After months and months of hype and speculation (and some decent reviews), Apple is finally ready to ship its latest version of the Mac OS X — version 10.6 — dubbed Snow Leopard. Since the Mac faithful had been expecting a September release, and operating system shipments are notoriously late (particularly Windows), the somewhat earlier release (just a few days, really) comes as a pleasant surprise.
Among the standout improvements are support for Microsoft’s Exchange Server, a much-welcomed nod to the business world, and the promise of a speedier interface. Also, according to Apple, the new OS is lighter and frees up 6 GB of hard drive space upon installation.
And if you already have the previous version of the OS, also known as “Leopard,” then you only have to pay $29. But if you’re upgrading from an even earlier version, say “Tiger,” then it will cost you dearly — $169. Ouch!
Each new release of Mac OS X comes with a corresponding wildcat name, each one more exotic than the last, but what will come after Snow Leopard? I’ll cast my vote for “Liger,” a mythical lion/tiger hybrid, which should give geeks everywhere something to snicker about.
Image courtesy of Apple, from a press release.