[CocoaApp isThisTiger]

[Alastair Houghton]

On 23 Oct 2007, at 17:49, Rosyna wrote:

> The manual page for sw_vers doesn't document it, it merely lists it.

Which documents its presence.  Maybe not its contents, but certainly  
its presence.

> And note that it lists two files. Both files may not exist on most  
> systems.

That's true.  ServerVersion.plist only exists on Mac OS X Server.   
SystemVersion.plist exists on both though.

> Also, sw_vers has this fun little bug that may cause it to output  
> complete garbage on some system configurations.

Nice.  My point still stands though.  The presence of this file is  
documented.  In Tiger, the fact that you could use it is documented  
(in the docs for Gestalt(), no less).  It isn't something that Apple  
can freely remove without side effects, because they have made its  
existence public and have, at one point, actively advocated using  
it.  Plus Gestalt() doesn't help you in all cases where this file might.

So, sure, you should use Gestalt() if that's what you need.  But  
before stating categorically that Gestalt() is the One True Way, it's  
worth realising that not everybody's needs are the same and sometimes  
that means doing something different.

Kind regards,

Alastair.

--
http://alastairs-place.net