Apple Unveils Next Iteration Of Mac OS X

Code-named Jaguar, the upgrade is slated to be released late this summer and will include new applications and technology, the Cupertino, Calif.-based computer maker reported. Headlining the list of new features are iChat, Apple's new instant messaging software; QuickTime 6, an upgrade of Apple's streaming media app; and Rendezvous, Apple's proposed new industry standard for automatic discovery of computers, devices and services on IP networks such as Ethernet and Apple AirPort.

Apple offered preview copies of Jaguar at the developers conference. "Jaguar is packed with incredible new features that Mac OS X users are going to love, including our iChat instant messaging software," Apple CEO Steve Jobs told more than 2,500 Macintosh software developers at the event. "Jaguar takes the world's highest-volume, Unix-based operating system to the next level."

IChat will be built into Jaguar and integrated with new Mail and Address Book apps, according to Apple, which collaborated with America Online to enable seamless interoperability between iChat users with Mac.com e-mail addresses and the 150 million registered users of AOL Instant Messenger (AIM). Leveraging OS X's Aqua interface, iChat uses "dialogue bubbles" and buddy photos to present instant messages in a graphically conversational manner, with iChat invitations popping up on the screen via transparency and animation effects, Apple said.

Originally previewed in February at Apple's QuickTime Live event, QuickTime 6 will mark the first complete media solution for MPEG-4 content creation and streaming when combined with Apple's free QuickTime Streaming Server and QuickTime Broadcaster live Webcast software, the company said. Key features of QuickTime 6 include the video codec for encoding/decoding MPEG-4 video content; Advanced Audio Coding (AAC), the next-generation audio format; adherence to the Internet Streaming Media Alliance (ISMA) 1.0 specification; MPEG-1/MPEG-2 playback, enabling content creators to preview and share work throughout the production process; DVC Pro (PAL) support; an updated user interface for improved access to QuickTime content; and skip-protection enhancements.

Other highlights of the upcoming Jaguar OS include an enhanced Finder, with spring-loaded folders and new instant searching; Sherlock 3, an update of Apple's Internet search tool; a new Address Book, which acts as a systemwide database for managing contact information; Quartz Extreme, a hardware-accelerated iteration of OS X's Quartz graphics and compositing engine; Unix Tools, a utility incorporating Unix advancements such as FreeBSD 4.4 updates, the new GCC 3 compiler, IPv6 and IPSec; and Windows Support, designed to boost compatibility with Windows networks with SMB browsing and sharing plus built-in PPTP VPN security.

Since the September 2001 release of OS X version 10.1--the first major upgrade of the new OS--the number of native OS X applications has more than doubled, topping 3,000, Apple reported. To date, more than 3 million Mac computers have shipped with OS X, making Apple the No. 1 supplier of Unix-based systems worldwide, according to the company.

Apple said its developer community has grown more than 100 percent since OS X shipped in late March 2001, noting that 46 percent of Apple Developer Connection members are Unix or Java programmers.

"Mac OS X is bringing thousands of new developers to the Mac platform, including a large number from the Unix and Java communities," Jobs said in a statement. "Now with Jaguar's innovative technologies--such as Quartz Extreme, QuickTime 6 and Rendezvous--developers can create amazing applications that can't even be imagined on other platforms."