Let me disclaim at the beginning of my little tirade that I’m super excited that I’ll have Leopard in my hands and in my machine in less than ten days. I’m more than excited. I’m ecstatic. That said, I’ve already found something that’s got me fairly irritated.
Let’s rewind the tape to 2006 and WWDC for that year. It’s the keynote and we’re all listening intently as Jobs tells us about the great new features in Leopard. As recorded by Macworld:
“We’re going to deliver the Complete Package,” said Jobs of the third major item on the Leopard list of new features.
“We’ve got applications as beta, applications as separate downloads, we’re going to ship all of them with Leopard,” he added.
Jobs told the crowd that Boot Camp, Apple’s software that enables Intel-based Macs to run Windows, “… is going to be even better than the beta, and it’s going to ship as part of Leopard.”
Leopard will also include Front Row, Apple’s software to access media such as photos, music, movies and downloaded videos from a single interface that’s easy to view in a living room or media room. Photo Booth, Apple’s software that turns the iSight webcam into a fun and creative imaging tool, will expand the number of cameras it works with.
I was thrilled to hear this. None of my current Macs could use any of these new cool apps. When I got my Mac Pro and discovered these apps weren’t there, it was just another reason to look forward to Leopard. I was a little miffed to get left out to begin with. I could use Front Row with a keyboard or a remote of my own choosing. I could use Photo Booth with the iSight I bought long ago (yes, indeed, the iSight started as an external add-on).
I think Mac Pro owners, by and large, gave Apple a pass on that. I know I mostly did because I expected it to come with Leopard. The functionality I should have had from the beginning would be there and all would be good and right with the world.
Imagine my chagrine when I discovered on the tech specs page when I discovered this interesting little paragraph:
Front Row requires a Mac with built-in IR and an Apple Remote.
What. The. ^%$#. What happened to the complete package? What happened to including Front Row with Leopard as a standard part? Why? WHY? WHY? Why are you screwing me out of another one of your cool applications? Why don’t you like Mac Pro users? For that matter, why don’t you like the rest of your users that bought machines without the remote control? Do we smell? Did we do something to offend? Please just tell us what we did.
I’m trying to believe this is for any other reason (besides technical because it’s clearly not) than to get us to buy a Mac that comes with a remote because that would make Apple a bunch of donkeys.
I don't think it is to get people to buy Macs with remotes. After all, the Mac Pro doesn't allow remotes and I'm sure Apple gets more money from those than they do from MacBooks, MacBook Pros, iMacs, and Mac Minis.
Of course, Apple might just want Mac Pro buyers to buy both a Mac Pro and an IR-equipped mac.
I can't believe it. I am all geared up to buy a Mac Pro. I've been waiting a year for Leopard because I was certain that a hardware refresh would arrive along with it. I don't want to spend over $3000 on their top-of-the-line machine and it not have features that are available on their cheapest entry level Mac. I hope that the next spin of Mac Pros will have a built in IR receiver and remote. Oh, and ship with a new aluminum keyboard!
Maybe it is because Front Row actually needs a remote to work.
I'm sure that you could throw a fit about that too, but it is after all an application designed to make it easier to access your media from the couch. If you don't have a remote it doesn't really add much.
I completely agree with you, Derik. Even though my wife and I own a MacBook and an iMac that both have the remote, I understand your frustration. I remember during WWDC 2006 when jobs made that statement, and back then I was running a lowly iBook G4.
I'm sure someone will find a way to install the extra programs. Heck, I was running Front Row on my iBook with some hack back in the day.
This totally sucks. I bought the MacPro to be a powerfull home computer and a media central - I actually tried iMac and found lackluster and went for MacPro. I was really suprised when it did not have the front row.
I fixed this by buying the MediaCentral, but I was really waiting for the Leopard to get the FR. I cannot figure out why the MacPro users are punished for buing the biggest and baddest Mac on the planet.
Thats Crap! WTF... I have three Mac Pros and two external eyesight cameras. Hey Apple these things are not cheap. How about supporting those who buy the most expensive models and additional Apple supported hardware.
Wasn't the context of these statements concerning Leopard the then new Intel iMac?
Back in the day when I had a G4 powerbook I used the "Enabler" developed by Andrew Escobar to install frontrow - unfortunately for you, Derik, it only works with PPC Macs - I think, but I could be wrong.
@Aaron There are third-party remotes that you could use with a machine like a Mac Pro, such as this one: http://www.keyspan.com/products/usb/errf1/. Just because the Mac Pro doesn't have a built-in IR receiver doesn't mean one can't be added. With this in mind, it seems that Apple is going out of their way to make life more difficult for their users, assuming that Front Row will indeed be impossible to access on machines without the built-in IR receiver.
Maybe it's just because the Mac Pro is a professional-grade machine and Front Row is something oriented towards casual consumers. There are some USB IR receivers that you can use with the Apple remote though.
Don't believe everything you hear. Steve Jobs said something about top secret features too.
It's starting to grow more and more concerned with how Apple is getting bigger and getting more popular. With popularity comes more power, and market power means anyone can get away with a few tricks. When companies do that, they start to do promise things they can't keep. If at least they gave a reason for it. Did I miss it?
If Apple says something and doesn't do it without explanations, they will eventually alienate a lot of us. I switched because one of the many reasons is I got burned with MS's constant carrot dangling.
I think Apple will get too big and start treating us like that. Too many companies have done it in the past. I guess there will always be Linux.
did you try pressing apple escape?
nevermind, still doesnt work. im on my schools mac pro right now and it doesnt work. BOO!
If it's any consolation, Front Row is pretty useless. I would guess that 99% of all the remotes Apple has shipped are currently lost in a drawer somewhere.
In the current beta build og Leopard Front Row works just fine on an old PowerBook with neither iSight nor remote. It works fine using only a keyboard.
Please -- let's not get out the pitchforks and torches so fast!
Ever notice how breakfast cereal boxes have to mark their photos of a bowl of the cereal with milk and fruit "Serving Suggestion"? This is the result of regulations and fear of complaints (or lawsuits) from customers that there is no milk or fruit in the box, which is misleading.
In the same way, Apple must defend against foolish people that buy a software product and expect it to include the remote/IR receiver necessary to operate Front Row in the way described on the box and website.
Undoubtedly, Front Row works just as well without the remote. Try command-ESC, and then use your keyboard, or try a third-party remote, or wireless keyboard.
Let's take a deep breath and ease off on the unfounded fears and unrealistic expectations.
Exactly Scott. Front Row works just fine with 3rd party remotes and installs just fine on Mac Pros, and PhotoBooth (as well as iChat) works just fine with 3rd party USB cams. If you have neither, don't expect them to work as they do on machines with both - that is all Apple is saying. Calm down folks....
I have a G4 PowerBook and used the "Enabler" developed by Andrew Escobar when he first developed it.
I have to say that Front Row is a beautiful and an entirely useless app. Useless is probably too harsh but it doesn't add anything that you don't already have. Just another layer of eye candy...
Maybe you can just cmd + escape to get in and navigate via the arrow keys in the final version. Maybe they're saying it because you need an IR for the remote.
Hasn't it been awhile since Apple updated the Mac Pros?
But Photo Booth IS supported including with third party webcams (read the tech specs page). The keyboard is a supported method of operating Front Row on even IR equipped Macs, so why should it be unsupported? There is no reason. It should be.
Further, the exact verbiage on Apple's site is: "Front Row requires a Mac with built-in IR and an Apple Remote."
I'll be thrilled if that isn't actually true, but standing alone and by itself, either Apple is either lying and works just fine, or they're restricting use of the app for no reason. Is either a good thing?
I just don't buy the "they say required because the experience isn't completely the same" argument. It's not a reasonable expectation for a customer to have and using a keyboard as an input device isn't so different.
And to Aaron Sapp, Apple makes this wireless keyboard thingy. It's pretty neat. It lets you manipulate your computer from across the room.