So, the next version of Apple's operating system slated for release in the first 1/2 of 2005 has been previewed at the Worldwide Developer's Conference. OS X 10.4 Tiger will have a bevy of new features and will be optimized to enhance system performance (UNIX and 64-bit addressing enhancements) and improve system display (Core Image filters).
Here are some other highlights:
Spotlight: A system-wide search engine that will produce a results page as you type rather than waiting for the search engine to scan through pre-indexed results. It also seems to rely on a robust metadata system that developers can access via API's in order to customize the application. Very cool.
iChat: It will allow you to have video chats with up to three people at the same time (with an elegant user interface to manage the three streams) and to audio chat with up to nine people. In addition, it will rely on Quicktime's next video compression technology to improve video quality: H.264/AVC (Advanced Video Coding).
Dashboard: Hmmm, I wonder what Konfabulator thinks about this particular development. I had discussed Konfabulator's widgets in a previous post. It seems that Apple has decided to make a stable of widgets part of their OS. Like Konfabulator, Apple allows outside developers to create widgets for the OS: "Developers can build their own Widgets using the JavaScript language to take advantage of Core Image capabilities."
Safari RSS: Apple's Safari browser will include interfaces to view and organize RSS feeds within the browser itself. Many are used to third-party news aggregators (such as NetNewsWire) doing this or to websites (such as Bloglines) offering these services .
Oh, and let's not forget the new line of Apple Cinema Displays released today. Is it time to begin the debate asking whether there should be a dividing line between something being a computer monitor and something being a television?
