Apple's Leopard System Goes on Sale
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SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Apple Inc.'s next-generation operating system, Mac OS X "Leopard," will be available Oct. 26 for $129, and Apple's online store is taking pre-orders, the company said Tuesday.
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During his Macworld Expo keynote address on Tuesday morning, Apple CEO Steve Jobs introduced the MacBook Air Tuesday, a computer that the company billed as the world's thinnest notebook -- small enough to fit inside an interoffice mailing envelope. It's priced starting at $1,799.Sporting a silvery finish, the MacBook Air features a 13.3-inch LED-backlit widescreen display -- it saves power and provides "instant on" response from the moment you turn it on, according to Jobs. The device has a slightly wedge-shaped profile that runs from 1.2 inches down to 0.8 inches high. It weighs about 3 pounds, and sports a thickness of 0.16-0.76 inches.The MacBook Air also features a built-in iSight webcam and a full sized MacBook-style black keyboard. The keyboard is backlit, similar to MacBook Pros, and has an ambient light sensor that automatically adjusts brightness. The trackpad is also capable of recognizing multi-touch gestures, similar to using an iPhone or iPod touch.The MacBook Air features a 1.8-inch hard disk drive with 80GB of storage capacity standard. A 64GB SSD drive is also an option. The laptop is powered by an Intel Core 2 Duo chip running at 1.6GHz with 1.8GHz available as an option. Jobs noted that Intel was willing to engineer a new version of the Core 2 Duo specifically to Apple's specifications -- it's 60 percent smaller than others.Like the MacBook and the MacBook Pro, the MacBook Air features a MagSafe connector for power. It comes with a 45 watt power adapter. A flip-down door on one side reveals USB 2.0, Micro-DVI (to connect an external display) and a headphone jack. The MacBook Air also includes 802.11n-based wireless networking support and Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR.Apple estimates that with wireless networking turned on, the MacBook Air can get about 5 hours of battery life.No internal optical drive is included, but Apple will offer a $99 USB 2.0-based add-on. For users that opt not to get the optical drive, Apple is offering a new software feature on this machine called Remote Disk; it enables you to "borrow" the optical drive of another Mac or PC on the same network as the MacBook Air, to use for installing software, for example.Apple's frequently been in the crosshairs of environmental group Greenpeace in recent years. Jobs offered information about the environmental goals behind the MacBook Air -- it has a fully recyclable aluminum case, and is "the first" to have a mercury-free display with arsenic-free glass. All the circuit boards are BFR-free and PVC-free, and the retail packaging uses 56 percent less material than the MacBook packaging.
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Banishing doubts about its popularity, Apple's latest operating system, OS X Leopard, appears to have sold more copies in its first month than any previous Apple OS.
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Blog: Sun says that Apple's forthcoming Leopard operating system will use the next-generation file system called ZFS.
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âIâve been testing Leopard,â reports Walter Mossberg (Wall Street Journal) and, âI believe it builds on Appleâs quality advantage over Windows. In my view, Leopard is better and faster than Vista, with a set of new features that make Macs even easier to use.â Among the more than 300 new features available in Leopard, Mossberg singles out as âmarquee featuresâ Time Machine, Cover Flow, and Quick Look.â And he was impressed that âevery piece of software and hardware I tried on two Leopard-equipped Macsâa loaned laptop from Apple and my own upgraded iMacâworked fine, exhibiting none of the compatibility problems that continue to plague Vista.â
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Apple Remote Desktop has been updated adding support for Mac OS X Leopard, as well as several new features.
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âWhatâs new in Leopard? A lot,â say Ken Mingis and Michael DeAgonia . The pair walk you through a 12-page analysis of the newest version of the Mac OS, spending time on many of the new features introduced in Leopard, including Stacks, Quick Look, Spaces, Time Machine, and numerous others. From Leopardâs âunified interfaceâ to major under-the-hood changes, to wholly new apps, Leopard is a substantial, albeit evolutionary, advance for Mac OS X that builds on a solid foundation and adds a modicum of eye candy to reinforce the notion that this is something new and improved. Itâs also fast â especially impressive given the new graphics sprinkled throughout the OS.â
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The groundbreaking new features of Mac OS X Server version 10.5 Leopard announced at WWDC 2007 make it even easier for customers to set up and manage. Offering the most significant improvement to the server operating system since Mac OS X Server was launched, it introduces such new features as a wiki server, making it easy to connect groups over a shared intranet; Podcast Producer, the ideal way to automatically produce and publish podcasts to iTunes or a blog; and Spotlight Server to quickly find content stored on other servers. Leopard Server also includes the new iCal Server, based on the CalDAV open standard that works with Leopardâs new iCal application. Mac OS X Leopard Server is scheduled to ship in October.
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Since releasing Mac OS X Leopard on Friday, Apple sold (or delivered, in the case of maintenance agreements) more than 2 million copies of the sixth major release of Mac OS X, far outpacing the first weekend sales of Mac OS X Tiger, which was previously the most successful OS release in Appleâs history. âEarly indications are that Leopard will be a huge hit with customers,â said Steve Jobs, Appleâs CEO. âLeopardâs innovative features are getting great reviews and making more people than ever think about switching to the Mac.â
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Although Mac OS X version 10.5, known as "Leopard," won't pounce into retail stores until Friday at 6pm, a purported final copy of the new operating system is already making the rounds on the Internet. Windows Vista leaked out before its launch as well, but there is one key distinction in that Leopard includes no activation requirements or other anti-piracy restrictions.
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After announcing a deal with Lexar last week to distribute its technology, Eye-Fi moved onto Macworld Monday, announcing support for Leopard and Safari.
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Calling Leopard the âapple of my eye,â Dwight Sliverman (Houston Chronicle) tells us that as heâs played with the newest version of Mac OS X, âIâm constantly being surprised by smart, useful and convenient touches. It is a pleasure to use.â For example, he calls Spaces his âfavorite Leopard feature, because it instantly multiplies your desktop real estate. Those who use portable computers will particularly appreciate it. On my MacBook itâs a godsend.â
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Even pouring rain and gusty winds didn&#39;t stop the Mac faithful from turning out for the release of Apple&#39;s Mac OS X Leopard at the Apple Store in New York&#39;s SoHo neighborhood Friday night.The sidewalk in front of the store and around the corner was a sea of colored umbrellas as about 200 people lined up to be among the first to purchase Leopard in North America. Those who hadn&#39;t prepared for the weather hunched under pieces of cardboard or just got wet as people bustled past on busy Prince Street and wondered aloud what all the fuss was about.The New York launch was part of a worldwide rollout of Leopard, which went on sale at 6 p.m. local time around the world Friday, beginning in Australia and New Zealand. Rain also plagued the&#160;Leopard launch in Tokyo, which marked the first place the OS went on sale at an official Apple Store, but didn&#39;t deter users from lining up ahead of the time there, either.A New York Mac enthusiast named Adam was first in line outside the SoHo store, saying he arrived at 2:00 p.m. and was joined about a half hour later by other Mac enthusiasts. Strangely enough, Adam, who owns three Mac computers and frequents Apple Stores when the company launches new products, was not there to buy Leopard. He merely wanted the free T-shirt Apple was giving out to people waiting in line to purchase the OS.&quot;They&#39;re difficult to get unless you live in Cupertino and can go to the Apple store,&quot; he said, adding that he would purchase Leopard in about six months after Apple had &quot;worked out the kinks.&quot;Unlike Adam, others shivering in line said they were there to be among the first to get their hands on Leopard. Still, it wasn&#39;t just the OS that inspired people to wait in the rain. Douglas Packer, also of New York, said that although he was looking forward to using Leopard -- particularly its new Time Machine and Spaces features -- he was also was there &quot;for the experience.&quot;&quot;Everyone&#39;s more excited about it, and being here with other people waiting makes it more fun than just a piece of software,&quot; said Packer, who works in video production.Time Machine is a new feature in Leopard that allows for automatic backup of files, while Spaces enables the user to create and manage virtual desktops.Another user waiting to purchase Leopard who gave props to Time Machine was Evan Herman, also of New York. But he also said he was &quot;probably the only person in line&quot; excited about the Back to My Mac feature of Leopard, which makes it easy for users to set up the ability to remotely log in to a Leopard machine from anywhere.Herman said this feature will make it easy for him to help troubleshoot problems on his parents&#39; Mac, which he finds himself doing often enough on the phone anyway.Herman switched from Microsoft Windows to a Mac three years ago when he left a position providing desktop support to PCs. He said he regularly joins the queue for major Apple releases and has stood in line for both the Tiger release of OS X and the iPhone.Leopard is the first major upgrade Apple has made to its OS in two and a half years. The software will be installed on all new Apple computers, or costs $129 for an upgrade. Apple has said the vast majority of Macs sold over the past four years will be able to run Leopard, as well as some older machines, depending on their configuration.
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Apple showed off lots of new features of its upcoming Leopard release of Mac OS X at WWDC on Monday. Here's a look at some of the highlights.
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These are the major Leopard stories as reported by Macworld, PCWorld and wire services
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The update to&#160;Apple&#39;s Mac OS X operating system, called Leopard, went on sale at the Apple Store in Tokyo on Friday evening, part of a global launch that will unfold around the world over the next 24 hours.Apple is putting the software on sale at 6 p.m. local time at stores worldwide. That means customers in Australia and New Zealand got a head start on the rest of the world, although Tokyo marks the first launch of the OS, also called Mac OS X 10.5, at an official Apple Store.About 200 people queued in light rain in Tokyo&#39;s Ginza district for the start of sales, looking on as Apple staff prepared themselves for the event with cheers, countdowns and high-fives. The Apple store had been closed since 4 p.m. to allow for the launch preparations.At 6 p.m. the first customers entered the store, already clutching T-shirts and a copy of the OS that Apple staff were handing out as they entered. Then it was off to the counter to pay.Leopard is the fifth major upgrade that Apple has made to its OS, and its first in two and a half years. The software will be installed on all new Apple computers, or priced in the U.S. at $129 for an upgrade. Apple has said the vast majority of Macs sold over the past four years will be able to run Leopard, as well as some older machines depending on their configuration.The major advances include Time Machine, which automatically creates snapshots of the OS from an earlier point in time, allowing users to retrieve files and applications that have been deleted, or even earlier versions of documents that have been updated.A feature called Spaces allows users to flick between a series of &quot;virtual monitors.&quot; This allows busy desktops to be broken into several parts, and could make using a Mac easier for people who have a clutch of applications open at once.Another new and likely welcome feature is Quick View, which allows users to preview documents without opening the relevant application. Word processor files, pictures, presentations and even movies can all be previewed right away.There are also some cosmetic upgrades, such as a mirrored base on which the dock icons now sit. Other changes aim to better organize files: Downloads now all flow into a single folder, for example.Apple is also releasing a server version of Leopard on Friday. Updates include an improved set-up process, a new version of the iChat Server software, and tools for hosting podcasts and wikis.Leopard&#39;s launch continues Friday around the world. A French Apple dealer has promised a live leopard in a cage at one of its stores outside Paris.(James Niccolai in Paris contributed to this report.)
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When Steve Jobs unleashes Mac OS X Leopard on Friday, Mac fans and others considering an Apple computer for the first time will have questions. Is the new Leopard operating system worth the $129 upgrade price? Is it the reason to splurge for a new Mac? Long before Leopard pounced onto the scene, I rated OS X superior to Windows for most consumers. With Leopard, Apple's operating system widens its lead aesthetically and technologically. Whether the sixth major release of OS X in as many years puts a dent in Microsoft's dominant market share is another matter entirely.