Paul Thurrott’s SuperSite for Windows: Windows “Longhorn” FAQ
But Mac OS X already has a lot of these features. What’s the big deal?
A: Apple has implemented some basic desktop composition features in Mac OS X “Panther.” But the basic problem with Mac OS X isn’t going away: It’s a classic desktop operating system that doesn’t offer anything in the way of usability advancements over previous desktop operating systems. Today, Windows XP and its task-based interface are far superior to anything in Mac OS X. In the future, Longhorn will further distance Windows from OS X. From a graphical standpoint, there won’t be any comparison. As Microsoft revealed at the PDC 2003 conference, Longhorn is far more impressive technically than Panther.
OK, so who wants to break it to this guy that Longhorn isn’t due out until “late 2005”, to quote his own site’s timeline.
That’s two years from now.
I draw two conclusions from this:
- Apple has two years (two release cycles, at their current pace) to pick and choose what features they think are worth implementing from the Longhorn catalog
- IT buyers may decide to stick with current releases of Windows products and wait to see if any of this comes to pass
Anyone remember Adam Osborne, who managed to kill demand for his Osborne II by touting the features of impending Osborne III? The time involved here is not the same: people may not be willing to wait that long.