Now that Mountain Lion has been announced, there has been speculation in news forums about the direction Apple may be taking with OS X and iOS. The following are my thoughts on the matter.
OS X (formerly Mac OS X) and iOS (the opeating system or iPads and the like) will continue to merge with each new OS upgrade. With Snow Leopard (OS X 10.6) we saw the beginning of the App Store which does for OS X what the iTunes App Store does for iOS. With Lion (OS X 10.7) we see the inclusion of Launchpad which allows OS X to have app launching capability similar to iOS without having to delve into the Applications folder. With OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion this trend continues with Messages, Notes, Reminders, Calendars, Contacts and more taking over for simiarly named OS X apps, for closer integration and familiarity of naming with the corresponding iOS app.
However, I am noticing Apple moving away from software suites. Mail will simply become Mail without Notes; a button will link to the Notes app which will also have some or all of the functionality of Stickies. Calendar will replace iCal and the reminders (formerly Tasks) portion will link to the Reminders app. Pages, Numbers and Keynote are already single apps with iWork and AppleWorks going the way of the dinosaurs. I see Apple leaving it up to third party developers to improve on their own offerings OR to provide integrated suites. Can anyone say Microsoft? I can see iTunes becoming separate media players, again; (iTunes, iMusicVideo, iBooks, iMovie Player, iUniversity, iAudible, iRadio, iShows, etc…)
Why would Apple do this? One: Apps focused on one thing can be updated, upgrade and made better in a more timely manner. Also, single purpose apps normally do not take as much RAM to run. The iPad have very little RAM compared to a current Mac of any size. Apple has pretty much perfected the notion of suspending apps to save RAM while re-opening the app lightning quick from a solid-state-drive (SSD).
I see the Dock being revised into a document launcher, if it doesn’t go away completely. Its functionality can easily be replaced by Laucher and App Switcher (Command-Tab). I already use Spotlight to launch apps I don’t keep on the Dock. Launchpad’s ability to group apps by category also allows me to located and launch apps I may have forgotten I had installed.
I see Apple eventually going all SSD for their portable division (iOS and OS X) and both SSD and spinning drive for their desktop machines; the SSD for system and apps with the spinning drive as a high-capacity storage cabinet. My Users folder occupies much more storage space than my Applications, Library and Systems folders combined! Heck! If I can access my documents through the Internet (that is, iCloud Documents and Data and/or Dropbox) I won’t need massive storage on my computer!
I see Apple coming out with an Internet connected television where you can attach a high capacity spinning drive that you can access via your OS X laptop or iOS device from a remote location. You can already do this with MobileMe and iCloud using Back to my Mac with a Time Capsule or a hard drive attached to an Airport Extreme. With a USB hub you can attach multiple USB drives and printers! Why not with a television set?
Print to your network printers and those printers attached to your Airport extreme from any location in the world. Sort of a Back-to-my-Printer version of Back to my Mac. Yes, you can do this with certain internet enable printers, but why not ANY printer connected to your Apple Airport/Airport-TV
I see Apple-TV3 (or firmware upgrade to the current AppleTV/TV2) allowing access to and playing of iTunes Media attached to an Apple Airport connected device. Basically, this means you have an iTunes Player app in firmware of the Apple-TV (and Apple Television) and pointed to an iTunes media folder on an Airplay capable device (Airport, Airport equipped TV, Mac) as long as it is on the same network and using the same Apple ID. This should also allow sync with iTunes Match, including video, I would hope.
Let’s see. AppleTV or Apple TV equipped television with a large capacity hard drive attached for storing of iTunes media, documents and data, that can be accessed from any OS X or iOS device from a remote location using your Apple-ID for access and to tie it all together through iCloud services and with social media; Twitter, Facebook, or what ever might come along or Apple purchases.
Other thoughts: iOS Remote app built-in to every iOS device (phone, pod, pad) for configuration and control of AppleTV, Apple Television, Apple Time Capsule, Apple Airport and any other Apple device, with auto detection when on the same network as the ‘Apple iRemote’ and an interface appropropriate for that device.
To wrap up, separation of large apps to smaller, with tight integration amongst themselves, with iCloud and with social media. Switch to SSDs for faster access, less ower and greater battery life. Ability to access massive amounts of data through iCloud or through the Internet to connected devices in the home; Airport, Mac, TV and television.
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