Were you worried that Apple might run out of names for their Mac OS X platform? Well the Cupertino company did not disappoint as they have just announced the release of the first developer preview of the company’s next-generation operating system, Mac OS X Mountain Lion.
This preview is available to all registered developers with a public launch scheduled for a late summer release through the Mac App Store. Based on its features, it seems that the analysts were right in predicting that Apple would begin to iOS-ify its Mac OS X platform, and features coming to Mountain Lion such as Messages, Notes, Reminders, Game Center, Notification Center, Twitter integration and AirPlay Mirroring all seem to point towards that.
Mac OS X Mountain Lion will also feature deeper iCloud integration, with iCloud Documents handling automatic push syncing of documents across devices, along with an added focus on security through a new feature called Gatekeeper. This feature allows users complete control over what apps are installed on their Mac, i.e. users can choose to have apps installed via the Mac App Store only, or via any source, such as downloading from the web, DVD, flash drive and etc.
The next-generation operating system will also be placing an emphasis towards Chinese users as Apple expands into China. This will come in the form of enhanced Chinese input methods, along with the addition of Baidu as a search engine option, and integration with Chinese email, video and microblogging websites like Sina weibo.
Sounds quite exciting, and if any of our readers manages to get their hands on the developer preview, we’d love to hear from you what your thoughts are about it!
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