It's a little ironic that every new version of Mac OS comes closer to Windows when you consider that Microsoft was originally accused of hijacking Apple's interface.
Apple claims to have put 150 new features into Panther, but the two it highlights first are improvements to Finder and the new Exposé[alt+0233 in courier new]. The improvements to Finder bring it one step closer to the Windows menu system, which since 95 has been superior to Apple's. The new one click-reveals-all Finder was sorely needed and makes Panther much easier to navigate than its predecessors.
Exposé is just a variation of Microsoft Word's Arrange All command that allows you to tile all of the documents you have open so you can view them all at once, however, it goes a large step further by allowing you to tile all of the windows open on your desktop. In other words you can have multiple applications running in separate windows all visible at the same time. On top of that Panther allows you to highlight a specific application such as Word or PhotoShop and tile all of the documents or graphics that are open as well.
It sounds like fun but in reality it requires a lot of resources and is more aimed at G5 users than G3 so if you are running on anything like the minimum specs you will quickly learn that Macs DO crash.
Apple boss Steve Jobs said when he first launched OS X that he wanted to provide eye candy for the masses and with each version since it has looked better and better.
The emphasis still remains on Apple's well-earned reputation for handling graphics and to that end iChat AV has been added to Panther to allow anybody with a webcam to set up their own video conferencing links. iChat links with AOL's Instant Messenger and MSN Messenger.
Mail has been improved with more emphasis on filtering and handling spam and there it also finally has provision for blind copies (BCC) to be sent. However, Mail still has a bad flaw that can prove disastrous for anybody who wants to change ISP's. If you delete your old account, you will lose all of the emails that came and went through that account as well, unless you back them up first.
It is a downright stupid system that is time consuming if you have to back up large amounts of email but can be extremely costly if you don't. Despite its many faults, this is one problem Outlook and Outlook Express users don't have and certainly wouldn't tolerate.
There are good points about Mail, including its Spam filter which is better than Microsoft's junk mail system, and there is a new address update function which can let everybody in your address book know whenever you update any of your own details.
The new FileVault is designed for multiuser machines and once activated encrypts all of your files with 128-bit encryption based on your login and password. The problem, of course, is that if you forget your password all of your files are lost.
Panther has the latest versions of iPhoto, iMovie, iTunes and DVD Player and these alone are enough reason for any Mac fan to want to install it. Most MP3 fans are familiar with iTunes - particularly now that a Windows version is also available. Version 4 is included with Panther and with the huge success of Apple's iPod MP3 player and the incredible popularity of the iTunes online music store, it will be one of the most used apps in Panther.
The new music sharing feature allows you to share music over a network that includes any combination of Macs or Windows PC as long as they each have their own version of iTunes installed.
It is a simple enough peer-to-peer, file sharing set-up and one that raised quite a few eyebrows. However, Apple has put out a 'security' patch that it asks Panther users to install, which prevents illegal file sharing.
iPhoto and iMovie are still among the best and easiest to use graphics and video editing programs on the market. iPhoto 2 has been around a while and iMovie is now up to version 3.03 with the latest version included in Panther coming with plenty of new visual effects, a third audio track and improved integration with iDVD so you no longer have to export the movie first and then burn it.
OS X has come along way since its first shaky beginnings, but you cannot help feeling that Steve Jobs and Bill Gates are both working to the same agenda where their operating system are just desktop gateways to all of the other things they want to sell you. In Jobs' case OS X and its variations have done a great job launching his iLife concept and one would have to wonder whether Apple is now more concerned about being part of the entertainment industry than the IT industry.
Just look at Panther. Overall it is a lot of eye candy and shopfront, with some important improvements thrown in. But while it may be blasphemy to suggest it, anything that brings its menu system closer to Windows has to be good.