You can have dozens of programs open at once in Mac OS X.Īnd that’s why the Dock combines the launcher and status functions of a modern operating system. “Which programs are open” already approaches unimportance in Mac OS X, where sophisticated memory-management features make it hard to run out of memory. A program should appear when you click its icon, whether it’s open or not. In an ideal world, this distinction should be irrelevant. In Mac OS X, Apple combined both functions into a single strip of icons called the Dock.Īpple’s thinking goes like this: Why must you know whether or not a program is already running? That’s the computer’s problem, not yours. The other kept track of which programs were open at the moment for easy switching, like the taskbar (Windows) or the Application menu (Mac OS 9). One listed unopened programs until you needed them, like the Start menu (Windows) or the Launcher (Mac OS 9).

If you found any image copyrighted to yours, Please contact us, so we can remove it or mention its authors name.For years, most operating systems maintained two lists of programs. Īll images remain property of their original owners.

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