1Mac OS

Table of Contents

Introduction:................................................................................................................................................2

Conception:.................................................................................................................................................3

History of Mac OS:.......................................................................................................................................4

Types of Mac OS:.........................................................................................................................................7

Mac OS Classic:........................................................................................................................................8

Release of Mac OS Classic:...................................................................................................................9

Mac OS X:..............................................................................................................................................10

Features of Mac OS X.........................................................................................................................10

Release of Mac OS X..........................................................................................................................11

Difference between Mac OS and Windows :.............................................................................................13

Difference between Mac OS and Linux :....................................................................................................14

Conclusion:................................................................................................................................................15

REFERENCES:.............................................................................................................................................16

2Mac OS

Introduction:

Mac OS is a series of graphical user interface-based operating systems developed by

Apple Inc. for their Macintosh line of computer systems. Formerly Apple Inc. was called Apple

Computer, Inc. The Macintosh user experience is credited with popularizing the graphical user

interface. The Macintosh or Mac is a series of several lines of personal computers designed,

developed, and marketed by Apple Inc. The first Macintosh was introduced by Apple's then

Chairman Steve Jobs on January 24, 1984; it was the first commercially successful personal

computer to feature a mouse and a graphical user interface rather than a command-line interface.

The original form of what Apple would later name the "Mac OS" was the integral and

unnamed system software first introduced in 1984 with the original Macintosh, usually referred

to simply as the System software. The company continued to have success through the second

half of the 1980s, only to see it dissipate/disperse in the 1990s as the personal computer market

shifted toward the "Wintel" platform: IBM PC compatible machines running MS-DOS and

Microsoft Windows.

Years later, Apple consolidated its multiple consumer-level desktop models into the 1998

iMac all-in-one. This proved to be a sales success and saw the Macintosh brand revitalized,

albeit not to the market share level it once had. Current Mac systems are mainly targeted at the

home, education, and creative professional markets. These include the descendants of the

original iMac and the entry-level Mac mini desktop models, the Mac Pro tower graphics

workstation, the MacBook, MacBook Air and MacBook Pro laptops.

3Mac OS

Conception:

Apple from the beginning deliberately sought to as minimize by design the user's

conceptual awareness of the operating system. Tasks that on other products required a more

explicit working knowledge of an operating system would on a Macintosh be accomplished by

intuitive mouse gestures and manipulation of graphical control panels. The intention was that the

product would thus be more user-friendly and so more easily mastered. This would differentiate

it from devices using other operating environments, such as MS-DOS machines, which were

more technically challenging to operate.

The core of the system software was held in ROM, with updates (which would override

ROM-resident portions in RAM) typically provided free of charge by Apple dealers on floppy

disk. The user's involvement in an upgrade of the operating system was also minimized to

running an installer, or simply replacing system files, the simplicity of which again differentiated

the product from other offerings.

History of Mac OS:

On January 24, 1984, Apple Computer Inc. (now Apple Inc.) introduced the Macintosh

personal computer, with the Macintosh 128K model, which came bundled with what was later

renamed the Mac OS, but then known simply as the System Software. The Macintosh is often

credited with popularizing the graphical user interface. The Mac OS has been pre-installed on

almost every Macintosh computer sold. The operating system is also sold separately on the Mac

App Store for $29.99. It is also sold on a USB flash drive for $69.00. (Mac OS X Lion only.)

The original Macintosh system software was partially based on the Lisa OS, previously released

by Apple for the Lisa computer in 1983 and, as part of an agreement allowing Xerox to buy

shares in Apple at a favorable rate; it also used concepts from the Xerox PARC Xerox Alto,

which Steve Jobs and several other Macintosh team members had previewed.

The Macintosh project started in early 1979 with Jef Raskin, who envisioned an easy-to-

use, low-cost computer for the average consumer. In January 1981, Steve Jobs completely took

4Mac OS

over the Macintosh project. Jobs and a number of Apple engineers visited Xerox PARC in

December 1979, three months after the Lisa and Macintosh projects had begun. After hearing

about the pioneering GUI technology being developed at Xerox PARC from former Xerox

employees like Raskin, Jobs negotiated a visit to see the Xerox Alto computer and Smalltalk

development tools in exchange for Apple stock options. The final Lisa and Macintosh operating

systems mostly used concepts from the Xerox Alto, but many elements of the graphical user

interface were created by Apple including the menu bar, pop-up menus and the concepts of drag

and drop and direct manipulation.

Unlike the IBM PC, which used 8 kB of system ROM for power-on self-test (POST) and

basic input/output system (BIOS), the Mac ROM was significantly larger (64 kB) and held key

OS code. Much of the original Mac ROM was coded by Andy Hertzfeld, a member of the

original Macintosh team. He was able to conserve some of the precious ROM space by

interleaving some of the assembly language code. In addition to coding the ROM, he also coded

the kernel, the Macintosh Toolbox and some of the desktop accessories (DAs) as well. The icons

of the operating system, which represented folders and application software, were designed by

Susan Kare, who later designed the icons for Microsoft Windows 3.0. Bruce Horn and Steve

Capps wrote the Macintosh Finder as well as a number of Macintosh system utilities.

The first version of the Mac OS (simply called System) is easily distinguished between

other operating systems from the same period because it does not use a command line interface;

it was one of the first operating systems to use an entirely graphical user interface or GUI.

Additional to the system kernel is the Finder, an application used for file management, which

also displays the Desktop. The two files were contained in a folder directory labeled System

Folder, which contained other resource files, like a printer driver, needed to interact with the

System.

5Mac OS

Types of Mac OS:

Mac OS can be divided into two families:

1. The Mac OS Classic family, which was based on Apple's own code

2. The Mac OS X operating system, developed from Mac OS Classic family, and

NeXTSTEP, which was UNIX-based.

Mac OS Classic:

Mac OS Classic is a series of operating systems based on Apple's own code and graphical

user interfaces developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 1984, Mac OS has been

included with all new Macintosh computer systems. The final release of the "classic" Mac OS,

which had been Apple's primary operating system in 1999.

The "classic" Mac OS is characterized by its total lack of a command line; it is a

completely graphical operating system. Versions of Mac OS up through System 4 only ran one

application at a time. Even so, it was noted for its ease of use. Mac OS gained cooperative

multitasking with System 5, which ran on the Mac SE and Macintosh II. It was criticized for its

very limited memory management, lack of protected memory, and susceptibility to conflicts

among operating system "extensions" that provide additional functionality (such as networking)

or support for a particular device. Some extensions may not work properly together, or work

only when loaded in a particular order. Troubleshooting Mac OS extensions could be a time-

consuming process of trial and error.

The Macintosh originally used the Macintosh File System (MFS), a flat file system with

only one level of folders. This was quickly replaced in 1985 by the Hierarchical File System

(HFS), which had a true directory tree. Both file systems are otherwise compatible.

6Mac OS

Release of Mac OS Classic:

There have been ten significant releases of the client version namely:

1. System 1

2. System 2

3. System 3

4. System 4

5. System 5

6. System 6

Original 1984 Macintosh Desktop

7Mac OS

7. System 7

8. Mac OS 7.6

9. Mac OS 8

10. Mac OS 9

Mac OS X:

Mac OS X is the newest of Apple Inc.'s Mac OS line of operating systems. Although it is

officially designated as simply "version 10" of the Mac OS, it has a history largely independent

of the earlier Mac OS releases.

Mac OS X is a series of Unix-based operating systems and graphical user interfaces

developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 2002, Mac OS X has been included with all

new Macintosh computer systems. It is the successor to Mac OS 9, released in 1999; the final

release of the "classic" Mac OS, which had been Apple's primary operating system since 1984.

Mac OS X, whose X is the Roman numeral for 10 and is a prominent part of its brand

identity, is a Unix-based graphical operating system, built on technologies developed at NeXT

between the second half of the 1980s and Apple's purchase of the company in late 1996. From its

sixth release, Mac OS X v10.5 "Leopard" and onward, every release of Mac OS X gained UNIX

03 certification while running on Intel processors. Mac OS X also makes use of the BSD code

base. Mac OS X is also the basis for iOS, (previously iPhone OS) used on Apple's iPhone, iPod

Touch, and iPad.

8Mac OS

Features of Mac OS X

1.Aqua

The graphical user interface of Mac OS X is called Aqua. This includes the look and

feel, behavior, and integration of GUI elements. The GUI application environments of Mac OS

X, Carbon, Cocoa, and Java, all support Aqua. Classic does not, and Mac OS 9 applications

running under Classic look like they did on Mac OS 9.

2.Data and Information Management

Mac OS X makes a very good attempt at keeping various data and information

organized by context, rather than having files strewn all over the place.

3.Devices

Apple has excellent support for FireWire devices.

4.Power Management

Mac OS X in conjunction with Macintosh hardware make up for some impressive

power and thermal management.

5.Security

Mac OS X includes various security features, services, and APIs (including what's

available on typical *nix systems), such as those for controlling/managing passwords,

certificates, public/private keys, application-level privileged operations (capabilities), trust

policies, etc. Mac OS X supports Kerberos, OpenSSL, and PAM as well.

6.Speech Interface

Mac OS X includes both speech recognition (part of Carbon) and synthesis frameworks.

9Mac OS

Release of Mac OS X:

There have been eight significant releases of the client version namely:

1. Mac OS X v10.0 (Cheetah)

2. Mac OS X v10.1 (Puma)

3. Mac OS X v10.2 (Jaguar)

4. Mac OS X v10.3 (Panther)

5. Mac OS X v10.4 (Tiger)

6. Mac OS X v10.5 (Leopard)

7. Mac OS X v10.6 (Snow Leopard)

8. Mac OS X v10.7 (Lion)

Mac OS X Macintosh Desktop

10Mac OS

Difference between Mac OS and Windows :

Mac operating system is based on Unix while Windows operating system is based on

DOS programming language.

Mac is more secure than windows as windows can be easily hacked since it is used

universally.

Mac is focused on graphics and multimedia functions while windows is focused on office

function.

MAc dont have a big desktop unit instead only have a monitor whereas in windows there

is a big desktop unit.

Close and minimize boxes are in the top left corners of the monitor in Mac while it is on

top right corners of the monitor in windows.

Difference between Mac OS and Linux :

Mac is an entire platform consisting of software and hardware while Linux is just an

operating system consisting of only software.

Mac is focused on graphics and multimedia functions while Linux is focused on office

functions.

Mac cannot be installed on all the computers whereas Linux is an operating system that

can be installed on any computer.

11Mac OS

Conclusion:

Many people does not know about Mac OS. This article is to make aware the

people about the Mac OS operating system. It gives the description of Mac OS,

history of Mac OS, types of Mac OS. The family of Mac OS that is, Mac OS

classic and Mac OS X is discussed.

12Mac OS

REFERENCES:

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mac_OS

2. http://osxbook.com/book/bonus/ancient/whatismacosx/history.html

3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Mac_OS

4. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mac_OS_X

5. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macintosh