On the 5th of January 2000, Apple took the covers off Mac OS X—the successor to the classic Mac OS operating system. About a year later, on the 24th of March 2021, Mac OS X went on sale for the very first time. This week marks the 20 year anniversary since Apple’s iconic operating software went on sale, and looking at the evolution of macOS in the decades since, Mac OS X is an iconic OS that arguably turned the corner for Apple—then a struggling company looking for an identity.
Something that was introduced on the new “Aqua” interface is the now-familiar “Dock”, which we still see on the latest versions of macOS today. At the time, Apple called it a “revolutionary new way to organise everything from applications and documents to web sites and streaming audio”. Along with that, we also saw the “completely new” Finder to help with the storing, organisation, and retrieving of files.
The late Steve Jobs, meanwhile, had an inkling as to the significance of Mac OS X (codenamed Cheetah), sharing that this was the most important software from Apple in awhile:
“Mac OS X is the most important software from Apple since the original Macintosh operating system in 1984 that revolutionized the entire industry. We can’t wait for Mac users around the globe to experience its stability, power and elegance.”
– Steve Jobs
When launched, the OS was priced at USD 129 (~RM534)—back then, it was a little more conventional to charge for software updates. Eventually, these updates began to arrive free of charge, with Apple removing the price tag for OS updates from around 2013 onwards. After some (expected) bugs and issues, Apple launched Mac OS X 10.1 (Puma), before we saw a name change to OS X in 2012 under Mountain Lion. Apple eventually dropped the X in 2016, with macOS Sierra introduced. And of course, we’re now at macOS Big Sur.
It’s been a wild ride over the past 20 years, certainly.
“Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II, and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Apple is now recommitted to its original mission—to bring the best personal computing products and support to students, educators, designers, scientists, engineers, businesspersons and consumers in over 140 countries around the world.”
On a side note, Apple has also rolled out a number of updates to its iWork suite for macOS, iOS, iPadOS, and web-based apps. Read the full details on Apple’s support pages:
- What’s new in Keynote for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
- What’s new in Keynote for Mac
- Keynote for iCloud release notes
Pages
- What’s new in Pages for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
- What’s new in Pages for Mac
- Pages for iCloud release notes
Numbers
- What’s new in Numbers for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
- What’s new in Numbers for Mac
- Numbers for iCloud release notes
So, what do you think? Share your thoughts in the comments section down below.
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