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.[1] 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.

Contents

Early history

Development

The Macintosh project started in early 1979 with Jef Raskin, who envisioned an easy-to-use, low-cost computer for the average consumer. In September 1979, Raskin began looking for an engineer who could put together a prototype. Bill Atkinson, a member of the Apple Lisa team, introduced him to Burrell Smith, a service technician who had been hired earlier that year.

In January 1981, Steve Jobs completely took 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.[2] 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 menubar, pop-up menus and the concepts of drag and drop and direct manipulation.[3]

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.

Apple was very strong in advertising their newfound machine. After it was created, the company bought all 39 pages of advertisement space in the Newsweek magazine, 1984 November/December edition. Apple was so successful in its marketing for the Macintosh, that it quickly outshone its more sophisticated predecessor, the Lisa, in sales — so much so that Apple quickly developed a product called MacWorks which allowed the Lisa to emulate Macintosh system software through System 3, by which time it had been discontinued as the re-branded Macintosh XL. Many of Lisa's operating system advances would not appear in the Macintosh operating system until System 7 or later.

Release

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.

System 1, 2, 3 and 4

These releases could only run one application at a time, though special application shells such as Servant,[4] MultiMac,[5] or Switcher (discussed under MultiFinder) could work around this to some extent. System 1.0, 1.1, and 2.0 used a flat file system called Macintosh File System (MFS). The Finder provided virtual folders that could be used to organize files, but these were not visible from any other application and did not actually exist in the file system. System 2.0 added support for AppleTalk and the newly introduced LaserWriter to use it. System 2.1 (Finder 5.0) introduced the HFS (Hierarchical File System) which had real directories. This version was specifically to support the Hard Disk 20 and only implemented HFS in RAM, startup and most floppy disks remained MFS 400 K volumes. System 3.0 (Finder 5.1) was introduced with the Mac Plus, officially implementing HFS, 800K startup drives, support for several new technologies including SCSI and AppleShare, and Trash "bulging" (i.e., when the Trash contained files, it would gain a bulged appearance). System 4.0 was released with the Mac SE and System 4.1 first shipped with the Macintosh II—these new machines required additional support for the first expansion slots, the Apple Desktop Bus (ADB), internal hard drives and, on the Mac II, color, larger displays and the first Motorola 68020 processor.[6]

Changes in early Macintosh operating systems are best reflected in the version number of the Finder, where major leaps are found between 1.x, 4.x, 5.x, and 6.x.

System Software Release[7] System Version[7] Release Date[7] Finder Version[7] LaserWriter Version[7] Release Information[7]
Mac System Software 1.0 (.97)[8] January 24, 1984 1.0 Initial Release
Mac System Software (0.1) 1.1 May 5, 1984 1.1g Maintenance Release, Added Mountain scene, About box, Clean Up Command
Mac System Software (0.3 & 0.5) 2.0 April 1985[9] 4.1 Finder Update
System software[8]

[10] [11]

 2.1[8] September 1985[8] 5.0[10][11] Release for Hard Disk 20 support[8][10][11]
Mac System Software (0.7) 3.0 January 1986 5.1 1.1 Introduced with Mac Plus
System Software 1.0 3.1 February 1986 5.2 1.1
System Software 1.1 3.2 June 1986[12] 5.3 3.1 Fixed problems with data loss, system crashes; updated Chooser and Calculator.[12]
AppleShare 1.0 3.3 January 1987 5.4 AppleShare 1.0 Work Station Installer disk (for the Macintosh 512K)
AppleShare 1.1[13] 3.3[13] 1987 5.5[13] AppleShare 1.1 Work Station Installer disk (for the Macintosh 512K)[13]
AppleShare 2.0[13] 3.4[13] 1988 6.1[13] AppleShare 2.0 Macintosh 512Ke Work Station Installer disk[13]
System Software 2.0 4.0 January 1987 5.4 3.3 Introduced AppleShare
System Software 2.0.1 4.1 March 2, 1987 5.5 4.0 Release for Macintosh II and SE. Updated LaserWriter Driver

System Software 5

System Software 5 (also referred to as "System 5") added MultiFinder, an extension which let the system run several programs at once. The system used a co-operative multitasking model, meaning that time was given to the background applications only when the running application yielded control. A change in system functions that applications were already calling to handle events made many existing applications share time automatically. Users could also choose not to use MultiFinder, thereby sticking with using a single application at a time as in previous releases of the system software.

System Software 5 was the first Macintosh operating system to be given a unified "Macintosh System Software" version number, as opposed to the numbers used for the System and Finder files. It was available for a very short time and only in some countries, including the United States, Canada and some European countries.

System software
release[7]		 System
version[7]		 Release
date[7]		 Software version[7] Release information[7]
Finder MultiFinder LaserWriter
5.0 4.2 October 1987[14] 6.0 1.0 5.0 Initial Release
5.1 4.3 circa 1988 6.0 1.0 5.1 Updated LaserWriter Driver and new version of Apple HD SC Setup

System Software 6

Main article: System 6

System Software 6 (also referred to simply as System 6) was a consolidation release of the Mac OS, producing a complete, stable, and long-lasting operating system. Two major hardware introductions requiring additional support under System 6 were the 68030 processor and 1.44 MB SuperDrive debuting with the Macintosh IIx and Macintosh SE/30. Later, it would include support for the first specialized laptop features with the introduction of the Macintosh Portable. From System 6 forward, the Finder would have a unified version number closely matching that of the System, alleviating much of the confusion caused by the often considerable differences between earlier Systems.[15]

System Version[7] Release Date[7] Finder Version[7] MultiFinder Version[7] LaserWriter Version[7] Release Information[7]
6.0 April, 1988 6.1 6.0 5.2 Initial Release
6.0.1 September 19, 1988 6.1.1 6.0.1 5.2 Release for Macintosh IIx (1988)
6.0.2 Late 1988 6.1 6.0.1 5.2 Maintenance Release
6.0.3 March 7, 1989 6.1 6.0.3 5.2 Release for Macintosh IIcx (1989)
6.0.4 September 20, 1989 6.1.4 6.0.4 5.2 Release for Macintosh Portable and IIci (1989)
6.0.5 March 19, 1990[16] 6.1.5 6.0.5 5.2 Release for Macintosh IIfx (1990)
6.0.6 October 15, 1990 6.1.6 6.0.6 5.2 Not released because of AppleTalk bug [17]
6.0.7 October 16, 1990 6.1.7 6.0.7 5.2 Official release for Macintosh LC, IIsi and Classic (1990)
6.0.8 April, 1991 6.1.8 6.0.8 7.0 Updated printing software to match software of System 7.0
6.0.8L Late 1991/Early 1992 6.1.8 6.0.8 7.0 Limited maintenance release for Pacific customers

System 7

Main article: System 7

On May 13, 1991, System 7 was released. It was a major upgrade to the Mac OS, adding a significant user interface overhaul, new applications, stability improvements and many new features. Its introduction coincided with the release of and provided support for the 68040 Macintosh line. The System 7 era saw numerous changes in the Macintosh platform including a proliferation of Macintosh models, the 68k to Power Macintosh transition as well as the rise of Microsoft Windows as a serious compeititor, increasing use of computer networking and the explosion in popularity of the internet.

Perhaps the most significant feature of System 7 was virtual memory support, which previously had only been available as a third-party add-on. Accompanying this was a move to 32-bit memory addressing, necessary for the ever-increasing amounts of RAM available to the Motorola 68030 CPU, and 68020 CPUs with a 68551 PMMU. This process involved making all of the routines in OS code use the full 32-bits of a pointer as an address — prior systems used the upper 8 bits as flags. This change was known as being "32-bit clean". While System 7 itself was 32-bit clean, many existing machines and thousands of applications were not, so it was some time before the process was completed. To ease the transition, the "Memory" control panel contained a switch to disable this feature, allowing for compatibility with older applications.

One notable System 7 feature was built-in co-operative multitasking. In System Software 6, this function was optional through the MultiFinder. System 7 also introduced aliases, similar to shortcuts that were introduced in later versions of Microsoft Windows. System extensions were enhanced by being moved to their own subfolder; a subfolder in the System Folder was also created for the control panels. In System 7.5, Apple included the Extensions Manager, a previously third-party program which simplified the process of enabling and disabling extensions.

The Apple menu, home only to desk accessories in System 6, was made more general-purpose: the user could now make often-used folders and applications—or anything else they desired—appear in the menu by placing aliases to them in an "Apple Menu Items" subfolder of the System Folder. System 7 also introduced the following: AppleScript, a scripting language for automating tasks; 32-bit QuickDraw, supporting so-called "true color" imaging, previously available as a system extension; and TrueType, an outline font standard.

The Trash, under System 6 and earlier, would empty itself automatically when shutting down the computer or, if MultiFinder were not running, when launching an application. System 7 reimplemented the Trash as a special hidden folder, allowing files to remain in it across reboots until the user deliberately chose the "Empty Trash" command.

System 7.1 was mainly a bugfix release, with a few minor features added. System 7.1 was not only the first Macintosh operating system to cost money (all previous versions were free or sold at the cost of the floppies), but also received a "Pro" sibling with extra features. System 7.1.2 was the first version to support PowerPC-based Macs. System 7.1 also introduced the System Enablers as a method to support new models without updating the actual System file. This led to extra files inside the system folder (one per new model supported).

System 7.5 introduced a large number of new features, many of which were based on shareware applications that Apple bought and included into the new system.[18][19] On the newer PowerPC machines, System 7.5 may have had stability problems partly due to a new memory manager (which can be turned off), and issues with the handling of errors in the PowerPC code (all PowerPC exceptions mapped to Type 11). These issues did not affect 68k-architecture machines. System 7.5 was contemporary with Apple's failed Copland effort as well as the release of Windows 95, which may explain Apple's purchase of several shareware system enhancements to include as new system features.

Mac OS 7.6

Stability improved in PPC Macs with Mac OS 7.6, which dropped the "System" moniker as a more trademarkable name was needed in order to license the OS to the growing market of third-party Macintosh clone manufacturers. Mac OS 7.6 required 32-bit-clean ROMs, and so dropped support for every Mac with a 68000, as well as the Mac II, Mac IIx, Mac IIcx, and Mac SE/30.

Version history

Mac OS 8

Main article: Mac OS 8

Mac OS 8 was released on July 26, 1997, shortly after Steve Jobs returned to the company. It was mainly released to keep the Mac OS moving forward during a difficult time for Apple. Initially planned as Mac OS 7.7, it was renumbered "8" to exploit a legal loophole and accomplish Jobs's goal of terminating third-party manufacturers' licenses to System 7 and shutting down the Macintosh clone market.[20] 8.0 added a number of features from the abandoned Copland project, while leaving the underlying operating system unchanged. A multi-threaded Finder was included, enabling better multi-tasking. Files could now be copied in the background. The GUI was changed in appearance to a new shaded greyscale look called Platinum, and the ability to change the appearance themes (also known as skins) was added with a new control panel. This capability was provided by a new "appearance" API layer within the OS, one of the few significant changes.

Apple sold 1.2 million copies of Mac OS 8 in its first two weeks of availability and 3 million within six months. In light of Apple's financial difficulties at the time, there was a large grassroots movement among Mac users to upgrade and 'help save Apple'. Even some pirate groups refused to redistribute the OS.[21][22]

Mac OS 8.1 saw the introduction of an updated version of the Hierarchical File System called HFS Plus, which fixed many of the limitations of the earlier system (HFS Plus continues to be used in Mac OS X). There were some other interface changes such as separating network features from printing, and some improvements to application switching. However, in underlying technical respects, Mac OS 8 was not very different from System 7.

Mac OS 8.5 focused on speed and stability, with lots of old 68k code replaced by modern code native to the PowerPC. It also improved the appearance on the system, although the theming feature was cut late in development.

Mac OS 9

Main article: Mac OS 9

Mac OS 9 was released on October 23, 1999. It was generally a steady evolution from Mac OS 8. Early development releases of Mac OS 9 were numbered 8.7. Mac OS 9 added improved support for AirPort wireless networking. It introduced an early implementation of multi-user support. Though not a true multi-user operating system, Mac OS 9 did allow multiple desktop users to have their own data and system settings. An improved Sherlock search engine added several new search plug-ins. Mac OS 9 also provided a much improved memory implementation and management. AppleScript was improved to allow TCP/IP and networking control. Mac OS 9 also made the first use of the centralized Apple Software Update to find and install OS and hardware updates. Other new features included its on-the-fly file encryption software with code signing and Keychain technologies, Remote Networking and File Server packages and much improved list of USB drivers.

Mac OS 9 also added some transitional technologies to help application developers adopt some Mac OS X features before the introduction of the new OS to the public, again easing the transition. These included new APIs for the file system, and the bundling of the Carbon library that apps could link against instead of the traditional API libraries — apps that were adapted to do this can be run natively on Mac OS X as well. Other changes were made in Mac OS 9 to allow it to be booted in the "Classic Environment" within Mac OS X. This is a compatibility layer in Mac OS X versions prior to 10.5 (in fact a Mac OS X application, originally codenamed the "blue box") that runs a complete Mac OS 9 operating system, allowing applications that have not been ported to Carbon to run on Mac OS X. This is reasonably seamless, though "classic" applications retain their original Mac OS 8/9 appearance and do not gain the Mac OS X "Aqua" appearance.

Mac OS X

Main articles: History of Mac OS X and Mac OS X

Mac OS X ( /ˈmæk ˌoʊ ˌɛs ˈtɛn/)[23] is the line of graphical operating systems developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. which succeeded the original Mac OS, which had been Apple's primary operating system since 1984. Unlike the earlier Macintosh operating system, Mac OS X is a Unix-based operating system[24] built on technology developed at NeXT from the second half of the 1980s until early 1997, when Apple purchased the company.[25]

The first version was Mac OS X Server 1.0 in 1999, which retained the earlier Mac operating system's "platinum" appearance and even resembled OPENSTEP in places. The desktop-oriented version, Mac OS X, followed in March 2001 sporting the new Aqua user interface. Since then, seven more distinct "end-user" and "server" versions have been released. In July 2011 Mac OS X v10.7 was released with new features like Launch Pad which is a springboard style home for your apps, similar to the iPad, and Mission Control, an improved exposé.[26] Releases of Mac OS X are named after big cats. For example, Apple calls Mac OS X v10.5 "Leopard", while its previous release was called "Tiger".

Versions of Mac OS X:

Timeline


See also

Notes

  1. ^ http://support.apple.com/kb/TA31885?viewlocale=en_US
  2. ^ Mike Tuck. "The Real History of the GUI". http://www.sitepoint.com/article/real-history-gui/5/. 
  3. ^ Bruce Horn. "On Xerox, Apple and Progress". http://www.folklore.org/StoryView.py?project=Macintosh&story=On_Xerox,_Apple_and_Progress.txt. 
  4. ^ Multi-Mac fate…
  5. ^ MultiMac MULTITASKING!
  6. ^ Mac II, SE
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q "Macintosh: System Software Version History". Apple Inc.. August 7, 2001. http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=15582. Retrieved 2008-04-22. 
  8. ^ a b c d e Kottwitz, Randal L. (1987). The Power User's Manual. New York: MacUser Publications, Inc.. pp. 11. http://www.vintagemacworld.com/pu_review.html. Retrieved 2008-05-02 
  9. ^ Re: Latest official software versions
  10. ^ a b c "Hard Disk 20: Boot From HD20 Locks Up HD20 and Macintosh". Apple Inc.. November 10, 1988. http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=1685. Retrieved 2008-05-02. 
  11. ^ a b c Denny, Bob (November 1985). "Programming for HFS Compatibility". MacTech Magazine (Westlake Village, CA: MacTech) 2 (1): 8. http://www.mactech.com/articles/mactech/Vol.02/02.01/HFS/index.html. Retrieved 2008-05-02 
  12. ^ a b List of Bugs corrected by System 3.2
  13. ^ a b c d e f g h "System Software: Configs for Mac 128K, XL, 512, & 512KE (7/94)". Apple Inc.. August 3, 1994. http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=5356. Retrieved 2008-05-02. 
  14. ^ http://applemuseum.bott.org/sections/os.html
  15. ^ Apple Macintosh before System 7
  16. ^ 6.0.5 Press Release
  17. ^ http://support.apple.com/kb/TA45090
  18. ^ QuickDraw GX is the big draw for System 7.5. http://books.google.com/books?id=XDgEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA94&lpg=PA94#v=onepage&q&f=false. "Apple has added a few features to spruce up the interface in System 7.5, although these have previously been available as utilities or shareware for quite some time." 
  19. ^ "Disappearing Software". http://www.mathdittos2.com/columns/bh/bh990618.html. 
  20. ^ Beale, Steven (October 1997). "Mac OS 8 Ships with No License Deal". Macworld 14 (10): pp. 34–36
  21. ^ Latest MacOS pleases end-users. http://books.google.com/books?id=vTsEAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PA34&dq=mac%20os%208%20piracy%201997&pg=PA34#v=onepage&q&f=false. 
  22. ^ "Where do you want to pirate today?". Forbes. http://www.forbes.com/1997/08/08/column.html. "the latest word out in the Macwarez scene is that pirates shouldn't copy Apple's OS8--Mac's latest operating system--they should buy it, since Apple so desperately needs the money." 
  23. ^ "What is an operating system (OS)?". 2004-07-15. http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=25808. Retrieved 2006-12-20. 
  24. ^ http://images.apple.com/macosx/pdf/MacOSX_UNIX_TB_v2.pdf
  25. ^ Apple Computer (December 20, 1996). "Apple Computer, Inc. Agrees to Acquire NeXT Software Inc.". http://web.archive.org/web/*/product.info.apple.com/pr/press.releases/1997/q1/961220.pr.rel.next.html. Retrieved 2007-01-04. 
  26. ^ http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-13727_7-20020209-263.html

Further reading

External links

Classic Mac OS (history)
Mac OS X (history)
Server
Other OS projects