MacOS or whatever they call it now is “unix-like” but it’s still ultimately a closed environment and definitely not the same, ethically, as a real FOSS OS. Apple doesn’t care about you any more than Microsoft or Google, they’re also in it for money.
I keep hearing it’s certified UNIX, and if you don’t know “what they call it” despite me saying so in the post you replied to, I question your comprehension of the material in general.
Now, I’m not a UNIX guy, and I always thought it was bizarre that people said that. So I looked it up. I neither like nor trust Google, so I searched “macOS UNIX certification” on DuckDuckGo, which I believe uses Bing? Still not ideal, but at this point any search engine is going to get us some meaningful searches.
DDG’s AI companion says this: MacOS has been certified as UNIX compliant, specifically as UNIX® 03, which means it adheres to an older version of the Single UNIX Specification. This certification indicates that macOS meets certain programming interface standards, but it does not necessarily reflect the latest UNIX standards.
The top link is from The Open Group which declares itself to be the official register of UNIX certified products. They list Apple macOS 26.0 Tahoe at the top (probably because Apple comes first alphabetically).
The Register is a little more dubious on the subject. It claims that macOS 15 Sequoia (the previous version; before they went to year-name releases rather than sequential) was also UNIX certified, but it goes on to say there are different certifications which are upgraded each year, and Apple only qualifies for UNIX 3 from 2002. It seems like there are much newer certifications Apple could maybe go after, but hasn’t. It goes into what the certification means, but this isn’t that interesting to me. But there is the link for anyone curious enough to dig.
Finally, OS News claims the certification is a lie but this is mainly clickbait. It says the same thing as The Register, that Apple only achieves the UNIX 3 certification. Then it goes on to accuse Apple of cheating to get to that point, and goes into some code — way past my expertise.
Today, I am a little bit more educated on macOS UNIX certification than I was yesterday. Maybe some of you are, too. Or maybe not, I really don’t know. We’re all on different paths. However, I am not convinced to change my assertion that it should be “Linux and macOS against Windows” rather than “Linux and Windows against macOS.” The latter just seems wrong — why would Linux and Windows users align at all? Other than more similar hardware. Whereas Linux and macOS are both improvements over Windows.
Another thought occurs: is it even Linux users who are going against Mac users? I think it’s probably mostly just Windows users trying to spread FUD.
That’s really interesting and I appreciate taking the time to write that comment, but I’d put Mac and Windows on the same team because their goals are basically the same, to transfer wealth from the consumer to the company. Linux, and open source software in general, does not have that same motivation to squeeze the consumer so of course it’s going to be better.
Mac hardware gets sold at tremendous markup because it’s so closed. Windows is little more than a vessel to show ads. Linux is a good experience from installation onward, almost regardless of distribution. Free of telemetry and runs on literally whatever, if it can run code it can probably run Linux. I have a laptop from 2011 that runs Arch with XFCE and it’s buttery smooth. My 2012 MacBook pro has been a paperweight for years and Microsoft wants me to throw away anything that can’t be tied to me personally.
That said I would MUCH rather use macos than windows, my wife has an m1 MacBook Air that I use sometimes and it’s definitely more pleasant than Windows. However, I think Linux is the odd man out. MacOS vs Windows is like stubbing your left toe vs your right toe.
I run Arch btw on my gaming PC and my old ass laptop I can show you my qualifications if you want 😂
MacOS or whatever they call it now is “unix-like” but it’s still ultimately a closed environment and definitely not the same, ethically, as a real FOSS OS. Apple doesn’t care about you any more than Microsoft or Google, they’re also in it for money.
I keep hearing it’s certified UNIX, and if you don’t know “what they call it” despite me saying so in the post you replied to, I question your comprehension of the material in general.
Now, I’m not a UNIX guy, and I always thought it was bizarre that people said that. So I looked it up. I neither like nor trust Google, so I searched “macOS UNIX certification” on DuckDuckGo, which I believe uses Bing? Still not ideal, but at this point any search engine is going to get us some meaningful searches.
DDG’s AI companion says this: MacOS has been certified as UNIX compliant, specifically as UNIX® 03, which means it adheres to an older version of the Single UNIX Specification. This certification indicates that macOS meets certain programming interface standards, but it does not necessarily reflect the latest UNIX standards.
The top link is from The Open Group which declares itself to be the official register of UNIX certified products. They list Apple macOS 26.0 Tahoe at the top (probably because Apple comes first alphabetically).
The Register is a little more dubious on the subject. It claims that macOS 15 Sequoia (the previous version; before they went to year-name releases rather than sequential) was also UNIX certified, but it goes on to say there are different certifications which are upgraded each year, and Apple only qualifies for UNIX 3 from 2002. It seems like there are much newer certifications Apple could maybe go after, but hasn’t. It goes into what the certification means, but this isn’t that interesting to me. But there is the link for anyone curious enough to dig.
Finally, OS News claims the certification is a lie but this is mainly clickbait. It says the same thing as The Register, that Apple only achieves the UNIX 3 certification. Then it goes on to accuse Apple of cheating to get to that point, and goes into some code — way past my expertise.
Today, I am a little bit more educated on macOS UNIX certification than I was yesterday. Maybe some of you are, too. Or maybe not, I really don’t know. We’re all on different paths. However, I am not convinced to change my assertion that it should be “Linux and macOS against Windows” rather than “Linux and Windows against macOS.” The latter just seems wrong — why would Linux and Windows users align at all? Other than more similar hardware. Whereas Linux and macOS are both improvements over Windows.
Another thought occurs: is it even Linux users who are going against Mac users? I think it’s probably mostly just Windows users trying to spread FUD.
That’s really interesting and I appreciate taking the time to write that comment, but I’d put Mac and Windows on the same team because their goals are basically the same, to transfer wealth from the consumer to the company. Linux, and open source software in general, does not have that same motivation to squeeze the consumer so of course it’s going to be better.
Mac hardware gets sold at tremendous markup because it’s so closed. Windows is little more than a vessel to show ads. Linux is a good experience from installation onward, almost regardless of distribution. Free of telemetry and runs on literally whatever, if it can run code it can probably run Linux. I have a laptop from 2011 that runs Arch with XFCE and it’s buttery smooth. My 2012 MacBook pro has been a paperweight for years and Microsoft wants me to throw away anything that can’t be tied to me personally.
That said I would MUCH rather use macos than windows, my wife has an m1 MacBook Air that I use sometimes and it’s definitely more pleasant than Windows. However, I think Linux is the odd man out. MacOS vs Windows is like stubbing your left toe vs your right toe.
I run Arch btw on my gaming PC and my old ass laptop I can show you my qualifications if you want 😂