Tim Cook assures employees that Apple is committed to the Mac • Hacker News Board

Re: Tim Cook assures employees that Apple is committed to the Mac

#541

Post by pjmlp » Tue, Dec 20, 2016, 5:21 PM UTC

Lio wrote: post #403

pjmlp wrote: post #354

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No need when Unreal, Unity, Crytek and every other game engine that matters already support Metal.

I've not heard of any games or VR software released to the market that use Metal yet. I've heard it mentioned about projects still in development but so far that's all. Do you have any examples of things using it?

Some games:

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/vainglory/id671464704?mt=8

https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/sky-gamblers-storm-raiders/i...

https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/radiation-island/id923760656...

https://itunes.apple.com/de/app/asphalt-8-airborne/id6103919...

Adobe After Effects

https://blogs.adobe.com/creativecloud/after-effects-cc-2015-...

Adobe Premier Pro

https://blogs.adobe.com/creativecloud/up-next-for-premiere-p...

Re: Tim Cook assures employees that Apple is committed to the Mac

#542

Post by toyg » Tue, Dec 20, 2016, 5:22 PM UTC

ClassyJacket wrote: post #435

toyg wrote: post #238

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That and the iPad Pro were real duds. Good concepts, underwhelming execution ("let's just slap iOS on a big-ass screen, it will do").

Huh? The Apple Watch is a fantastic execution. The Taptic engine is one of the coolest and most useful pieces of technology I've seen in years.

> The Apple Watch is a fantastic execution

Compared to Android alternatives already on the market, it's nothing special. The other i-devices were distinctive, this one is an also-ran.

Re: Tim Cook assures employees that Apple is committed to the Mac

#543

Post by collyw » Tue, Dec 20, 2016, 5:23 PM UTC

bshimmin wrote: post #452

Jgrubb wrote: post #423

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I suppose it depends on which masses you're referring to, but when I look around at any public place in New Jersey where there are people on laptops, I always see a very healthy representation of Mac users. Of all ages.

Apple have something like a 10% market share. I think what you see in coffee shops and on expensive commuter trains is not at all representative; if you go into a Starbucks in a trendy part of east London, you'd be forgiven for thinking that Apple had a 95% market share, but I'm pretty sure if you go to, say, eastern Europe you'll see very, very few Macs.

I have noticed that as well. Mac users seem to feel the need to use them in public for some reason.

Re: Tim Cook assures employees that Apple is committed to the Mac

#544

Post by pjmlp » Tue, Dec 20, 2016, 5:23 PM UTC

shmerl wrote: post #528

pjmlp wrote: post #354

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No need when Unreal, Unity, Crytek and every other game engine that matters already support Metal.

That won't help those who don't have resources to add support for a redundant API, and would rather leave MacOS without some features than do the former. Example: https://www.winehq.org//wwn/404 > An open issue with anything newer than Direct3D9 is that wined3d still depends on legacy OpenGL 2 features and many drivers do not expose some features necessary for d3d10/11 in legacy contexts. With the MaxVersionGL key se…

> wined3d still depends on legacy OpenGL 2 and many drivers do not expose some features necessary for d3d10/11 in legacy contexts.

Well that says it all, even if Apple had an up to date OpenGL driver, that wouldn't help.

Re: Tim Cook assures employees that Apple is committed to the Mac

#545

Post by toyg » Tue, Dec 20, 2016, 5:26 PM UTC

digi_owl wrote: post #437

toyg wrote: post #264

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> that’s more a matter of third party developers stepping up. I think the hardcore sandboxing iOS forces doesn't really work well with "Pro" workflows. Say you want to edit a Word document and insert a picture - unless both your word processor app AND image-editing app are somehow integrated with dropbox / icloud, you can't do it; if you don't want to store your multi-gb image on "the cloud", you can't work with it;…

Not too sure. Been using a Windows tablet recently, and there is a sharp line between the Win32 programs and the metro apps. Thus you can say that a Windows tablet is a Windows desktop computer with Windows Mobile embedded. As for the sandbox thing, i agree highly. Sadly the valley seems convinced that heavy sandboxing is the only way forward, no matter how much it infantilize the user. Likely because the biggest pro…

> there is a sharp line between the Win32 programs and the metro apps.

Yeah, didn't mean that the experience is flawless, just that it's overall better (IMHO) than what you get on the iPad Pro.

Re: Tim Cook assures employees that Apple is committed to the Mac

#546

Post by bsg75 » Tue, Dec 20, 2016, 5:32 PM UTC

m_mueller wrote: post #168

bsg75 wrote: post #155

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is why I always return to XFCE. It may not be rapidly evolving, but if I'm running a Linux desktop, I want simple.

On what Distro though? What should I try if I want something that pretty much works out of the box i.e. has acceptable battery life + WiFi + Sound + Suspend mode on a Macbook / Latitude / Thinkpad without me having to set up config files according to all kinds of internet sources for a day... or even a week?

Fedora XFCE spin, or CentOS 7.

Edit: Fedora on workstaton / laptop, CentOS 7 on a dev server where a desktop has utility. Not on production boxes.

Re: Tim Cook assures employees that Apple is committed to the Mac

#547

Post by shmerl » Tue, Dec 20, 2016, 5:34 PM UTC

pjmlp wrote: post #541

Lio wrote: post #403

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've not heard of any games or VR software released to the market that use Metal yet. I've heard it mentioned about projects still in development but so far that's all. Do you have any examples of things using it?

Some games: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/vainglory/id671464704?mt=8 https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/sky-gamblers-storm-raiders/i... https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/radiation-island/id923760656... https://itunes.apple.com/de/app/asphalt-8-airborne/id6103919... Adobe After Effects https://blogs.adobe.com/creativecloud/after-effects-cc-2015-... Adobe Premier Pro https://blogs.adobe.com/creativecloud/up-next-for-premi…

Apple's hardware can't even handle serious VR, so the usefulness of spending time on Metal for it is quite moot.

Re: Tim Cook assures employees that Apple is committed to the Mac

#548

Post by binthere » Tue, Dec 20, 2016, 5:35 PM UTC

missmymac wrote: post #517

enjo wrote: post #17

The latest rev pushed me to a PC for the first time in like 15 years. It's partly because I didn't love the new Macbook Pro, but also cause hey..change is fun sometimes. I'm very happy with my new Surface Book. I never thought I'd like the touchscreen as much as I do. I LOVE being able to go to tablet mode for calls and stuff where I sort of want to just wander around. The pen has completely changed how I do flow-cha…

I tried windows. I stopped because I didn't like all the telemetry they collect on users, including your keystroke and stylus movements. They say they do this to train Cortana, but it has the side effect of giving the NSA a front row seat to everything I do.

You known this is optional, right? You can turn it off during and after installation of Windows.

Also, Android and iOS + most of the popular apps you use, including the desktop ones, use some kind of tracking/telemetry and you don't even have the option to disable.

Re: Tim Cook assures employees that Apple is committed to the Mac

#549

Post by usingpond » Tue, Dec 20, 2016, 5:41 PM UTC

72deluxe wrote: post #296

pducks32 wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I love Safari. The battery life is fantastic and the experience is fantastic.

I find "experience" an odd word here. My browser is a tool, not a theme park or spa day. I want it to do work for me, not delight me. Perhaps I am misunderstanding "experience"? An experience would be having a track day at Silverstone, not opening Safari.

Maybe we're both misunderstanding, but I think they meant "User Experience". Surely you agree that this is an important consideration in software development?

Re: Tim Cook assures employees that Apple is committed to the Mac

#550

Post by wmeredith » Tue, Dec 20, 2016, 5:46 PM UTC

bane wrote: post #47

I kind of feel like, once you're talking publicly about things like if you are committed or not, you probably aren't and are trying to keep people from fleeing while you figure out what to do or while some long-term strategy kicks in.

Exactly. There is a good line from game of Thrones that goes, "The King doesn't have to tell people he is the King." Or something similar. This is puddle deep marketing spin.

What Apple is committed to is its iPhone-powered firehose of cash. (Maybe volcano of cash? Atomic bomb? No hyperbole is too strong, here.)

I pine for great computer hardware from Apple as much as anyone else, I'm sad about the current state of their computers. But can you really blame them? The numbers generated from their iPhone business is bonkers. It's off the map/beyond the pale and it has made them arguably the biggest most successful enterprise in the history of the world. What are they to do?