Low End Mac Reader Specials

TypeStyler For Mac OS X is Now Shipping! Download The Free Fully Functional 60 Day Tryout at www.typestyler.com

Don't install Parallels to play poker online! Poker Mac will show you how to download and install a native Mac poker application such as Full Tilt Poker Mac.

Laptop Hardware Provided by TechRestore - Overnight Mac & iPod Repairs.

Compare products like desktop computers, apple laptops, apple macs, and LCD Monitors side by side! All the information and reviews to make the best purchasing decision for new mobile phones, sat nav systems, or MP3 players. The Ciao online shopping community makes searching products easy for you.

Mac Scope

Proteron: Tilting at Windmills

Stephen Van Esch - 2003.10.29

With the recent release of Panther, Proteron has made a bit of a stink about the inclusion of an application switcher that is, apparently, a "near pixel duplication" of Proteron's LiteSwitch X.

There are several people who have pointed out that Proteron's complaint is not exactly justified:

Open Memo to Proteron and Apple at Fuel Five Media
Command-Tab at Daring Fireball

Far from being the "original application switcher," there are several examples of application switching on the Mac. And, of course, Windows has had application switching for many years.

So who's ripping off whom? It really doesn't matter. I personally feel that application switching should be built into the OS. This is such a no-brainer feature that I'm surprised that Apple hadn't incorporated decent application switching sooner. This single feature is the only one I truly missed when working on a Mac instead of a Windows PC.

An operating system is designed to facilitate and manage workflow on a computer. Features that make this easier should be bundled with the OS. Proteron draws parallels between LiteSwitch X and Karelia's Watson. This comparison is unjustified. Sherlock 3 does little to improve the base operating system functionality.

This isn't to say that Sherlock 3 and Watson aren't useful tools, but their functionality does not facilitate the user's computer workflow. Watson is designed to facilitate workflow beyond the operating system, and Apple definitely overstepped the bounds of propriety when they cloned many of Watson's functions.

What Apple has done in the current case is include a basic application switcher with the operating system. This is a tool that makes moving between open applications extremely easy - it facilitates the user's workflow.

Proteron sells an advanced application switcher. It also makes moving between open applications quick and easy. This is also a tool with features that power users will find useful. In my mind, there is little for Proteron to complain about.

In any case, creating applications will always carry a risk. For example, I use the most excellent TigerLaunch to keep my Dock clear of unnecessary clutter. Countless development hours would undoubtedly be flushed down the toilet if Apple decided to incorporate something similar into OS X.

Many other applications both free and commercial can, do, and will fall victim to the whims of Apple's software team. Has there (as Erik J. Barzeski points out) been an open memo from Unsanity regarding the Panther labels function that will clearly cut into their Labels X sales? Has anyone at EasySoft Creations raised a ruckus about Apple's Font Book putting Font Explorer out to pasture?

On a more personal note, my company creates Web-based training for Macintosh applications and school software. It doesn't do us any good when Apple creates a series of QuickTime videos, posts them on .mac, and calls it training. Watching videos on the Web is training in the same sense that watching a professor on TV is training.

So, we sell a superior product that many may choose to ignore. That is the risk my company decided to take when it developed the OS X course. Will we continue to update our OS X course or choose to develop something else? That is a business decision we'll have to make in the near future.

I respect Proteron and its software products. However, I cannot agree with their decision to seek some kind of compensation (verbal or otherwise) for a product that is, really, fair game. They've proven that much by lifting their idea from others.

Stephen Van Esch is the founder and president of the E-learning Foundry, an online training resource for Mac users. Steve loves the Mac and is doubly bilingual, since he's also fluent in Windows and French.

Recently on Mac Scope

Connecting with the broader Macintosh community, 04.06. "But beyond the very minor celebrity status that came with being published on Low End Mac, it gave me a real opportunity to participate in the Mac community."
Hardware failure, that rare Mac headache, 07.09. Macs are usually pretty reliable, but a hardware failure after just two-and-a-half years is still disappointing.
Still waiting for iTunes Music Store Canada, sort of, 06.23. While the pay-per-tune model makes sense, Apple's post-purchase copy management flies in the face of Canadian copyright law.
PearPC's slow Mac emulation - What's the point?, 05.26. "For all those Windows folks who are gussying up Windows to look like OS X and getting excited over PearPC, please just buy a Mac."
More in the Mac Scope index.

Links for the Day

Mac of the Day: Mac mini Core Solo, Feb. 2006 - The only Mac to use a Core Solo CPU, this model ran at 1.5 GHz, has integrated graphics, and includes a Combo drive
Group of the Day: SuperMacs is for those using Umax SuperMac clones.
November 24 in LEM history: 98: Microsoft's heavy hand - 00: Looking at the iMac - 04: The best Mac for the holidays - Picking the right replacement for a dead mouse - Better battery for 15" AlBook
Support Low End Mac

Recent Deals

Best G4 iMac Deals, 11.24. Used 15" 700 MHz CD-RW, $150; 800 MHz Combo, $229; 1 GHz, $289; 17" 1.25 GHz, $200; 20" 1.25 GHz, $509.
Best MacBook Air Deals, 11.24. Used from $899; refurb from $1,099; new 1.6 GHz/120 HD, $1,150 after rebate; 1.8/64 SSD, $1,150 a/r; 1.86/128 SSD, $1,350 a/r; 2.13/128 SSD, $1,694 a/r.
Best PowerBook G3 Deals, 11.24. Used 233 MHz WallStreet, $75; 266 MHz, $160; 400 MHz Lombard, $199; 400 MHz Pismo, $289; 500 MHz, $350.
Best 12" PowerBook G4 Deals, 11.23. Used 867 MHz SuperDrive, $348; 1 GHz Combo, $379; SD, $519; 1.33 GHz, $529; 1.5 GHz Combo, $549; SuperDrive, $609.
Best Mac Pro Deals, 11.23. Used 2.66 GHz 4-core, $1,300; 3.0 4-core. $1,919; refurb 2.66 4-core Nehalem, $2,149; 2.93, $2,549; 2.93 8-core, $4,999; new 2.26 8-core, $2,290.
Best Time Capsule and AirPort Deals, 11.23. Used 802.11g AirPort Extreme, $49; 500 GB Time Capsule, $150; new, $190; 1 TB dual-band, $280; 2 TB, $469; 802.11n AirPort Extreme, $170.
Best eMac Deals, 11.18. Used 1 GHz Combo, $100; SuperDrive, $269; 1.25 GHz Combo, $119; SD, $319; 1.42 GHz Combo, $289; SD, $498.
Best Mac OS X 10.6 and Mac Box Set Deals, 11.18. "Snow Leopard", single user, $25; 5 users, $45; Mac Box Set, single user, $139; 5 users, $180; Server, $414. Shipping included.
Best Xserve Deals, 11.18. Used 1 GHz dual G4, $649; 2.3 dual G5, $795; 3.0 4-core Xeon, $1,899; refurb 2.26 4-core, $2,499; new, $2,888; refurb 8-core, $2,999; new, $3,449; more.
More deals in our archive.

About LEM | Support | Usage | Privacy | Contacts

Entire Low End Mac website copyright ©1997-2009 by Cobweb Publishing, Inc., unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. Advice presented in good faith, but what works for one may not work for all. Please report errors to .
LINKS: We allow and encourage links to any public page as long as the linked page does not appear within a frame that prevents bookmarking it.
Access our RSS news feed at http://lowendmac.com/feed.xml.
Email may be published at our discretion; email addresses will not be published without permission, and we will encrypt them in hopes of avoiding spammers. If you prefer your message not be published, mark it "not for publication." Letters may be edited for length, context, and to match house style.
PRIVACY: We don't collect personal information unless you explicitly provide it. For more details, see our Terms of Use.
Low End Mac is an independent publication and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Apple Inc. Apple, the Apple logo, Macintosh, iBook, iMac, eMac, iPod, iPhone, PowerBook, MacBook, MagSafe, Mac Pro, Apple TV, and AirPort are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. Additional company and product names may be trademarks or registered trademarks and are hereby acknowledged.