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They Just Fade Away (2/9/98)
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But while Rhapsody is reported to be alive and well, its OS cousin Newton is constantly reported to be on its last legs. Those reports are increasing in strength and frequency in these dark days, when Apple is shedding "unprofitable" projects like a balloonist dropping ballast. Given Apple's frustrating tight-lippedness on the subject, it's been tough to decide where to turn for some answers.
Enter thessaSOURCE's special report on the "Fate of the Newton." Assuming that thessaSOURCE's sources are trustworthy, the picture looks pretty bleak: while the Newton will continue in its current form for now, once the existing MessagePads are all sold, that's all she wrote. The eMate, on the other hand, was being developed further, yielding the long-awaited bMate business version, as well as a couple of other variations. Unfortunately, the porting of the Newton OS to the new StrongARM chip never even got into alpha stage, and the bMate is unlikely to ship. Most of the Newton engineers have left, been laid off, or are now working in other sectors of Apple, like the Rhapsody project. And it sounds as if Apple's future forays into the handheld market might use a modified version of the Mac OS (Mac OS CE?) instead of the Newton OS-- if, indeed, Apple targets the handheld market at all.
In the end, though, the only entity that can tell us once and for all what's up with Newton is Apple, and they aren't talking-- an inaction we find irresponsible in the extreme, we might add. But is Apple aware that not making a decision is a decision made in itself? If they continue to keep quiet about Newton, soon there will be no public support or demand for the nifty handhelds, and the technology will surely die once and for all. And that'd be a darn shame.
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SceneLink (436)
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And Now For A Word From Our Sponsors |
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 | | The above scene was taken from the 2/9/98 episode: February 9, 1998: Rhapsody emerges alive and kicking, and only afflicted with a case of "positioning amnesia." Meanwhile, now it's Newton who's dropped out of sight, prompting fears for the worst, and Microsoft shows that it sure ain't subtlety that makes you rich...
Other scenes from that episode: 435: Greatly Exaggerated (2/9/98) The rumor that Rhapsody is being "Steved" has permeated all ranks of the Mac faithful, even to the point of Don Crabb musing about such a move in an article on MacNN. Don summarizes the points that have all of us a little on edge: Apple is "pulling back" on Rhapsody, saying that it's not just continuing the Mac OS for backwards support-- the Mac OS is really our future; Rhapsody is instead being hyped as a server OS that may also be suitable for some high-end users who need its heavy-duty features... 437: Just a Coincidence (2/9/98) In a move that we're sure is totally unrelated to the ongoing drama of "Redmond Justice," Microsoft is sticking its Internet Explorer business unit into its Windows operating system business unit...
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