Over the weekend, Apple seeded yet another build of Panther to its choice developers. Several days later the build was made available to Premier Developer account holders via the Apple Developer Connection website, sources inform AppleInsider.
The incremental update— the first to be released to so many developers since 7B21 about ten days ago— features a number of improvements, including updated versions of Safari, QuickTime 6.4 and faster performance of various interface features. Many other components of the OS pertinent to developers have also undergone enhancements.
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Most notably, the QuickTime team is making great strides toward bringing version 6.4 up to beta status. The media software has jumped from alpha 20 to alpha 34 in just over a week's time.
Meanwhile, Safari 1.1 continues to see stability improvements with the v90 update included with Panther 7B28. However, sources warned that the browser is still crash-prone on older machines, especially while loading several images progressively. In an ironic situation, one source notes: "I'm impressed with the improved support for JavaScript, but the first time I pointed the browser to apple.com it crashed cold while loading the main page consisting of mainly images."
Screenshots: Removed at the demand of Apple Legal.
7B28_system_info.gif; junk_mail_prefs.gif
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Apple's newly threaded Mail application saw no new features as it inched forwards from 1.3 (v581) to 1.3 (v582). Other minor performance and stability updates include Image Capture 2.1.0 (v153), TextEdit 1.3 (v199), iChat AV 2.0 (v117), Font Book 1.0 (v15), Help Viewer 2.0.4 (v100), System Profiler 4.0 (v33) and Disk Utility 10.4 (v117).
The Apple Address Book continues to be fine tuned as it is further integrated into the Mac OS operating system, jumping three build numbers to version 3.1 (v269). To illuminate redundant or inconsistent storage of information, the application was recently linked to Panthers Accounts preference panel, sources said.
Screenshots: Removed at the Demand of Apple Legal
software_update.jpg; sharing.gif
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Apple's terminal application is now at version 1.4 (v97) and includes a new feature under the File Menu entitled "Secure Keyboard Entry."
When booting into Panther for the first time, users will be greeted with an overhauled Mac OS Setup Assistant, reminiscent of the one found in Windows XP. A moving abyss of white droplets on a blue gradient background — spanning almost entire screen — welcomes the user. Soon after, the first setup form appears in the window, leaving a band of flowing white and blue colors at the top and base of the setup forms. The assistant begins with an Apple ID form, and proceeds by seeking demographic information, promoting .Mac accounts, and allowing the user to configure their Internet, Mail, Date and Time.
Screenshots: Removed at the Demand of Apple Legal.
setup_assistant.jpg; date_and_time.gif
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Recent builds of Panther have provided several enhancements available from the preference panels. Additionally, each control panel can now be launched directly from the dock. When clicking and holding on the System Preference Icon, a pop-up list of installed preference panels appears in the menu, allowing users to bypass the global preference pane.
The Data and Time control panel boasts a few new features, including an option for a floating digital clock with date. Various degrees of transparency can also be applied to this floating window. Meanwhile, the new version of Software Update can automatically download important updates in the background and notify the user just prior to installation.
Screenshots: Removed at the Demand of Apple Legal.
whats_new_in_mail.gif; floating_clock.gif
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Over in the Accounts control panel, administrators can specify limitations for sub-users. Current options include "No Limitations", "Some Limitations", and "Simple Finder." Under the Some Limitations option, a user can be can be prohibited from opening all system preferences, burning media, changing their password, modifying the dock or opening specific applications.
Aside from these feature enhancements, the Panther user interface is becoming increasingly faster with each successive build. The version of Expose included with build 7B28 performs noticeably better than the last. Even when installed on an original USB PowerBook G3 Panther is quite snappy, and Expose is surprisingly very usable.
With little to no visual or feature alterations made in this latest build of Panther, it appears that the development process is starting to wind down. Panther was originally slated for a September release, and from the looks of the latest builds, should hit that target.
