Support for OpenGL 3.0 added in beta build of Mac OS X 10.6.3
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An early beta of the latest maintenance and security update to Apple’s Snow Leopard operating system has added significant support for the OpenGL 3.0 graphical application programming interface.
As noted by HardMac, partial support for OpenGL 3.0 was discovered in the first external build of Mac OS X 10.6.3. The update, which also includes crash fixes and targets over 90 components.
Though graphics cards in Mac systems have had support for OpenGL 3.0, the cross-platform API did not previously have native support within Snow Leopard. With the latest build of Mac OS X 10.6, 95 percent of the features of OpenGL 3.0 were found to be supported. Only "Shading language version 1.30" was unsupported. In addition, most functions specific to OpenGL 3.0 are not yet present.
Previous versions of OpenGL -- 1.5, 2.0 and 2.1 -- all have 100 percent compatibility. Support for OpenGL 3.1 is said to be at 12 percent, while OpenGL 3.2 is at 33 percent.
Apple has reportedly not yet documented anything on potential OpenGL 3.0 support in Mac OS X 10.6.3. Build 10D522, released last week, was a 665.7MB file that included 221 code corrections to 92 distinct system components. Nearly 60 individual pieces of crash-prone code were said to have been addressed, though four known issues remain with the latest beta.
When it launched in August, Snow Leopard came with GPU optimization> built in to the operating system. Apple has supported OpenGL for years, and also introduced OpenCL, both of which aim to take on Microsoft’s DirectX API.
Support for OpenGL 2.1 was added in 2007 to Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard for its 3D interface. This provided a dramatic increase in OpenGL performance, and also allowed applications to activate hardware acceleration as requested.
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Microsoft announced to the press that Google will face a series of Zune-like problems with its Nexus One as it tries to balance its Android platform.
Apple tablet may ship with multi-touch version of iWork
Apple has reportedly spent a considerable amount of time in recent years working on a version of its iWork productivity suite that could be controlled solely through the use of complex multi-touch gestures, making it well-suited for inclusion on the company’s forthcoming tablet device.
Those claims were embedded in a profile piece Saturday published by the New York Times on the growing number of slate-like computing devices that are in the process of making their way to market, or already on the market, including the Kindle, the Alex, the Que proReader and the IdeaPad U1 Hybrid.
In particular, the newspaper cited "conversations with several former Apple engineers" who’ve reportedly had a key role in the ongoing development of Apple’s much-anticipated tablet device who suggest the company may require that users adapt to a "somewhat complex new vocabulary of finger gestures to control it, making use of technology it acquired in the 2007 purchase of a company called FingerWorks."
“The tablet should offer any number of unique multitouch experiences — for example, three fingers down and rotate could mean 'open an application,' ” one former Apple engineer reportedly told the paper. A second added that the Cupertino-based company has “spent the past couple of years working on a multitouch version of iWork."
Based on these rumblings, the Times speculates that Apple’s looking to market its upcoming tablet device as "a fully functional computer, rather than a more passive device for reading books and watching movies." Such a move could reportedly help the electronics maker seek a higher average selling price for the device when it hits the market later this year.
Apple is widely expected to introduce its tablet offering later this month, with recent reports predicting that the device will be available for purchase near the end of the first quarter (March) or sometime the following quarter (which runs April - June).
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Apple’s Mac OS X 10.6.3 to target crashes, over 90 components
Apple on Wednesday began widespread testing of Mac OS X 10.6.3, the third planned maintenance and security update to its Snow Leopard operating system, early betas of which already includes bug fixes to over seven dozen system components with an emphasis on stabilization.
People familiar with the matter say the first external build of the software -- labeled Mac OS X 10.6.3 build 10D522 and weighing in at 665.7MB in barebones delta form -- includes a total of 221 code corrections to 92 distinct system components.
Among those components receiving the most attention are AppKit, CoreMedia, Desktop Services, FileSync, Fonts, HIToolbox, iCal, Mail, MobileMe, and QuickTime Player X, those same people say.
Other individual and welcomed enhancements include improvements to Snow Leopard’s automatic spell correction, and fixes for crashes while printing and using AppKit, the Dock, iCal, Mail, Photo Booth, Rosetta, Spotlight, Screen Sharing, and Software Updater.
In total, nearly 60 individual pieces of crash-prone code have reportedly been addressed as of build 10D522.
Apple also reportedly noted four known issues with Wednesday’s beta, including hangs in iTunes, and potential anomalies while updating applications, viewing Display preferences, and navigating the ColorSync Utility Filters tab.
Nearly a month ago, Apple began preparing the first beta of 10.6.3. However the Mac maker apparently chose to withhold the Snow Leopard update from broader distribution until after the holidays, during which time it compiled and evaluated roughly 15 more builds.
The last maintenance update for Snow Leopard, Mac OS X 10.6.2, was released in November. It addressed a publicized bug that could delete a user’s account data when logging in and out of a guest account. The update also included native support for the multi-touch Magic Mouse.
Two months before that, in September, Apple released Mac OS X 10.6.1. That update came less than two weeks after the late August debut of Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard. It addressed a number of stability, compatibility and security issues for the Mac.
Third Nokia lawsuit accuses Apple of multiple patent violations
Nokia has filed a another lawsuit against Apple, with a new federal complaint that alleges the Cupertino, Calif., company has infringed on several "implementation patents," the same cited in an ITC suit filed last week.
Filed in a federal court in Delaware, the complaint alleges that a number of Apple’s products have violated patents owned by Nokia. Specifically named in the suit are the iPhone 3G, iPhone 3GS, iPod touch, iPod nano, iPod classic, iMac, Mac Pro, Mac mini, MacBook, MacBook Pro and MacBook Air.
Patents owned by Nokia named in the suit are "VCO with Programmable Output Power," issued in 2004; "Mobile Communication Device and Related Construction Method," issued in 2004; "Optimized Camera Sensor Architecture for a Mobile Telephone," granted in 2005; "Communications Device with Touch Sensitive Screen," from 2003; "Mobile Station with Touch Input Having Automatic Symbol Magnification Function," issued in 2000; "Utilizing the Contents of a Message," granted in 2001; and "User Interface Device," from 2005.
The complaint filed last week is the third from Nokia against Apple. Also last week, a lawsuit was filed with the U.S. International Trade Commission in which it has asked that imports of Apple products -- including the iPhone, iPods, and MacBooks -- be banned.
The ITC complaint accuses Apple of treading on seven distinct patents applying to user interface, camera, antenna and power management. The ITC suit covers the same patents included in the Delaware federal suit.
In October, Nokia first sued Apple over the use of patented wireless standards. The lawsuit alleged that Apple infringes on GSM and wireless LAN related patents owned by Nokia with the iPhone.
In December, Apple countersued Nokia, alleging that the Finnish company infringed on 13 patents. Apple also accused Nokia of attempting to obtain more money from it than other companies, plus rights to Apple’s intellectual property.
As Nokia has lost market share to competitors Apple and Research in Motion, the market leader has fought back and hopes to maintain its position atop the cell phone business. This week, Rick Simonson, Nokia’s executive vice president, spoke with India’s The Economic Times and said his company hopes to be "at par" with Apple and RIM in smartphone sales by 2011.
"Not only we draw level with them," he said, "we will also win the war because, in addition to email, we will be adding content, chat, music, entertainment and several other features, which will soon become very critical for success of any company in this space."
Apple set to build on its blockbuster success in 2010
Following Apple’s rebirth over the past decade under the leadership of chief executive Steve Jobs, the company is now set to build on its established foundations over the next decade.
A report by Frank Cioffi, published by MarketWatch, indicates investors have multiple reasons to closely watch Apple as it heads into the new decade.
Cioffi cited the company’s sustained sales of iPods, which have hovered at or above ten million units per quarter, as a strength that will allow Apple to "contribute consistently to its bottom line" even as the potential for big new growth in the MP3 market levels off.
Also noted was Apple TV, which while being rumored to face discontinuation as an experimental "hobby" that the company never managed to achieve blockbuster sales with, is still being updated and expanded. Over the past few months, Apple released the Apple TV 3.0 update and added support for iTunes LP and Extras.
Another topic to watch that Cioffi highlighted in the article was Steve Jobs. Despite back and forth reports on the seriousness of his health issues that culminated in the news of his liver transplant, Cioffi cited three takeaway discoveries: "Apple’s stock price could still rise even as concern over Jobs’ suspected demise grew, that Apple has a deep bench of talent aside from its chief executive, and that Jobs’ determination is as extraordinary as his ability to create compelling products."
The article said that it’s possible that new Tablet rumors may result in a disappointment for investors, "not because it won’t be a good product or a good seller, but because it will not be the iPhone-level megahit many are expecting." At the same time, Cioffi notes that the blockbuster sales of the iPhone may be less important in the long run than the wild success of the iTunes App Store.
"Software still drives hardware, and with thousands of apps available and developers creating new ones every day, every other mobile platform will be playing catch-up for years to come," Cioffi wrote.
Apple’s incredible financial results throughout the severe economic downturn are also a factor to watch closely, and in particular the growth in Mac sales. The article cited an ITIC survey which "showed 73% of global IT administrators and C-level executives say they were likely to allow their end-users to deploy Macs as their corporate enterprise desktops within the next year."
Cioffi also pointed to the fact that Apple has a strong position in home sales, with Needham & Co. analysts reporting that "Apple gets one out of every $10 spent on home computers worldwide. In the U.S., its dollar share is more than 1 in 5."
Apple’s global market share of around 6% shows that the company has tremendous potential for growth, suggesting a "trend that may have a decade or more left to unfold."