Re: Mac OS X - non-Mac users please ignore

On Saturday, April 17, 2004, at 04:47 , MakeMicroMusic@yahoogroups.com wrote:
> From: Carl Lumma <ekin@...>
>> Also, if one *could* (but why ? why ?? why ???) run Windows XP within
>> Virtual PC on a Mac.
>>
>> So, you can simultaneously (and interactively) run apps in (at least)
>> 3 different environments.
>
> Must... not... reply.... Help Jon!

My e-mail was intended to inform anyone on this list already using / considering Mac OS X about it's possibilities. The 'why?...' bit was a comment that there is enough software (for music or otherwise) available for Mac OS X to not require running Windows software.

OS X is a complex beast though deceptively simple in it's appearance, and I know that pretty much no OS X user knows all the possibilities it presents. For example, to some extent I can run unix commands right now within my e-mail app, within the e-mail I'm typing. It would be interesting if there was a way to do something musically useful at the spur of the moment without having to first launch the actual application - even as much as run a Scala, Csound, or Common Music command on a whim. Actually I think this may be currently possible. I'm eagerly waiting to upgrade to a new quick machine to try & work more flexibly.

Scala (Manuel - happy to hear a GUI Scala for OS X will be available soon !)
http://www.xs4all.nl/~huygensf/scala/

Csound
http://mitpress.mit.edu/e-books/csound/frontpage.html
http://csounds.com/matt/MacCsound/

Common Music
http://commonmusic.sourceforge.net/doc/cm.html

Anyway, what I was trying to say, relevant to anyone using OS X for music :

- the ability to use unix, Windows, 'Classic' Mac, & native OS X
- websites where an OS X user can find OS X audio/MIDI & other software
- specific software available for OS X - FM7 & SuperCollider

There was no intent to try & convince anyone using another OS about anything, simply to inform Mac users here.

Cheers,
- Joel

>My e-mail was intended to inform anyone on this list already using /
>considering Mac OS X about it's possibilities.

Your e-mail clearly drifted into Mac advocacy. Counting software-
emulation in an assessment of available apps? I can run Wine in
Linux, Cygwin in Windows, etc. etc. VirtualPC is somewhat better-
supported than these others (the USB implementation for example),
but sucks just as much. But 'why would I ever want to emulate
another OS in Windows?'...

>OS X is a complex beast though deceptively simple in it's appearance,
>and I know that pretty much no OS X user knows all the possibilities
>it presents.

The same is true for any big OS with layers of APIs. Since I worked
on a team that contributed code to Darwin, I probably have more
knowledge of OS X than I do of Windows. Nevertheless, I refrain from
transparent OS advocacy on a music list.

-Carl