Leopard leaps ahead
Steve Jobs previewed the new version of the Apple operating system earlier today, Mac OS X Leopard, the sixth major version of Mac OS X.
There are some revolutionary new features built into Leopard, the most intertesting of which are Time Machine and Spaces.
Time Machine is an automatic backup utility built into the operating system. What's really clever about it is it's ability to auto-save any content on your computer to an external hard-drive or server.
The user can then use an innovative interface to visually 'warp' (see above) through time to view and restore a single file right through to entire photo albums or even the entire system.
Spaces enables you to create multiple, virtual desktops to organise all of your open applications. So, for example, you could create a collection of open web pages and an instance of iChat in one 'space'; have PhotoShop and Illustrator open in another 'space'; iTunes and Mail in a third 'space' and then quickly and easily switch between them.
Think of it as application switching for desktops.
Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO, said "Breakthrough features like Time Machine and Spaces are good examples of how Mac OS X leads the industry in operating system innovation. While Microsoft tries to copy the version of OS X we shipped a few years ago, we're leaping ahead again with Leopard".
Indeed, these features do seem way ahead of what Microsoft will be able to offer when the oft-delayed Vista is finally released.
Other features in Leopard to get an overhaul include iChat, Spotlight, Mail, Dashboard, Boot Camp, Front Row and Photo Booth.
See Apple's new 'Leopard Sneak Peek' site for more detail and some QuickTime movies of some of the new features.
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