Mac OS X Leopard Features - Sneak Video Previews

Apple has just released some sneak previews on the new and upcoming version of the Mac operating system due in the spring of 2007.

Dubbed Mac OS X Leopard, the new operating system introduces many new cool features including a deeply revamped iChat platform, new RSS to email integration, a more powerful email and note-taking facility, the ability to create custom widgets, multiple virtual desktops, better calendaring and a lot more.

Here a few preview video clips from Apple to "see" first hand what's really cool under the new Mac OS X Leopard hood.

Check out for example the revamped iChat facility and its new cool set of features in this video clip:

Not only. The new Mac OS X Leopard allows for multiple logins on to multiple .Mac, AOL, IM, and Jabber accounts simultaneously and the new set of features includes the ability to drag and drop your buddy list from one account to another, and to finally set yourself to "invisible", just like in any standard instant messenger out there.

Also new is the introduction of text chat tabs, (as all of these other features, not really an industry premiere but a well refined integration of a yet not very popular feature) which allows you to pull all your chats (even group ones) into one simple window, then toggle between them using tabs that display your buddy's screen names. Text bubbles indicate when someone is typing, so you don't miss a chat when a buddy's tab isn't at the front.

On the "flashy" side, iChat turns video conferencing into an event by introducing video backdrops, photo booth effects, photo slideshows, Keynote presentations, or the ability to share live your entire Mac desktop. Thanks in fact to iChat Screen Sharing, you and your buddy can observe and control a single desktop via iChat, "making it a cinch to collaborate with colleagues, browse the Web with a friend, or pick the perfect plane seats with your spouse". Share your own desktop or share your buddy's -- you both have complete control at all times. And when you start a Screen Sharing session, iChat automatically initiates an audio chat so you can talk things through while you're at it.

Another great new feature, dubbed iChat Theater, allows you to present photos from iPhoto, slides from Keynote, or content from any iChat-enabled application with any iChat or AOL AIM buddy. Not only. You can share this visual experience in full-screen, and accompanied by a video feed of you playing host.

Spaces

Spaces is a new Mac OS X Leopard feature which allows you to save multiple virtual desktops containing groups of selected windows and open applications. With the click a function key, you can drag all your application windows onto a new different Space. Keep all your work projects in one Space and all of the movie editing stuff in another.

With the click a function key, you can drag all your application windows onto different Spaces. Create a communication Space for iChat and Mail. Organize your Spaces however you want just by dragging windows into them. You can even rearrange your Spaces with drag-and-drop ease -- shift a Space and every window in it comes along for the ride.

It is also possible to get "a bird's eye view of all your Spaces, or just toggle between them using a few simple keyboard commands. Even the Dock is down with Spaces: When you click on an icon there, Leopard whisks you away to the Space (or Spaces) where you have that application open."

Time Machine

Time Machine is a new Mac OS X Leopard feature which allows you to recover any past deleted file or to go back and recover a long removed document. Time Machine is a new Mac OS X feature which brings your Mac back in time, for the time you need to recover sometime you may have long deleted. Time Machine is there to guarantee against the accidental deletion of important documents as well as against changing your mind when it would normally be too late to step back. As the marketing tagline says: Time is on your side, with Leopard.

Time Machine's time-based browser enables you to see a snapshot of how your entire Mac system looked on any given day -- file by file, day by day. Any file can be instantly restored. The same approach can be applied, with a single click, to a group of files, whole folders, or even to your entire system.

As a matter of fact, the first time you attach an external drive to a Mac running Mac OS X Leopard, Time Machine asks if you'd like to back up to that drive. Set up the drive and Time Machine takes care of everything else, automatically.

"Right from the start, Time Machine in Mac OS X Leopard makes a complete backup of all the files on your system. That includes your system files, applications, accounts, preferences, music, photos, movies, documents -- everything you keep on your Mac. As you make changes, Time Machine only backs up what changes, all the while maintaining a comprehensive layout of your system. That way, Time Machine minimizes the space required on your backup device. Since backups are stored on your device by date, you can browse through your entire system as it appeared on any date. And that's what makes Time Machine different from any backup application you've ever tried."

Mail

The new Mail facility inside the upcoming Mac OS X Leopard provides personalized stationery, a virtual memo pad accessible from anywhere, To-do lists and great integration with iCal.

"Mail for Leopard features more than 30 professionally designed stationery templates that make a virtual keepsake out of every email you send. You can even effortlessly add pictures to your email via a new Media Browser. Just find the perfect photo and drag it onto your template."

The new Leopard Mail facility also facilitates the management and editing of notes, which can include graphics, text and attachments. Notes can be grouped into folders or placed into Smart Mailboxes that automatically group your notes based on topic or interest.

"With Mail for Leopard, simply click an email or note to create a new To-Do. Include a due date, an alarm, or assign priorities. To-Dos you create in Mail automatically appear in iCal, complete with any edits or additions you make."

Leopard Mail also supports directly RSS allowing you to read and subscribe to your favourite news inside your preferred email app. Not only. The new Mail facility in Leopard also allows you to filter RSS-based news on specific keywords. Just set up a Smart Mailbox using search terms that pique your interest and Mail dynamically updates it when relevant articles are posted to your subscribed feeds.

Dashboard

Mac OS X Leopard extends the Dashboard abilities by allowing more widgets, more customization, .Mac syncing and more. Dashboard for Leopard can integrate web sites, search widgets, audio and video, RSS and more.

On top of this when you make a change to your Dashboard preferences, Leopard automatically keeps everything in sync across every Mac you use and with the new Dashcode you can get a widget up and running in minutes, even if you've never written a line of code in your life. To make things even easier you can choose from a handful of Dashcode widget templates -- including a countdown timer, RSS feed, photocast, podcast, or gauge -- or create a widget completely from scratch. Widgets can be easily integrated into the Dashboard or be submitted to Apple.com.

The Dashboard Widgets downloads page at Apple.com offers more than 2,000 widgets and counting.

Find out more on the Apple Mac OS X official web page.