The last clock time Apple updated the Mac operating system—2009 ’s Snow Leopard departure — the most notable changes happened under the thug . That ’s not the case with Lion , the next major adaptation of Mac OS X. Apple has been step by step pulling back the drapery on its late and greatest cat , first at apreview case last Octoberand then this week at the Worldwide Developers Conference . And what we ’ve seen thus far is a pretty meaning shift for the Mac OS , influenced in turgid part by Apple ’s peregrine operating system , iOS .
vainglorious changes like the ones introduced by Mac OS X Lion bring about big query : What ’s really new in Lion ? How does it cultivate ? How can you get it ? We ’ve spent some time going over what Apple has break about the Mac OS Adam update , and we ’re ready to answer those questions — along with any others you might have about Lion .
Availability
What ’s Lion going to cost me ?
Would you believe $ 30 ? For long - time OS X users , that ’s not an peanut dot . Four years ago when Mac OS X 10.5 came out , it cost $ 129 to instal Leopard on your Mac . Now you ’ll be capable to elevate to Lion for about a quarter of the monetary value . ( And that ’s assuming you instal it on only one computer — more on that below . ) With its approach to Lion pricing , Apple seems intent on redefining what computer software costs .
When can I get my hands on Lion ?
Upgrading to Lion? You’ll only be able to buy it through the Mac App Store, Apple says.
Apple articulate the update will be uncommitted in July , and that ’s about as specific as the company is uncoerced to get at this point . The company may provide a more specific firing date in the coming weeks , but it ’s just as possible that Lion might simply come along on the Mac App Store one day next month , and that will be that .
Wait — the Mac App Store ? I can download Lion from there ?
In fact , the Mac App Store will be theonlyplace where you could download Lion . There wo n’t be any alternative to order it on CD , or from brick - and - mortar retail stores .
Look closely on the righthand side of this iTunes window, and you can see Lion’s scrollbar implementation. Scrollbars only appear when you move your mouse over the scrolling portion window.
What if I have multiple Macs ? Can I instal it on each one ?
raise to Lion ? You ’ll only be capable to buy it through the Mac App Store , Apple says .
This is one of the biggest benefits of Mac App Store dispersion : As with any applications you purchase from the Mac App Store , you ’ll be capable to set up Lion on any Macs that are authorized with the Apple ID you used to buy the OS . Which mean that if your family has four , five , six , or more Macs , a single $ 30 payment will let you install Lion on every machine . With premature full - version rise of Mac OS X , $ 129 would get you a license for a individual install , with a $ 199 Family Pack letting you install on up to five Macs . Apple never used DRM to enforce such rules with prior releases of OS X , but now you ’ll be able to reprocess your transcript on multiple machines without the guilt and ignominy .
When you use AirDrop, icons appear of other users on your local network. Drop a file on the icon of a person to share it with them.
How about schools and businesses ? Will they only be able-bodied to get the update through the Mac App Store ? That seems inconvenient .
We fit : There ’s probably another shoe to drop here in regards to school and businesses . Chances are , while Apple will make hay with Mac App Store dispersion of Lion for the average customer , the company will probably propose other avenues for those unable to instal through anything other than traditional means . For what it ’s worth , it ’s also possible you may be able to download Lion from the Mac App Store , then burn a copy to videodisc for instal on your other organization , though we ’re not sure that ’s going to be the upgrade advice Apple gives IT manager and system administrators .
What kind of Mac do I need to set up Lion ?
Familiar with the iPad’s Home Screen? Then you’ll feel right at home with Lion’s Launchpad.
The processor powering your Mac is the best indicator of whether you ’ve get Lion - favorable hardware . Apple articulate you ’ll postulate a Mac with an Intel Core 2 Duo , Core i3 , Core i5 , Core i7 , or Xeon central processing unit to launch the new osmium . ( In case you have n’t committed your Mac ’s processor to memory , just click the Apple icon on the top left wing of your projection screen and choose About This Mac — you’ll learn everything you ever wanted to know about your Mac ’s viscera . )
Apple ’s system requirements essentially get a line in the sand at Mac models released in late 2006 . ( That ’s when the first Core 2 Duo - found systems hit the market . ) If you hop on the Intel changeover betimes , and you ’re still using that five - class - old CoreDuo(or Solo)-powered Mac , you ’re going to have to upgrade your hardware — at least if you require to entertain any thoughts of running Lion .
Of naturally , just because early Core 2 Duo - based Macs are compatible with Lion , that does n’t needs have in mind performance will be great on these Macs . We ’ll have to expect and see if , as with old Mac OS X upgrade , the oldest compatible systems offer lackluster performance under the latest OS .
Use trackpad gestures or keyboard shortcuts to quickly view apps and workspaces in Mission Control.
I ’m not execute the latest personification of Snow Leopard . I do n’t have the Mac App Store . How am I suppose to get Lion ?
harmonize to Apple’sofficial process , you have two choice : Buy a brand new Mac , or upgrade your Mac to Snow Leopard now . However , give that Snow Leopard was a paid ascent and there are still people with Lion - compatible Macs run Leopard — not to mention the fact that a estimable number of citizenry just wo n’t be able-bodied to download the 4 GB Lion upgrade due to bandwidth caps or tedious Internet connections — we opine it ’s potential that Apple will quietly offer alternative climb paths while still hard advertise the Mac App Store approach path . But we ca n’t insure it .
How will installation work ?
A three-column layout and conversation view are among the changes you’ll find in Mail in Mac OS X Lion.
Apple has n’t yet enjoin , but assuming the procedure is interchangeable to the installation process for the Lion Developer Preview , purchasing the rise from the Mac App Store will automatically download a bombastic ( or so 4 GB ) installer app . Once the download is complete , you ’ll simply launch the installer , which will set up Lion in spot — you wo n’t need to make a bootable installer disc or driving . You should also be able to copy that installer to another Mac and — provided that Mac is authorized to habituate your Mac App Store history — take over the installation there .
But if there ’s no disc , how can I troubleshoot my Mac if I run into a major problem ?
So far , Apple has n’t bring home the bacon details for creating a bootable Lion - installer record . However , when you bought your Mac it came with a bootable disc or ( in the lawsuit of the MacBook Air , thumb drive ) that can be used for troubleshooting and disk repair . That ’s not going aside . AndInternet reportssuggest that beta versions of the Lion installer really contain a bootable disk image , so we would n’t be surprised if the final Lion installer gives you the alternative to burn yourself a boot disc or initialize a bootable thumb drive .
Lion’s Dictionary supports inline definitions throughout the OS.
Must I pay for Lion if I got my Mac recently ?
If you bought your new Mac on or after June 6 , then you qualify for a complimentary copy of Lion . Apple says you ’ll have 30 days from Lion ’s release to request your free written matter ( most likely via a Mac App Store salvation code that the company will provide ) .
Interface Changes
For screen background Mac users without a Magic Trackpad , will Lion be usable ? I do n’t see scrollbars .
While Lion has clear been build to favour trackpad input , that does n’t mean other user will be leave alone in the lurch . The scrollbars you know and love are still there , but hidden — they’ll only touch off when you move your computer mouse over the scrolling luck window . ( Developer builds of Lion have include a preference to keep scrollbars always visible , as well . ) As for multitouch gestures link to Mission Control and Exposé , you ’ll still be able to map some of them to keyboard shortcuts .
Look closely on the righthand side of this iTunes window , and you’re able to see Lion ’s scrollbar execution . Scrollbars only appear when you move your shiner over the scrolling portion windowpane .
What are all these multitouch gestures , anyway ?
There are many , and they ’re configurable . ( That is , you could wrick specific gesture off , and you could often adjust the number of fingers a gesture requires . ) you’re able to double - strike on a Scripture with three fingers to look it up in Lion ’s built - in dictionary , scroll with two digit , and surge in and out by pinching or double - tapping with two digit . you’re able to swipe between pages ( in Safari , iPhoto , and other apps ) with leftover or correct two - finger swipes , and you’re able to swipe between apps with three or four fingers . Trigger Mission Control — Lion ’s young take on Exposé — with a three - finger swipe up , and break the desktop by spreading your quarter round and three fingerbreadth apart , as if you ’re flick all your windows off .
What ’s this about scrolling being backwards in Lion ?
If you ’ve ever used an iOS gimmick , you may have noticed that your capacity will scroll in the counselling you push or pluck it , imitating how you ’d interact with a real - globe object . In Lion , Apple has bring this concept — often referred to as inverse scrolling — to the desktop : Pull down with your fingers , and the written document will move downward — bringing you closer to the top .
If this does n’t quite translate for you on the background as it might on an iPhone or iPad , do n’t chafe : Lion includes a penchant to reinstate scroll to the direction you ’re accustomed to .
What ’s alter in the Finder ?
The Finder has gotten a minor makeover : its sidebar icons now look a lot like the icons in iTunes — monochromatic and simple . A new All My Files faker - folder in the Finder displays all of of the papers on your Mac , group by case . By default option , Finder window no longer show their Status stripe relaying your uncommitted drive space , but you could re - enable it . And as with all window under Lion , you could resize your Finder windows from anywhere across all four windowpane edges .
Features
How will Lion exchange my daily Mac - using experience ?
It could have a pretty substantial impact , we opine . A trio of features — Resume , Autosave , and Versions — may have the single greatest impact on your day - to - day Mac economic consumption . With Resume , when you quit an app with a cluster of candid windows and later on relaunch it , compatible app program should — ta - da!—resumein exactly the province you last left them . If you ’re customary to iOS , it ’s similar to the “ freeze ” state multitasking attack in iOS 4 ; Lion brings that to the desktop , and it even works after you reboot your Mac .
Autosave and reading unite to help you recoil your Command - S habit : Compatible apps can preserve your files for you as you type , and you’re able to view and bushel — as well as cut and copy from — all your past revisions in a Time Machine - esque portal . By default , Versions will lay aside a copy of your data file every hour ; anytime you manually economise , you ’ll add a new rendering “ checkpoint ” as well . As a outcome , you may spend more fourth dimension writing your papers — or editing your photo , or building codification — and less meter worry about how it ’s being saved and stored .
How do fullscreen apps employment ? How do I know about alert in my Dock if my app is fullscreen ?
Fullscreen applications — like their name suggests — operate by expanding the app to take up the entire breadth of the screen . They open in a separate desktop space , so that you could still access any other windows by switching spaces via multitouch gesture or Mission Control . Most of Apple ’s applications programme will plump for fullscreen mode on launching ; for third - company political program , however , developer will need to update their code before it can be used .
To air an lotion into fullscreen mood , click the button in the upper - proper quoin of the toolbar . you’re able to see your wharf in fullscreen mode by moving your black eye to the side of the filmdom where you have it ground ; you’re able to similarly touch off the menu bar by move the black eye to the top . If you count on blinking Dock icons ( and not audio queue ) for alerts about Modern e - ring mail message or instant messages , however , be warned that you ’ll be blind to such apprisal when you use an app in fullscreen style , as the Dock control as if you ’ve hide it . ( BouncingDock notifications will still shortly look when you ’re running a fullscreen app . )
What is AirDrop ?
First revealed during the October Lion prevue , AirDrop catch more extensive demo metre during WWDC . It ’s a data file - sharing feature design to allow users in the same surface area to transfer files wirelessly . AirDrop finds other user in your vicinity — even if there ’s no Wi - Fi web — and allows you to interchange files with them .
When you employ AirDrop , icons appear of other users on your local net . send away a file on the icon of a person to share it with them .
Select the AirDrop item in the Finder ’s Sources sidebar to see the ikon of other AirDrop users on your local web . To partake in a file , drop it onto the ikon of the soul you care to send the single file to . The receiving political party will see a notification involve them if they ’d like to accept or decline the transferral .
Can I use AirDrop to send files to my friends or family out of country ?
No . This is curt - range technology — it ’s only designed to encounter other user within a 30 - foot wheel spoke , Apple say . So unless you ’re standing at the country business line and they ’re on the other side waving at you , you wo n’t be able-bodied to use AirDrop to transmit files to your out - of - state friends and family .
What is Launchpad ?
The Launchpad gives users crying entree to all the applications on their Mac . It ’s a looking at reminiscent of the home screen of an iPad . exploiter can see their total practical program library laid out in image form , arrange booklet , scroll through Sir Frederick Handley Page , and rearrange apps as they see fit . Windows drug user who transitioned to the Mac after falling in love with their iPhone may very well take a liking to Launchpad ’s Home projection screen - like interface ; for experienced users with oodles of applications , however , it may examine too unwieldy for general habit . As anyone who ’s accumulated a few page of apps on the iPhone can tell you , it ’s a peck easier to just give up and apply Spotlight rather than play the app - finding equivalent of Where ’s Waldo . That said , Launchpad seems primarily draw a bead on at Io whipper , and those of us who prefer the comfort of the Finder can easy push aside it .
intimate with the iPad ’s Home Screen ? Then you ’ll find right at home with Lion ’s Launchpad .
What is Mission Control ?
Mission Control is a reinvention of Exposé and Spaces , OS X ’s respective window - shift and virtual desktop features . In Mission Control , you use trackpad gesture ( or keyboard shortcuts ) to quickly view all your running apps and interchange between dissimilar workspaces ( which admit shared spaces with multiple apps , apps running in full - screen door mode , and even the Dashboard ) . alternatively of configuring what blend in where via a System Preference window glass , you just drag on and throw apps and windows into new quad from the Mission Control view . The idea is that you may be more productive by switch among dissimilar survey ( say , an e - ring armor windowpane versus one containing a Web internet browser and a note - taking app ) , and Apple is count on Mission Control being easier to use than Exposé and Spaces .
habituate trackpad motion or keyboard shortcuts to quickly take in apps and workspaces in Mission Control .
What ’s raw with the other OS ex applications I ’ve come to know and love ?
In Lion , you ’ll bump new revised variation of most of Apple ’s magnetic core applications : There are modification across the board in Mail , Safari , iCal , Address Book , Preview , TextEdit , iChat , Photo Booth , and Quicktime Player — even Dictionary and Font Book have a new feature of speech or two .
Mail has received the full-grown renovation , get ahead a new three - column layout , conversation view , message previews , related to messages , search suggestions , inline answer and excision controls , usance label and flags , the plus of an archive mailbox , and Exchange 2010 support .
A three - column layout and conversation view are among the changes you ’ll find in Mail in Mac OS X Lion .
Safari , meanwhile , has a newfangled Reading List purpose ( similar to Marco Arment ’s Instapaper ) ; multitouch gestures like wiretap ( or pinch ) to zoom and two - finger swipe for navigation ; enhanced privacy features ; and support for Modern CSS3 and JavaScript elements along with the WOFF schoolbook format .
iCal and Address Book have been reskinned to more - closely resemble their iOS cousins , while Preview has gained novel theme song annotations , magnification tools , and support for open iWork and Office documents . TextEdit has a new top toolbar , while iChat now support third - party sparking plug - indium for adding new IM services in addition to a coordinated brother list . Photo Booth has several new effects , support for trim video clipping , and a fullscreen modal value that imitate the photo booth of yore .
QuickTime has lend back several features from its defunct sibling , QuickTime Pro : you’re able to now immix and rotate clip , export just the audio of a clip ; and do partial silver screen gaining control ( with or without pointer clicks ) . you may also export to Vimeo , Flickr , Facebook , iMovie , and Mail .
Lion ’s Dictionary support inline definitions throughout the OS .
Dictionary now support inline dictionary definition , OS - widely : This think you could highlight and keep in line - click a parole ( or perform a three fingerbreadth two-fold - tap ) anywhere in the system and have the definition appear in a popping - up . Font Book has been slightly reorganized and optimized , and there are even a few new system font : Damascus , PT Sans , and Kefa . In addition , if you likeemoji , you ’ll be proud of to see that Lion has integrate Apple ’s own custom color emoji font .
The Mac App Store is persist the same , right ?
Nope . Even though it just arrived in January , the Mac App Store should undergo a few modest changes when Lion arrives . Like their Io counterparts , Mac app makers will be able to add in - app purchases and campaign notification . Apple is also requiring developers to add sandboxing — which prevents applications from interfering with other bits of information on your organisation — for heightened security .
Updating your software should go quicker , too . Lion will favor “ delta ” updates for the apps you own , meaning the Mac App Store will now download just the changes in a code for each software update rather than the integral software .
