December 10 - December 17

Mac 0S 9: Your Internet co-pilot by Alessandro Cancian Ive been using Mac OS 9 on my computer for three weeks now, and I have verified the good stability of Apples latest operation system. Steve Jobs called it "A must have," and from certain points of view I concur, even if in my opinion it is not a giant leap from version 8.6. Dont get me wrong. Mac OS 8.6 already represented a very interesting version, and now Mac OS 9 probably adds a touch of sophistication. The new OS introduces 50 new features, even if some of these are invisible, many of which simplify a good deal of the everyday use or the maintenance of the system. The most interesting novelty is probably the Auto-Updating feature. Now the system itself can automatically check that the software installed on your computer is the most recent version, and if it isnt it will ask you whether you want to download an update. This feature will keep you informed of new patches, and it will also recognize external devices, such as hard drives, mouse, etc., verifying that the drivers you install are the most recent ones. A nice point, but it doesnt work with all external devices, since not all them support this characteristic yet. Another positive note for Mac OS 9 is the implementation of Sherlock, version 2. Sherlock is the easiest way to look for anything on the Internet, allowing a partition of the Web in categories such as shopping, people, etc. The test I ran was to look for the best price for an iBook: a few seconds, and the answer appeared on my screen. The new graphical interface characterizing Sherlock does not make me enthusiastic; its rather dull. OS 9 now allows Mac personalization, thanks to its support of multiple users, which can save preferences via a login panel. It is interesting if you happen to share your computer with somebody else and every morning you find a different background. Mac OS 9 also improves on security issues, thanks to a new voice recognition system for access to personal data and file encryption (perfect for sending data over the Internet). In my case, voice recognition did not always work perfectly, especially when background noise was present. Among the other features worth mentioning is the possibility to share files with other users via the Internet, and the keychain allowing the system to remember all your passwords. Mac OS 9 is not a new Operation System, but an interesting improvement on version 8.6, with pros and cons. Some friends lamented the incompatibility with several programs, such as that for Internet connection via ASDL supplied by Bell. On the other hand, the degree of stability achieved is definitely good, especially when compared with products like Windows 95 or 98. If youre looking for features like multitasking or memory management, Im afraid youll have to wait until Mac OS X consumer version appears on the shelves. To get more info, visit http://www.apple.com

 

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