Simon is a hands-on software architect who works within 
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[Coding the Architecture] Just a short note to plug a handful of sessions that Kevin and I are presenting at the upcoming Software Architect 2008 conference, 3rd-5th June, London. 1. Coding the Architecture : From Developer to Architect The first is a re-run of our ...
Tiger : The ugly
Following on from Tiger : The good and Tiger : The bad...
Inconsistent look and feel : Many people have commented upon the new Mail look and feel being ugly. Personally, I'm undecided, although there is one thing that strikes me and that's consistency. Or rather the lack of it. Take a look at the following screenshots.
One operating system, 4 different applications and 4 different look and feels. I was surprised to still see the brushed metal look on Safari, iTunes, etc because it's quite harsh compared to the softer decoration used by Tiger. Even the icons/buttons are different.
It's a real shame. You can see that Apple have put so much effort into making everything work really well and the Aqua look and feel is really nice. Is it possible to make Safari, iTunes et al to use the new decoration? Oh, and don't forget the default look and feel for Java applications, which still seem to use a pinstripe background (although you can change this with a system property).
Re: Tiger : The ugly
Awww come on Simon, putting IntelliJ IDEA (EAP?) in the mix is hardly fair, although its using the system l&f its hardly trying to be a native app. The others I assume are written by apple? fair enough then - point made.
I've just been pondering whether to make a switch to Apple myself, but the minis seem under spec'ed for Java work and the prices for G5's! hahahahaha. OK powerbooks seem more competitive with similar intel notebooks (still much more expensive than desktops) but I don't want nor need a lappie. Overall I think what I'm after is simply the OSX experience rather than buying into the Apple kit.
Re: Tiger : The ugly
Overall I think what I'm after is simply the OSX experience rather than buying into the Apple kit.
osbald, Apple's first and foremost a hardware company. iTunes isn't a huge revenue stream but it helps sell iPods and Mac OS X sells Macs. Don't think you're ever going to get the OSX experience without buying a Mac.
I use Java on an iBook (similar spec to a Mac Mini) and it's OK. G5 iMac is GBP899; is that really laughable?