Apple reveals new info about OS X Lion, launches Developer Preview

Apple reveals new info about OS X Lion, launches Developer PreviewIn addition to that new mountain wallpaper, Apple has posted a good bit of info on its upcoming upgrade to Mac OS X:

Versions

OS X Lion will automatically save a copy of a document each time it is opened, and automatically, every hour. Versions is a new component of Time Machine, which was introduced in OS X 10.5 Leopard.

Resume

After a reboot (from a software update, for example), Lion users will have the ability to have their Macs reboot with every program and document open, just as it was before shutdown.

Mail 5

Mail is finally getting a much-needed overhaul. The UI is very reminiscent of the iPad’s, and with a new feature called Conversations, reading email threads promises to be better than ever.

AirDrop

AirDrop seems really simple — all it does is allow users on the same wireless network to share files with each other very easily. This can be done in Finder now via Bonjour, but it seems that it’s about to get a lot easier.

Lion Server

With the Xserve gone, lots of people have speculated that Lion Server wasn’t going to happen. Looks like — as with most things — the truth is somewhere in the middle. OS X Lion Client will ship with Server baked in. Server Admin, Profile Manager (wither Workgroup Manager?), Wiki Server 3 and a new WebDAV service for iPad users will ship with every Mac. It’s unclear if these apps will require any specific hardware (I doubt it), or additional charges (I also doubt it).

Developer Preview

As of this morning, Mac developer account holders can download a preview of Lion. This release — like previous previews — is under NDA.

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About Stephen M. Hackett

Stephen Hackett, formerly a Lead Mac Genius at Apple, now spends his days running the IT department of a large non-profit in Memphis, TN. He writes about Apple, design and journalism at forkbombr.net. Like all twenty-somethings, you can find him on Twitter. Oh, and he has a dogcow tattoo.

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Discount Shop

This is major. I think the implications of this are greater than the obvious. I hope this won’t affect the price

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Marilyn Halpin

I really don't love the thought of server bundled into the consumer OS. I know that OS X Server as it stands now is basically OS X but the price point of it somewhat weeded out the people who shouldn't be messing with server ;) I think my concern is people who don't understand all the background things that go into making server work. While this could translate into more paying work for my company, I would rather set something up correctly out of the blocks than try and undo what someone has done wrong. Often that is more frustrating and takes longer.

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Joshua Schnell

I don't mind it. I doubt it'll be a simple installation choice. Just a guess though, since I don't have a developer account. :(

For people competent enough to run OS X Server, it sure saves some cash.

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Marilyn Halpin

I'm sure if I was just a regular consumer I'd be stoked ;) We are downloading it now, it will be interesting to see what's going on.

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Trackbacks

  1. Podcast: Thoughts on the new MacBook Pro and OS X Lion | Macgasm says:
    February 24, 2011 at 4:51 PM

    [...] from Apple Inc.We also chat about a bunch of other stuff:Hosts: Joshua Schnell Guest: Peter CohenOS X Lion seeded to developers, and the newly announced featuresNew MacBook ProsThunderboltBrief Discussion about the Mac App Store, Blu Ray, and FaceTime [...]