Mac OS X Lion, v. 10.7
A little late, but I wanted to put up some updates. Apple released OS X Lion (10.7) today for only $29.99! (That’s 99 cents more than Snow Leopard! wink) There are a lot of cool things about it, but I thought I’d link to some stuff.
Mac Rumors links to a bunch of reviews.
TUAW provides a bunch of OS X Lion tips.
You can use the internet for a Lion “disc-less” recovery or repair. Neither has an optical drive (no surprise with the MB Air, but BIG surprise with the Mini). Get the external SuperDrive, if you need it.
Boy, Apple doesn’t like physical media anymore; so long, boxed software. Years ago, I did a review of the original VUDU download device (now software-based), and I started to think DVDs will go the way of the CD soon. Wow, now software, too! Hey, I got Final Cut Pro X, Motion 5 and Compressor 4 off the Mac App Store, and it STILL freaks me out that it’s all downloadable (plus, run Software Update for content, etc.).
New Mac mini and MacBook Air, both faster, better graphics and Thunderbolt!
Notice that Apple dropped the “Mac” from OS X with Lion?
Lion will create a partition on your Mac for maintenance, plus how to create a boot disc or disk.
Apple will sell a USB drive in August 2011 for $69.
A friend of mine tells me Final Cut Pro X is faster with Lion.
Front Row is gone, but TUAW details how a blogger installed it via Snow Leopard.
Adobe has released their first official app onto the Mac App Store, and it’s Photoshop Elements 9 (PSE 9). The regular boxed version retails for $99, and comes with Elements Editor, a comprehensive set of incredible image editing tools, along with the Elements Organizer, and easy and powerful way to organize all your photos.
But the new version on the App Store is $79.99, but doesn’t include the Elements Organizer. Adobe is aiming this app squarely at iPhoto users, and expects them to organize their photos with iPhoto. You know, that’s not a bad idea, because iPhoto really works well when you’re in the app, and opening a photo or set of photos into an editor, in this case PSE 9.
By the way, here’s my review of a bunch of great Mac photo editing software, including PSE 9 and iPhoto, on TopTenREVIEWS. I also reviewed Apple’s Aperture 3, a professional organizational and editing app (now $79.99 on the App Store, formerly $199 in the box) and Adobe’s similar Photoshop Lightroom 3, which is $299.
You know, with Apple putting all their software on the App Store, they’re saving money on production and shipping costs, and we’re reaping the benefits. NICE!
