Leopard: final features and further upgrade details
By Ryan Block 
posted October 16th 2007 10:57AM
posted October 16th 2007 10:57AM
- Users who bought Apple machines from October 1st on can participate in Apple's Up-To-Date Program, which provides free Leopard upgrades (for $10 shipping).
- Boot Camp's beta Assistant software expires at the end of 2007, meaning Tiger users that want to continue editing / creating Windows partitions on their Macs need to do so before January, or upgrade to Leopard. Post-January you'll still be able to boot to the partitions you've created, though.
- Users shouldn't expect expanded sync capabilities between Mail.app and the iPhone, although it looks like you'll be able to read iPhone notes on your desktop machine now.
- File system is, indeed, still HFS+; OS X now supports read-only ZFS, as we'd heard.
- Don't forget to peep the new features / changes list on Apple's site.
- Call us crazy, but with a 6:00PM Friday launch we think you should expect lines -- but not for Apple to sell out.
- Google Maps integration with Address Book.
- Tricked out AppleScript.
- Automator UI recording / playback.
- Japanese dictionary support.
- New, easily-printable font books.
- Front Row now looks more like "Back Row" (the Apple TV interface) -- too bad it's still not more like Media Center.
- New AirPort menus that show WiFi encryption.
- Disk encryption now supports 256 bit AES.
- Built-in grammar checker. Lord knows we need it 'round these parts.
- Tabbed terminal.
Thats for the pointless reply. People use Macs, go to an ad agency. They use macs because they are easier to use and allow easier editing. Seriously, not every real business uses windows. So please, get your head out of your ass and realize that not all businesses need windows.
http://akqa.com/
All they use is macs. I have been there, reason why. My dad used to work there, actually one of the CEO's, he split the partnership with his friends. He retired, his friend still owns it. They use macs and made the ads for Halo 3 and help design the dashboard for the 360.
And yes, they use macs. So stop being an idiot.
Didn't mean every single person there uses macs, but the majority uses macs.
I've noticed that this thread has been flooded with Microsoft fanboys criticizing Apple. Your an idiot if you think XP or Vista is superior to Leopard. And your an idiot if you think Leopard is superior to XP or Vista.
There both good and they have there uses. I have found Tiger works better for me for school work than XP or Vista. And for gamers, the obvious route is to go with XP (or Vista if your PC is fast enough)
Leopard is perfect for me:
Stacks: I can have easier access to school work. It may sound lazy since I could just click a folder and have access but I like organization for school work and this is easy.
Spaces: Great if I am working on multiple school assignments and have other applications open. Instead of minimizing them I can use spaces and take advantage of the organization.
Quick Look: This is what I want. After having tons of school work saved up being able to quickly see what the assignment is without opening up the application seems easier and more efficient.
Time Machine: Finally having reliable back up software. My MyBook came with horrible backup software(still a good external HDD) and I don't want to by software. And time machine is really nicely integrated. And if I ever need to access some old assignment that was deleted, I can use Time Machine.
There, Leopard has its uses. Now Microsoft Fanboys get it through you thick heads. Not everyone wants to use there computer for gaming and some people don't give a damn about market share.
All OS's have there uses.
Grammar has its uses, too.
Ahem..."Ggrammar has its uses too" is actually the grammatically correct sentence. There should be no comma as it separates the intended train of thought. ;-)
Of course SPELLING is a whole new ball game lmao!
I don't understand why people complain about the price so much. It's about the price of a decent pair of shoes, an anniversary dinner, or a nice bottle of scotch. Think about how much use you will get out of it, and it really seems cheap.
How is performance? I had heard that on current HW, it runs much quicker (i.e. it is snappier moving around the GUI)
Where can I get that awesome background they have on the macbook in the picture?
Anyone wanna hook it up with a link?
You might have to go here. . . but it will cost you $130.
http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore?productLearnMore=MB021Z/A
Just kidding, but after it comes out I'm sure the background will show up
Brad:
If you read the thing, you'd see that those are minor changes that the engadget writer is fond of that we haven't seen or discussed before (the obvious ones). Engadget has already covered the major developer improvements in ObjC 2.0, dtrace, CoreAnimation, etc., as well as the new programs like the Time Machine, Spaces, the Safari/Mail/iChat/Finder updates, and all of that stuff. These are the other 150 or so minor features that usually don't get a lot of press, but actually make up a large part of the upgrade awesomeness. None of this stuff is worth $129, but if there are 10 minor features that you'd pay $5 for, the value adds up.
Additionally, you're slightly misinformed about some of the features. For instance, the grammar checker in Office isn't cross-application. Leopard's grammar checking works in most of the applications and can be easily integrated into third-party apps. Also, last I checked, Office doesn't come with Windows. You also ignore the fact that Media Center isn't standard in Windows. You have to either buy the XP MCE version or one of the 2 (out of 7) versions of Windows that support it.
peter the great - The technical representative couldn't answer your question because the software isn't out, and because they haven't been fully trained on it yet. The training for Apple's phone techs would occur once Leopard hit RC, so about a week ago. Given that it probably takes time to train people, he's probably not supposed to give out info yet. Additionally, your question is a lot more complex than you make it sound. Here's a brief run-down:
Time Machine first makes a copy of all the data that you tell it to back up. So if you tell it to back up 160 GB of data, then this first backup will be 160 GB. When it makes future backups, it only backs up changes. So the size of the other backups will depend on three factors:
1) How often you "backup"
2) How many backups you keep
3) The rate at which you change data, and how much data you change between backups.
For instance, let's suppose you have an install with 4 files, A (50 MB), B (10 MB), C (1 MB), and D (1 MB), that you want to back up. Time Machine first makes a full backup, so you have A.0 - D.0 on your backup drive, taking up a total of 62 MB. The next day, you edit C, and double it in size. Then Time Machine does another backup. It only gains 2 MB, as the only new file it makes is C.1 (the most recent version of C). You now have 2 "backups" which take up a total of 64 MB of space. You then go on vacation the next day, and change nothing. Time Machine has no backups to make, so it just notes that A-D were unchanged. There's some slight overhead, but not much, so lets say that you now have spent 65 MB in backup. The next day, you change A. This means that Time Machine adds A.1 to your backup drive, bringing the size up to like 115 MB. The day after that, you update C, meaning you now use 117 MB. Let's say you only keep daily backups for the previous week. On day 7, you'll have 7 files - A.0, A.1, B.0, C.0, C.1, C.2, and D.0. Then you drop the files that were replaced 7 days ago - that'd be A.0 and C.0, bringing you down to 66 MB of usage.
So in short, the more space you have, the more often you can backup, and the more backups you can keep. In your specific case, I'd recommend (and I'm not an expert) maybe a 250 GB drive. That'd let you keep plenty of sets of changes (assuming you just do email/browsing/iWork/iTunes stuff) and shouldn't cost more than $120 for a decent USB2 drive.
if i purchase the single-user disc, will i be able to install it on other computers?
[basically, is there some sort of authentication? if not, why would anyone buy the 5-pack]
There's no authentication or checking. You buy the 5 pack because you're an honest, decent human being who wants to install the OS on multiple computers. Some of us understand that, and can remember when most people did the right thing simply because it was the right thing.
People like you might cost Apple some money but I respect the fact that in this instance they respect their customers and trust them to just do the right thing.
"People like you might cost Apple some money..."
Way to accuse the guy before he has even done anything, asshole.
And to answer you question without passing automatic guilt, your license agreement grants you one install per machine (or X amount depending on how many you buy), but "technically" there is absolutely nothing holding you back from going to every mac you see and inserting that disc to upgrade them, except that agreement you accept. Because, you know, everyone here that claims to have high moral fiber has read all the license agreements of all the software they purchased, and has followed every single guideline word for word.
I'm sure it will really be worth the money to get:
New Fonts, and address bar for finder, RSS in mail, Forward as attachment, Duplicate a smart box, a word of the day screen saver, an empty trash button, a Movie widget, Widget Templates, Stacks, and to not be confused with the previous item, Sorting Stacks, a new language in the dictionary, a Time Slider for the DVD PLAYER!!!!!,...
And other sorry excuses for features that were apparently too difficult to give existing Tiger owners through a patch and to fill a supposed 300 new features, when in reality, the only features they are really giving that even matters a shit is on the main page.
Typing this post from an iBook.
Maybe to be honest and not break Apples EULA? To me that would be a good reason to get the 5 Pack. I paid for all my XP's for all my machines which cost me FAR more than the 5 license pack of OSX.
thanks everyone; i was unsure whether to buy a single-license for myself or split a 5-pack with friends.
pretty easy to find someone willing to upgrade to leopard at college.
while the college discount is pretty bad ($116, and still $199 for 5), try looking for an employee discount store discount. i get a discount from the washington post as an employee, and it's only $165 for the 5 pack, $107 for the single-pack. it's pretty easy to find the url for the washington post apple store by the way.
Leave it to Steve Jobs to find a way to put *just* enough new stuff in here to make me really want to upgrade.
JB (http://www.philoking.com)
I was curious this time around to see if Apple could still innovate and unfortunately they have not. This is an unfortunate turn of events; this time Apple merely made alternative interfaces for many of the solutions that Microsoft already offers in XP and Vista.
The problem I have with this, is that there seems to definitely be a lack of creativity upon the major OS writers including UNIX/Linux variations to come up with a new way of using the computer. (Adobe is another good example of a software company that tacks on functionality while not thinking about it's integration.)
What they are giving us are prettier interfaces and more bloated code but not necessarily easier, quicker interfaces for our software. So far the most interesting interface I have seen is Microsoft's Surface concept, at least the users are getting new ways to interact.
I hope they fix iTunes sorting
Is it true that MSN Messenger will now work with iChat?
Anyone know if Boot camp is ever going to support things other than windows?
Looks great... Sucks that they aren't keeping the R2D2 feature in ichat. That was a really cool feature...
well apple stated that they put in about 300+ new features...
so i guess the exciting ones were left off the list above.
I'm not bashing any of the OS here. I was a full time windows user before I tried using os x, and i must say, i was a convert immediately. Now i go with a saying that i used to laugh at, but i must admit, "Once you go Mac, you never go back."
Cheers people! At the end of the day, if the OS makes you happy, then use it. Mac OS just makes me happier. =)
I'm a Mac user myself, but I absolutely hate the modal direction they've taken OSX. I don't ever want a feature to take me away from my work flow, but Apple is damned intent on distractions.
I like Vista's Sidebar better than the Dashboard because on a giant monitor I can afford the real-estate and would prefer not to have to switch to another layer to pull down a gadget I might want to use.
Vista's Shadow Copy feature is also much, much simpler than Time Machine, and it just fits into the file system. Why on earth would I want to suddenly switch to a cheesy space backdrop and visual-intensive interface when I can be done with the exact same thing in a fraction of the time from the file manager?
At this rate, Apple's going to lose a customer.
man that is crap i just got my mac on 9-27
i just wanted 2 say dat we seem 2 have missed out on the main features the leopard is going 2 b providing 4 the future:
Full 64bit architecture........while MS still launches diff version of XP n Vista. i can't run any 64bit app on my 32bit XP even though my hardware is 64bit. Dat makes me feel like spending that hard earned money on that sweet Dual Core processor on my PC is of no use cuz the OS sux. I knw dat my macbook pro with the Core2 duo processor n leopard is gnna BLAZE!!!!!
Core Animation........lets developers make great looking applications........dats wat i think is gnna take mac apps 2 another level in a few months.
Spaces.......sumthing dat linux already has(u'd knw if u've used ubuntu n beryl). This give the ability to manage different work spaces.
I really want Webclips, DashCode n Xcode ...........as a web developer it'd make my job easier to create widgets. Takes care of my coding aspect of the widget. Then all i need is make some changes in the code n its up.
Jus makes life simpler when u have 1 version of leopard out there to choose 4m. Unlike MS who wants 2 just make money by making diff versions just to confuse the average user. U knw their jus F#$%ing with the customers when they use such money making marketing strategies jus 2 rip off customers.
Hooray for tabbed terminal! I mean, I've been using iTerm for a while, but I'm glad they're finally including this as a standard feature.
Why didn't you wait? I mean seriously, it's not like an October release of Leopard was a big suprise to anyone. Patience is a virtue, one you'll have to pay $130 for not having or torrent it dirtying your nice new machine with naughty pirate badness.
I did not know it was comming out if i would have i sure as hell could have waited 3 damn days it was my first mac So i was just more concerned with the unit its self and not what it came with.
What's you favorite Leopard feature? Check out this list I made:
http://www.pollsb.com/polls/poll/3007/your-mac-os-x-leopard-favorite-feature
The thing that most people don't understand is that Leopard is really a developers release. There are many features that the end user will not directly see, like full 64bit support, better support for multi-core processors, core animation, xcode 3.0 and more. All of these technologies lay the frameworks for future apps and developments, to be utilized by both Apple and 3d partys. But, at the same time, Apple can't release an OS, and say "Well, it looks completely the same as the last version we put out, but trust us Mrs. Smith, it's much better. Theres multi-layer real time animation! You will love it!"
That's not how it works, and thats also why many people think that Leopard is a minor upgrade, from the end user features like the new unified appearance, spaces, the new finder, quicklook, time machine, ext, which are also not little things. Time machine is truly a revolutionary backup system, and the new finder is really a big improvement.
Once you see all of the apps that go leopard only, and the features and performance increase that you see because of that will the user really understand the value of leopard.
To all those complaining about Leopard being a "Patch".
Need I remind you about the Windows 95 to 98 jump? It basically looked the same but had a LOT of changes under the hood.
Of course, it seems like a lot of people are judging the OS by graphical changes.
Also, I should mention that Vista was made to try to be more like Tiger.
You don't want Apple to change OSX dramatically. Why fix something if it isn't broken. Especially if you run the risk of breaking it in the first place...just look at Vista
As for the pirates out there. I agree that full experience of Vista is way too expensive..in terms of money and ram/space. However pirating an OS is just stupid..especially when you can get the full experience of OSX for only 120 bucks..
Ok Engadget Boys and Girls -- will it run on a non-Mac intel box? Where are the glitches and how easy are the work-arounds.
Here's how E can provide a POV that's different from the rest -- including the aging tech experts at WSJ.
Question -- Can I have multiple backups with Time Machine?
I have a MBP. I will create a 30gb internal partition. On the road, I like to configure Time Machine to make frequent backups of a limited set of my files. When I bring my laptop home with my external hard drive plugged in, I like it to do a more extensive backup. Is this possible?
If so, is it even necessary to make the separate (internal) partition? Can I just tell time machine to make the backups to a folder on my internal drive?
Thx!
Will Time Machine spread the backups over multiple networked disks?