with Mac OS 7.6, released in 1997 Mac OS wordmark logo.svg
The text-only logo for Classic Mac OS starting with Mac OS 7.6, released in 1997

Nine major versions of the classic Mac OS were released. The name "Classic" that now signifies the system as a whole is a reference to a compatibility layer that helped ease the transition to Mac OS X. [9]

Mac OS X / OS X / macOS

macOS Mojave, released in 2018 MacOS Mojave Desktop.jpg
macOS Mojave, released in 2018

macOS (originally named "Mac OS X" until 2012 and then "OS X" until 2016) [10] is the current Mac operating system that officially succeeded the classic Mac OS in 2001.

Although the system was originally marketed as simply "version 10" of Mac OS, it has a history that is largely independent of the classic Mac OS. It is a Unix-based operating system [11] [12] built on NeXTSTEP and other technology developed at NeXT from the late 1980s until early 1997, when Apple purchased the company and its CEO Steve Jobs returned to Apple. [13] Precursors to the original release of Mac OS X include OPENSTEP, Apple's Rhapsody project, and the Mac OS X Public Beta.

macOS makes use of the BSD codebase and the XNU kernel, [14] and its core set of components is based upon Apple's open source Darwin operating system.

macOS is the basis for some of Apple's other operating systems, including iPhone OS/iOS, iPadOS, watchOS, and tvOS.

Releases

The "X" logo for Mac OS X versions 10.0 "Cheetah" and 10.1 "Puma", released in 2001 MacosxlogoX1.png
The "X" logo for Mac OS X versions 10.0 "Cheetah" and 10.1 "Puma", released in 2001

Desktop

The first desktop version of the system was released on March 24, 2001, supporting the Aqua user interface. Since then, several more versions adding newer features and technologies have been released. Since 2011, new releases have been offered on an annual basis. [4]

  • Mac OS X 10.0 – code name "Cheetah", released to end users on Saturday, March 24, 2001
  • Mac OS X 10.1 – code name "Puma", released to end users on Tuesday, September 25, 2001
  • Mac OS X 10.2 – also marketed as "Jaguar", released to end users on Friday, August 23, 2002
  • Mac OS X Panther – version 10.3, released to end users on Friday, October 24, 2003
  • Mac OS X Tiger – version 10.4, released to end users on Friday, April 29, 2005
  • Mac OS X Leopard – version 10.5, released to end users on Friday, October 26, 2007
  • Mac OS X Snow Leopard – version 10.6, publicly unveiled on Monday, June 8, 2009
  • Mac OS X Lion – version 10.7, released to end users on Wednesday, July 20, 2011
  • OS X Mountain Lion – version 10.8, released to end users on Wednesday, July 25, 2012
  • OS X Mavericks – version 10.9, released to end users on Tuesday, October 22, 2013
  • OS X Yosemite – version 10.10, released to end users on Thursday, October 16, 2014
  • OS X El Capitan – version 10.11, released to end users on Wednesday, September 30, 2015
  • macOS Sierra – version 10.12, released to end users on Tuesday, September 20, 2016
  • macOS High Sierra – version 10.13, released to end users on Monday, September 25, 2017
  • macOS Mojave – version 10.14, released to end users on Monday, September 24, 2018
  • macOS Catalina – version 10.15, released to end users on Monday, October 7, 2019
  • macOS Big Sur – version 11, released to end users on Thursday, November 12, 2020
  • macOS Monterey – version 12, released to end users on Monday, October 25, 2021
  • macOS Ventura – version 13, announced on Monday, June 6, 2022

Server

An early server computing version of the system was released in 1999 as a technology preview. It was followed by several more official server-based releases. Server functionality has instead been offered as an add-on for the desktop system since 2011. [15]

Other projects

Shipped

A/ROSE

The Apple Real-time Operating System Environment (A/ROSE) was a small embedded operating system which ran on the Macintosh Coprocessor Platform, an expansion card for the Macintosh. The idea was to offer a single "overdesigned" hardware platform on which third-party vendors could build practically any product, reducing the otherwise heavy workload of developing a NuBus-based expansion card. The first version of the system was ready for use in February 1988. [16]

A/UX

In 1988, Apple released its first UNIX-based OS, A/UX, which was a UNIX operating system with the Mac OS look and feel. It was not very competitive for its time, due in part to the crowded UNIX market and Macintosh hardware lacking high-end design features present on workstation-class computers. A/UX had most of its success in sales to the U.S. government, where POSIX compliance was a requirement that Mac OS could not meet. [17]

MAE

The Macintosh Application Environment (MAE) was a software package introduced by Apple in 1994 that allowed users of certain Unix-based computer workstations to run Apple Macintosh application software. MAE used the X Window System to emulate a Macintosh Finder-style graphical user interface. The last version, MAE 3.0, was compatible with System 7.5.3. MAE was available for Sun Microsystems SPARCstation and Hewlett-Packard systems. It was discontinued on May 14, 1998. [18]

MkLinux

Announced at the 1996 Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), MkLinux is an open source operating system that was started by the OSF Research Institute and Apple in February 1996 to port Linux to the PowerPC platform, and thus Macintosh computers. In mid 1998, the community-led MkLinux Developers Association took over development of the operating system. MkLinux is short for "Microkernel Linux," which refers to the project's adaptation of the Linux kernel to run as a server hosted atop the Mach microkernel. MkLinux is based on version 3.0 of Mach. [19]

Cancelled

Star Trek

Star Trek (as in "to boldly go where no Mac has gone before") was a relatively unknown secret prototype beginning in 1992, whose goal was to create a version of the classic Mac OS that would run on Intel-compatible x86 personal computers. In partnership with Apple and with support from Intel, the project was instigated by Novell, which was looking to integrate its DR-DOS with the Mac OS GUI as a mutual response to the monopoly of Microsoft's Windows 3.0 and MS-DOS. A team consisting of four from Apple and four from Novell was able to get the Macintosh Finder and some basic applications such as QuickTime, running smoothly on the x86 architecture. The project was canceled a year later in early 1993, but some of the code was later reused when porting the Mac OS to PowerPC. [20] [21]

Taligent

Taligent (a portmanteau of "talent" and "intelligent") was the name of an object-oriented operating system and the company dedicated to producing it. Started as a project within Apple to provide a replacement for the classic Mac OS, it was later spun off into a joint venture with IBM as part of the AIM alliance, with the purpose of building a competing platform to Microsoft Cairo and NeXTSTEP. The development process never worked, and Taligent is often cited as an example of a project death march. Apple pulled out of the project in 1995 before the code had been delivered. [22]

Copland

Copland was a project at Apple to create an updated version of the classic Mac OS. It was to have introduced protected memory, preemptive multitasking and a number of new underlying operating system features, yet still be compatible with existing Mac software. As originally planned, a follow-up release known as "Gershwin" would add multithreading and other advanced features. New features were added more rapidly than they could be completed, and the completion date slipped into the future with no sign of a release. In 1996, Apple decided to cancel the project outright and find a suitable third-party system to replace it. Copland development ended in August 1996, and in December 1996, Apple announced that it was buying NeXT for its NeXTSTEP operating system. [23]

Timeline

Timeline of Macintosh operating systems
ARM architecture familyX86PowerPC68kMacBook Air (Apple silicon)iMac ProRetina MacBook ProMacBook AirApple–Intel architecturePower Mac G5Power Mac G4iMac G3Power MacintoshMacintosh QuadraMacintosh PortableMacintosh SE/30Macintosh IIMacintosh PlusMacintosh 128KA/UXA/UXA/UXmacOS MontereymacOS Big SurmacOS CatalinamacOS MojavemacOS High SierramacOS SierraOS X El CapitanOS X YosemiteOS X MavericksOS X Mountain LionMac OS X LionMac OS X Snow LeopardMac OS X LeopardMac OS X TigerMac OS X PantherMac OS X 10.2Mac OS X 10.1Mac OS X 10.0Mac OS X Public BetaMac OS X Server 1.0MacWorks XLMacWorks XLSun RemarketingMacWorks XLMac OS 9Mac OS 9Mac OS 9Mac OS 8Mac OS 8Mac OS 8Mac OS 8System 7System 7System 7System 7System 6Classic Mac OSClassic Mac OSClassic Mac OSClassic Mac OSSystem 1Finder (software)Finder (software)Finder (software)Finder (software)Finder (software)Finder (software)Finder (software)Macintosh operating systems

Before the arrival of the Macintosh in 1984, Apple's history of operating systems began with its Apple II series computers in 1977, which ran Apple DOS, ProDOS, and later GS/OS; the Apple III in 1980, which ran Apple SOS; and the Apple Lisa in 1983, which ran Lisa OS and later MacWorks XL, a Macintosh emulator. Apple also developed the Newton OS for its Newton personal digital assistant from 1993 to 1997.

In recent years, Apple has also launched several new operating systems based on the core of macOS, including iOS in 2007 for its iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch mobile devices and in 2017 for its HomePod smart speakers; watchOS in 2015 for the Apple Watch; tvOS in 2015 for the Apple TV set-top box.

See also

Related Research Articles

BeOS Operating system for personal computers

BeOS was an operating system for personal computers first developed by Be Inc. in 1990. It was first written to run on BeBox hardware.

macOS Operating system for Apple computers

macOS is a Unix operating system developed and marketed by Apple Inc. since 2001. It is the primary operating system for Apple's Mac computers. Within the market of desktop and laptop computers it is the second most widely used desktop OS, after Microsoft Windows and ahead of Chrome OS.

NeXT American technology company (1985–1997)

NeXT, Inc. was an American technology company that specialized in computer workstations intended for higher education and business use. Based in Redwood City, California, and founded by Apple Computer co-founder and CEO Steve Jobs after he was forced out of Apple, the company introduced their first product, the NeXT Computer, in 1988, and then the smaller NeXTcube and NeXTstation in 1990. These computers had relatively limited sales, with only about 50,000 units shipped in total. Nevertheless, their object-oriented programming and graphical user interfaces, were trendsetters of computer innovation, and highly influential.

Operating system Software that manages computer hardware resources

An operating system (OS) is system software that manages computer hardware, software resources, and provides common services for computer programs.

NeXTSTEP Operating system from NeXT Computer

NeXTSTEP is a discontinued object-oriented, multitasking operating system based on the Mach kernel and the UNIX-derived BSD. It was developed by NeXT Computer in the late 1980s and early 1990s and was initially used for its range of proprietary workstation computers such as the NeXTcube. It was later ported to several other computer architectures.

Darwin is an open-source Unix-like operating system first released by Apple Inc. in 2000. It is composed of code derived from NeXTSTEP, BSD, Mach, and other free software projects' code, as well as code developed by Apple.

OpenStep is a defunct object-oriented application programming interface (API) specification for a legacy object-oriented operating system, with the basic goal of offering a NeXTSTEP-like environment on non-NeXTSTEP operating systems. OpenStep was principally developed by NeXT with Sun Microsystems, to allow advanced application development on Sun's operating systems, specifically Solaris. NeXT produced a version of OpenStep for its own Mach-based Unix, stylized as OPENSTEP, as well as a version for Windows NT. The software libraries that shipped with OPENSTEP are a superset of the original OpenStep specification, including many features from the original NeXTSTEP.

The history of macOS, Apple's current Mac operating system formerly named Mac OS X until 2012 and then OS X until 2016, began with the company's project to replace its "classic" Mac OS. That system, up to and including its final release Mac OS 9, was a direct descendant of the operating system Apple had used in its Macintosh computers since their introduction in 1984. However, the current macOS is a Unix operating system built on technology that had been developed at NeXT from the 1980s until Apple purchased the company in early 1997.

A/UX Early Unix-based operating system from Apple Computer

A/UX is Apple Computer's Unix-based operating system for Macintosh computers, integrated with System 7's graphical interface and application compatibility. Launched in 1988 and discontinued in 1995 with version 3.1.1, it is Apple's first official Unix-based operating system. A/UX requires select models of 68k-based Macintosh with an FPU and a paged memory management unit (PMMU), including the Macintosh II, SE/30, Quadra, and Centris series. It is not the predecessor to macOS.

MkLinux is an open-source software computer operating system begun by the Open Software Foundation Research Institute and Apple Computer in February 1996, to port Linux to the PowerPC platform, and Macintosh computers. The name refers to the Linux kernel being adapted to run as a server hosted on the Mach microkernel, version 3.0.

Star Trek is the code name that was given to a secret prototype project, running a port of Macintosh System 7 and its applications on Intel-compatible x86 personal computers. The project, starting in February 1992, was conceived in collaboration between Apple Computer, who provided the majority of engineers, and Novell, who at the time was one of the leaders of cross-platform file-servers. The plan was that Novell would market the resulting OS as a challenge to Microsoft Windows, but the project was discontinued in 1993 and never released, although components were reused in other projects. The project was named after the Star Trek science fiction franchise with the slogan "To boldly go where no Mac has gone before".

vMac Open source 68k Macintosh emulator

vMac is an open source emulator for Mac OS on Windows, DOS, OS/2, NeXTSTEP, Linux, Unix, and other platforms. Although vMac has been abandoned, Mini vMac, an improved spinoff of vMac, is still actively developed. vMac and Mini vMac emulate a Macintosh Plus and can run Apple Macintosh System versions 1.1 to 7.5.5. vMac and Mini vMac support CPU emulation from Motorola 68000 to 68040, display output, sound, floppy disk insert, HFV image files, and more. Some vMac ports include extra features such as CD-ROM support, basic serial port (SCC) support, Gemulator ROM board support, and various performance improvements. Although the website is still in operation, most vMac development slowed to a halt in 1999, and no official releases have been made since. Many of the developer e-mail addresses listed on the website are not currently working.

Mac OS X Server 1.0 Operating system developed by Apple

Mac OS X Server 1.0 is an operating system developed by Apple Computer, Inc. Released on March 16, 1999, it was the first version of Mac OS X Server.

Universal binary Apple multi-architecture binary files

The universal binary format is, in Apple parlance, a format for executable files that run natively on either PowerPC or Intel-manufactured IA-32 or Intel 64 or ARM64-based Macintosh computers. The format originated on NeXTStep as "Multi-Architecture Binaries", and the concept is more generally known as a fat binary, as seen on Power Macintosh.

Architecture of macOS

The architecture of macOS describes the layers of the operating system that is the culmination of Apple Inc.'s decade-long research and development process to replace the classic Mac OS.

Executor (software) Program used to emulate Motorola 68000-based Macintosh programs

Executor is a software application that allows Motorola 68000-based classic Mac OS programs to be run on various x86-based operating systems. Executor was created by ARDI. As of 2005, Executor development has been indefinitely postponed; as of 2008, it was made available as open source software.

Unix-like Operating system that behaves in a manner similar to a Unix system

A Unix-like operating system is one that behaves in a manner similar to a Unix system, although not necessarily conforming to or being certified to any version of the Single UNIX Specification. A Unix-like application is one that behaves like the corresponding Unix command or shell. There is no technical standard defining the term, and opinions can differ about whether or the degree to which a particular operating system or application is Unix-like.

Classic Mac OS Original operating system of Apple Mac (1984–2001)

The Classic Mac OS is the series of operating systems developed for the Macintosh family of personal computers by Apple Inc. from 1984 to 2001, starting with System 1 and ending with Mac OS 9. The Macintosh operating system is credited with having popularized the graphical user interface concept. It was included with every Macintosh that was sold during the era in which it was developed, and many updates to the system software were done in conjunction with the introduction of new Macintosh systems.

Comparison of user features of operating systems refers to a comparison of the general user features of major operating systems in a narrative format. It does not encompass a full exhaustive comparison or description of all technical details of all operating systems. It is a comparison of basic roles and the most prominent features. It also includes the most important features of the operating system's origins, historical development, and role.

References

  1. ↑ Gruber, John (January 21, 2009). "Three things OS X could learn from the Classic Mac OS". Macworld . Archived from the original on September 24, 2016. Retrieved September 13, 2016.
  2. 1 2 Hertzfeld, Andy. "The Original Macintosh: Mea Culpa". folklore.org . Archived from the original on June 19, 2010. Retrieved May 10, 2010.
  3. ↑ Siracusa, John (March 24, 2006). "Five years of Mac OS X". Ars Technica . Condé Nast Digital. Archived from the original on June 25, 2009. Retrieved April 15, 2009. Even Steve Jobs still says "ecks" instead of "ten" sometimes.
  4. 1 2 Gruber, John. "Mountain Lion". Daring Fireball . Archived from the original on August 11, 2015. Retrieved August 15, 2015.
  5. ↑ Honan, Matthew (January 9, 2007). "Apple unveils iPhone". Macworld . Archived from the original on April 15, 2008. Retrieved January 16, 2010.
  6. 1 2 Linzmayer, Owen W. (2004). Apple Confidential 2.0. No Starch Press. Archived from the original on November 13, 2016. Retrieved October 1, 2016.
  7. ↑ "The Macintosh Product Introduction Plan". Stanford University Libraries & Academic Information Resources. Stanford University. Archived from the original on July 21, 2010.
  8. ↑ Gruman, Galen (November 1997). "Why Apple Pulled the Plug". Macworld . Vol. 14, no. 11. pp. 31–36.
  9. ↑ "A Brief History of the Classic Mac OS". Low End Mac . Archived from the original on October 5, 2016. Retrieved October 1, 2016.
  10. ↑ "What is an operating system (OS)?". Apple Inc. July 15, 2004. Archived from the original on July 22, 2010. Retrieved September 6, 2014.
  11. ↑ "Mac OS X and Unix" (PDF). Apple Inc. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 30, 2009. Retrieved February 5, 2016.
  12. ↑ "macOS version 10.12 Sierra on Intel-based Mac computers". The Open Group. Archived from the original on October 2, 2016. Retrieved September 29, 2016.
  13. ↑ "Apple Computer, Inc. Agrees to Acquire NeXT Software Inc". Apple Computer. December 20, 1996. Archived from the original on January 16, 1999.
  14. ↑ "Mac OS X: What is BSD?". Apple Inc. Archived from the original on February 19, 2013. Retrieved October 25, 2012.
  15. ↑ "Apple Releases Developer Preview of Mac OS X Lion" (Press release). Apple Inc. February 24, 2011. Retrieved October 13, 2019.
  16. ↑ "Inside the Macintosh Coprocessor Platform and A/ROSE". Archived from the original on October 15, 2016. Retrieved October 1, 2016.
  17. ↑ Crabb, Don (August 10, 1992). "Apple finally gets Unix right with A/UX 3.0". InfoWorld . pp. 68–69. Archived from the original on August 1, 2016. Retrieved October 1, 2016.
  18. ↑ "MAE screenshots". Archived from the original on January 24, 2014. Retrieved March 4, 2015.
  19. ↑ Barbou des Places, François; Stephen, Nick; Reynolds, Franklin D. (January 12, 1996). "Linux on the OSF Mach3 microkernel". Grenoble and Cambridge: OSF Research Institute. Archived from the original on February 11, 2012. Retrieved April 4, 2013.
  20. ↑ Hormby, Tom (2005). "Star Trek: Apple's First Mac OS on Intel Project". Low End Mac . Archived from the original on November 2, 2015. Retrieved November 10, 2015.
  21. ↑ Linzmayer, Owen W. (1999). Apple Confidential . San Francisco, CA: No Starch Press. ISBN   9781886411289. OCLC   245921029. Archived from the original on September 20, 2019. Retrieved May 29, 2017.
  22. ↑ "Apple surrenders the Pink (to Microsoft) Archived August 10, 2017, at the Wayback Machine ", The Register , October 3, 2008.
  23. ↑ Widman, Jake (October 9, 2008). "Lessons Learned: IT's Biggest Project Failures". PCWorld . Archived from the original on November 5, 2012. Retrieved October 23, 2012.
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