While out supposedly buying something for lunch on Friday I got sucked into the local Apple store in London, and walked back out with a copy of Leopard. For those who have no idea, Leopard is the latest version of the operating system on the Apple Mac. Think “Windows” for the PC crowd.
This is the desktop, replete with a shiny new dock that reflects things, translucent menu-bar, and this wonderful new feature called “Stacks” - see the pile of documents fanning out of the dock? All you need to do for that to happen is drag a folder down there, and it becomes a stack.
Stacks can appear in two configurations - this is the second - in this case we are looking at the contents of my Documents folder.
One of the most praised additions to OSX this time around is “Coverflow” in the file browser. You know how you can see 3D album covers in iTunes? Well that works for everything now - documents, photos, spreadsheets, even font files.
Here’s another picture of Coverflow at work - this time showing Applications (the equivalent of the Windows start menu).
Okay - here’s another huge benefit that will aid most people - if you press the space bar with a file hilighted, it immediately shows you the file. I’m still not sure how they are doing it, but all common file types open for preview almost instantaneously. Movies, music, photos, documents, spreadsheets - you name it, it opens immediately. I have heard it likened to pulling a file from a cabinet as you are sorting through them… that’s exactly what it feels like.
Next significant edition in terms of ease of use is “Spaces”. This idea has been called virtual desktops on just about every other operating system. Apple’s take on it is by far the most slick I have ever seen. With the press of a button you smoothly zoom into the air over your multiple desktops, and come back down on the one you want - or press a button to slide from one to the next. Moving applications between desktops is as simple as dragging.
OSX 10.5 Leopard obviously has a lot more to offer than I have covered here. I have perhaps touched on 4 items from 300 available before. I’ve not even mentioned “Time Machine” for instance…
The biggest surprise for me in doing this upgrade (pulling on my professional software developer hat) was how smoothly it went. No issues at all. Not one. Everything just worked, and when the computer re-started, everything was as it had been before - only shinier, more polished, in some cases faster, but on the whole the same.
The journey of discovery with regard to the new tricks the operating has up it’s sleeve will no doubt continue for several months.
I cannot enthuse enough. Leopard is the best operating system I have ever seen - bar none.