Panther vs Tiger

[Cloudgazer]

I'm pretty new to mac.
I've had my pbook about 3 months (it shipped with panther)

What are the major differences between Tiger and Panther?
Should i upgrade immediately (or as soon as i've got the money)?
Or should i hang tight a bit until I'm completely comfortable with OSX?

 

[iSaint]

I say upgrade. There's not really anything so different that will throw you when you change to Tiger, but there's so many cool things (spotlight, dashboard) that are so useful and cool and fun!

You bought your PB 3 months ago? Call Apple and see if you can get a Tiger upgrade free since Tiger came out right around the time you bought your PB.

I want to visit South America someday...

 

[yellow]

Learn to use OS X first.. there's no mega-ultra-impossible-to-live-without additions to Tiger. Panther is a pretty damned good OS release. Save your cash for the moment.

 

[Mitthrawnuruodo]

Unless you qualify for the update program I'd wait a while. Save your money for now, and get to know your system as it is. Of course, if money isn't a problem, then by all means upgrade.

Tiger is awesome, and should be faster than Panther on most things. Just beware that Tiger seems a bit more RAM hungry, and 512 MB could be on the low side if you're used to having several apps open at the same time, like iTunes, Safari, Mail, iCal, Adium X it takes quite a lot of RAM. My iBook has 640 MB and it beach-balls a bit more often under Tiger than it used to with Panther...

I want to visit South America someday...

 

[Cloudgazer]

I want to visit South America someday...

Me too!

If i upgrade to Tiger, I will probably have to add more RAM.
I usually have quite a few apps open at a time.

I like the idea of the dashboard, but don't you need to be permanantly connected to the web?
More importantly do you need a fast connection?
DSL here is not quite the same as the rest of the world.

 

[Mitthrawnuruodo]

I like the idea of the dashboard, but don't you need to be permanantly connected to the web?
More importantly do you need a fast connection?
DSL here is not quite the same as the rest of the world.

Some Dashboard widgets needs to connect to the web every now and then, but the frequency varies greatly. None of those I've tried needed very much bandwidth, so they should update just fine even over dial-up. Some, like Dictionary, iCal events, World Clock, etc doesn't need web access at all...

 

[cooknwitha]

There are a fair amount of Dashboard widgets that don't require the internet but I guess it comes down to common sense, if it needs to get updated information or data from somewhere then you'll need the net.

As for making the switch from Panther to Tiger, I'd say get to learn OSX first but then move to Tiger as fast as you can from there. Panther is a great OS but having used Tiger now for only 4 days, I still can't get over how good it is. There are just so many little additions that make life easier.

 

[tuqqer]

I'd definitely stay with Panther.

As an upgrade junkie, I never thought I'd say that, but I really don't see the advantages to Tiger. Spotlight is overkill for me. Command-F worked perfectly for my needs in Panther, and I feel frustrated every time I use Tiger's two methods of searching (Spotlight and their messed up Command-F).

I find Dashboard just silly. I'm not interested in turning off the rest of my computer and desktop just to work a utility.

I'm absolutely positive that Tiger will one day be top notch. But for now, there's no need to move to it. STay with Panther, learn the Mac. Then, once Tiger matures, upgrade.

 

[cube]

Tiger broke the Bluetooth connectivity with my phone I had with Jaguar.

 

[gangst]

Me too!

If i upgrade to Tiger, I will probably have to add more RAM.
I usually have quite a few apps open at a time.

I like the idea of the dashboard, but don't you need to be permanantly connected to the web?
More importantly do you need a fast connection?
DSL here is not quite the same as the rest of the world.

No you don't always need a connection to the web, but for the majority of widgets you do.
You don't need a roaring connection to use widgets either, 56k is good enough, because your not loading web pages, the widgets are just finding the relevant info.

 

[wdlove]

I want to visit South America someday...

Sorry, but I think that you meant to say you want to visit South Africa some day.

The decision in the end is yours. At the moment, I have no plans on upgrading to Tiger. There isn't anything in Tiger that I'd personally be willing to pay $129.

As mentioned by others I would check to see if you are eligible for the free upgrade though.

 

[Cloudgazer]

Sorry, but I think that you meant to say you want to visit South Africa some day.

The decision in the end is yours. At the moment, I have no plans on upgrading to Tiger. There isn't anything in Tiger that I'd personally be willing to pay $129.

As mentioned by others I would check to see if you are eligible for the free upgrade though.

I would like Tiger, but from what i've been reading I'd need more RAM, which menas i have ot fork out for RAM and Tiger, which could be a bit expensive.
(256mb will cost approx $208)

I also doubt i can get the free upgrade. I'd never heard of such a thing before. It certainly doesn't happen in this country. i was shocked to read about it here on the forums.

 

[wdlove]

I would like Tiger, but from what i've been reading I'd need more RAM, which means i have to fork out for RAM and Tiger, which could be a bit expensive.
(256mb will cost approx. $208)

I also doubt i can get the free upgrade. I'd never heard of such a thing before. It certainly doesn't happen in this country. i was shocked to read about it here on the forums.

I would still highly recommend that you give Apple a call. You will never know the answer unless you call. If you are eligible, then you are losing out a free offer. Then the cost would only be $19.95 for shipping and handling. Then you would be closer to affording more RAM. You should check the Crucial RAM link above for prices.

 

[GanChan]

In the case of my Mini that shipped with Panther, I do have the upgrade for tiger, but I haven't installed it yet because I still have only the stock 256 RAM. I feel like i almost have to upgrade the RAM before attempting Tiger. Panther seems pretty happy, though, and it sure is stable. Hard to walk away from it, actually.