This article is about the eighth major release of the classic Mac OS. For version 10.8 of macOS (formerly OS X), see OS X Mountain Lion.
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Mac OS 8
Version of the Classic Mac OS operating system
Screenshot of Mac OS 8.1
Developer
Apple Computer
OS family
Macintosh
Working state
Historic, unsupported
Source model
Closed source
Released to manufacturing
July 26, 1997; 26 years ago (1997-07-26)
Latest release
8.6 / May 10, 1999; 24 years ago (1999-05-10)[1]
Platforms
PowerPC, Motorola 68k series (until 8.5)
Kernel type
Monolithic (68k), nanokernel (PowerPC)
Default user interface
Apple Platinum
License
Proprietary
Preceded by
System 7
Succeeded by
Mac OS 9
Official website
Apple - Products - Mac OS 8.6 at the Wayback Machine (archived September 22, 1999)
Tagline
Mac OS 8-8.1: A new look. A new feel. A dramatically new experience. Mac OS 8.5-8.6: Faster. Smarter. Far more clever.
Support status
Historical, unsupported as of May 2001
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Part of a series on
Classic Mac OS
Versions
System 1
System 2, 3, and 4
System 5
System 6
System 7
Mac OS 7
Mac OS 8
Mac OS 9
Applications
Calculator
Chooser
Drive Setup
DVD Player
Finder
Graphing Calculator
Keychain Access
PictureViewer
PowerTalk
QuickTime Player
Network Browser
Scrapbook
Sherlock
Software Update
Stickies
System Information
SimpleText
Developer
HyperCard
MacsBug
Macintosh Programmer's Workshop
ResEdit
Technology
Alias
Appearance Manager
Apple menu
At Ease
Balloon help
Bomb error
Command key (⌘)
Control Panel
Control Strip
Creator code
Dogcow
Extensions
Hierarchical File System
HFS Plus
Keychain
Labels
Macintosh File System
Macintosh Toolbox
Managers
MultiFinder
Option key (⌥)
OSType
PICT
QuickDraw
QuickTime
Resource fork
Sosumi sound
Startup sequence
System folder
System suitcase
Type code
WorldScript
Related
Memory management
Old World ROM
New World ROM
Software
v
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Mac OS 8 is the eighth major release of the classic Mac OS operating system for Macintosh computers, released by Apple Computer on July 26, 1997.[2] It includes the largest overhaul of the classic Mac OS experience since the release of System 7, approximately six years before. It places a greater emphasis on color than prior versions. Released over a series of updates, Mac OS 8 represents an incremental integration of many of the technologies which had been developed from 1988 to 1996 for Apple's overly ambitious OS named Copland. Mac OS 8 helped modernize the Mac OS while Apple developed its next-generation operating system, Mac OS X (renamed in 2012 to OS X and then in 2016 to macOS).
Mac OS 8 is one of Apple's most commercially successful software releases, selling over 1.2 million copies in the first two weeks.[2][3] As it came at a difficult time in Apple's history, many pirate groups refused to traffic in the new OS, encouraging people to buy it instead.[4]
Mac OS 8.0 introduces the most visible changes in the lineup, including the Platinum interface and a native PowerPC multithreaded Finder. Mac OS 8.1 introduces a new, more efficient file system named HFS Plus. Mac OS 8.5 is the first version of the Mac OS to require a PowerPC processor. It features PowerPC native versions of QuickDraw, AppleScript, and the Sherlock search utility. Its successor, Mac OS 9, was released on October 23, 1999.
^ ab"Apple Sells 1.2 Million Copies of Mac OS 8; Best Software Product Sales Ever in First Two Weeks of Availability". Archived from the original on April 23, 2009. Retrieved October 1, 2017.
^"Mac OS 8 Sales on Fire". Archived from the original on July 18, 2012. Retrieved March 30, 2007.
^"Where do you want to pirate today?". Forbes. August 8, 1997. Archived from the original on August 27, 2017. Retrieved September 4, 2017. In fact, the latest word out in the Macwarez scene is that pirates shouldn't copy Apple's OS 8—Mac's latest operating system—they should buy it, since Apple so desperately needs the money.
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