The myth and reality of Mac OS X Snow Leopard [2023]
13 hours ago
- #macOS
- #Apple
- #Software Development
- The myth of Snow Leopard being a 'bug fix update' was debunked, as it had significant new features and was initially buggy.
- Snow Leopard's reputation for stability comes from its later updates (10.6.8), not the initial release (10.6.0).
- Major software updates inherently introduce new bugs, and frequent updates exacerbate this issue by accumulating technical debt.
- Under Tim Cook, Apple shifted to annual major macOS updates, reducing stability compared to the slower, more deliberate updates under Steve Jobs.
- Users and developers long for periods of stability with minor bug fixes rather than disruptive annual major updates.
- The comparison between iOS and macOS update schedules highlights differing needs based on platform maturity and hardware ties.
- The public and even 'normal' users often prefer fewer, more stable updates over frequent, disruptive changes.