Mac OSX Lion, Built on a rock-solid UNIX foundation, OS X is engineered to take full advantage of the technologies in every new Mac. And to deliver the most intuitive and integrated computer experience.
Hardware and software made for each other.
Since the software on every Mac is created by the same company that makes the Mac, you get a fully integrated system in which everything works together perfectly. OS X works with the processor in your Mac to deliver the best possible performance. The Multi-Touch trackpad on every Mac notebook gives you more than enough space to pinch, swipe, and tap your way around most of the apps on your system. OS X gives you long battery life by dimming the screen in low-light conditions and even regulating processor activity between keystrokes.
Interact with your computer in a whole new way.
Tap, scroll, pinch, and swipe using Multi-Touch gestures, directly controlling what’s on your screen in a more fluid, natural, and intuitive way. When you scroll down on your trackpad or Magic Mouse, your document scrolls down. When you scroll up, your web page scrolls up. When you swipe left, your photos move left. And there are many more gestures that make all you do on your Mac the best experience you can have on a computer. Hands down.
Easy to use and incredibly powerful.
From the desktop you see when you start up your Mac to the applications you use every day, everything is designed to be simple and intuitive. Of course, making amazing things simple requires some seriously advanced technologies, and OS X is loaded with them. Not only is it built on a rock-solid, time-tested UNIX foundation that provides unparalleled stability, it also delivers incredible performance, stunning graphics, industry-leading support for Internet standards, and it works seamlessly with iCloud to keep your music, photos, calendars, and more up to date across all your devices.
Easy access to all of your apps.
Working and playing on a Mac is all about apps, so OS X makes it simple to find and open those apps fast. The Dock is a handy place on your desktop for storing and launching your favorite apps, and it makes switching between them a breeze. The Dock also includes Stacks, folders that give you quick access to documents, files, and downloads. Launchpad is a full-screen home for all the apps on your Mac. It lets you arrange them the way you want, group them in folders, and delete them with ease. And apps purchased from the Mac App Store automatically appear in Launchpad, so you can browse thousands of apps and start using the ones you buy right away.
Find, organize, and share files fast.
The Finder gives you easy access to all the files on your system. It lets you find, organize, and access practically everything on your Mac — including applications, files, folders, discs, and shared computers on your network. You can sort files by kind, application, date modified, date added, or size. But with so many files on your computer, finding a specific one can be a challenge. Not on a Mac. Features like Spotlight and Quick Look make locating the file you’re looking for effortless — even if you don’t know the filename. Say you’re searching for a document, and the only thing you recall about it is the phrase “surrealist painters.” Open Spotlight, start typing “surrealist painters,” and your Mac generates a list of files that contain those words. And with Quick Look, you don’t need to open an application to verify that you’ve found the right file — view a full-screen preview by hitting the space bar. Want to share a file with someone nearby? Just drag and drop to send it to the person wirelessly with AirDrop.
See everything running on your Mac. In an instant.
OS X offers systemwide support for gorgeous, full-screen apps that use every inch of your Mac display. You can have multiple full-screen apps open at once — along with multiple apps in windows. And it’s easy to switch between full-screen and desktop views. Mission Control gives you a bird’s-eye view of all your windows and full-screen apps, and allows you to instantly navigate among them.
It does the saving for you.
Say goodbye to the worry and the hassle of manually saving your work. Auto Save automatically saves your work, while you work, without you having to do a thing. Versions creates a new version of a document each time you open it and every hour while you’re working. It saves only the differences between successive versions, so the impact on your disk drive is minimal. Just open Versions to see the current document next to a cascade of previous versions. You can copy and paste between versions or revert to an earlier version. And when you share a document, you share only the most recent copy.
Built-in apps you’ll use every day.
OS X comes in a single version that includes a collection of Apple-designed applications. Not only do they let you surf the web, make video calls and have text chats, manage your contacts, and accomplish other day-to-day tasks, they also work together to make you more productive — and let you have more fun.
Defense against viruses and other malware.
With virtually no effort on your part, OS X offers a multilayered system of defenses against viruses and other malicious applications, or malware. For example, a technique called sandboxing prevents attackers from harming your programs — restricting what actions applications can perform on your Mac, what files they can access, and what other programs they can launch. Other automatic security features include Library Randomization, which prevents malicious commands from finding their targets, and Execute Disable, which protects the memory in your Mac from attacks.
A new level of security.
With FileVault 2, your data is safe and secure — even if it falls into the wrong hands. FileVault 2 encrypts the entire drive on your Mac, protecting your data with XTS-AESW 128 encryption. Initial encryption is fast and unobtrusive. It can also encrypt any removable drive, helping you secure Time Machine backups or other external drives with ease. Want to start fresh or give your Mac to someone else? FileVault 2 makes it easy to clean data off your Mac. Instant wipe removes the encryption key from your Mac — making the data completely inaccessible — then proceeds with a thorough wipe of all data from the disk.
Always on the alert.
Innocent-looking files downloaded over the Internet may contain dangerous malware in disguise. That’s why files you download using Safari, Mail, and iChat are screened to determine if they contain applications. If they do, OS X alerts you, then warns you the first time you open one. You decide whether to open the application or cancel the attempt. And if a file contains software identified as malicious, OS X offers to move it to the Trash.
Stay up to date. Automatically.
When a potential security threat arises, Apple responds by providing software updates and security enhancements that can be downloaded automatically and installed with a click. Apple works with the incident response community, including the Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams (FIRST) and the FreeBSD Security Team, to proactively identify and quickly correct operating system vulnerabilities. In addition, Apple cooperates closely with organizations such as the Computer Emergency Response Team Coordination Center (CERT/CC).
Easy to customize.
With OS X, it’s easy to customize and use security features. Setting up secure file sharing, for example, involves a quick trip to System Preferences. FileVault 2 lets you encrypt all the files in your home folder with just a few clicks and a password of your choosing. Simply turn on the firewall with the click of a button to provide enhanced protection for your data.
Protect your privacy.
System Preferences now contains privacy controls for location and diagnostic information sharing. And Safari preferences includes a privacy pane that allows you to limit or block cookies and limit website access to location services.
Find your missing Mac.
OS X Lion and iCloud can help keep your Mac safe even when you misplace it. Sign into icloud.com from another computer or use the Find My iPhone app on any iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch to locate your missing Mac on a map. If your Mac is offline when you try to find it, you can ask to receive an email as soon as it makes a Wi-Fi connection. You can also display a message on your Mac screen so whoever has it knows how to get it back to you. And until your Mac is back in safe hands, you can remotely set a passcode lock, or even initiate a remote wipe to delete your personal data and restore your Mac to its factory settings.
Exercise parental control.
As a parent, you want your kids to have a safe and happy experience on the computer. OS X keeps an eye out even when you can’t. With a simple setup in Parental Controls preferences, you can manage, monitor, and control the time your kids spend on the Mac, the sites they visit, and the people they chat with.
Don’t go phishing.
Phishing is a form of attack in which online thieves try to acquire sensitive information such as user names, passwords, and credit card details by creating fake websites that look like legitimate companies. The antiphishing technology in Safari can protect you from such scams by detecting these fraudulent websites. If you try to visit a suspicious site, Safari disables the page and displays an alert warning you about its suspect nature.
Surf safely.
OS X makes it easy to stay safe online, whether you’re checking your bank account, sending confidential email, or sharing files with friends and coworkers. Features such as Password Assistant help you create stronger passwords to thwart identity thieves, while built-in encryption technologies protect your private information and communications.
Security without the hassle.
OS X won’t slow you down with constant security alerts and sweeps. Every Mac ships with a secure configuration so you don’t have to worry about understanding complex settings. Just turn your Mac on and start working. When you need to be aware of something, it will let you know. And if you want to change the security configuration, just open System Preferences and make any adjustments.
Moving from your PC to your new Mac? Consider it done.
With OS X, you can move all the information from your old PC to your new Mac. Built-in Windows-to-Mac migration in OS X automatically transfers your documents, music, contacts, calendars, and email accounts (Outlook and Windows Live Mail), and puts them in the appropriate folders and applications on your new Mac. Just like that.
Industry-standard bearer.
Thanks to its support for industry standards, OS X works with virtually all email providers and websites. It also lets you view the most common file types, including Office documents, PDFs, images, text files, MP3s, videos, ZIP files, and more. So if you’re moving files from a PC or if your friends and colleagues send you files, you can rest assured they’ll work beautifully on your Mac.
Office on your Mac.
Microsoft Office for Mac lets you create documents with Word, presentations with PowerPoint, and spreadsheets with Excel — just like on a Windows PC. It’s compatible with Microsoft Office for Windows, so you can easily share documents with friends and colleagues. Even if you don’t have Office installed on your Mac, you can use Quick Look to take a peek at Office documents without having to open an application.
Microsoft Exchange Server support.
With Lion, the Mac provides built-in support for the latest version of Microsoft Exchange Server. So you can use your Mac — with all the features and applications you love — at home and at work and have all your messages, meetings, and contacts in one place.
Relax. Your camera, printer, and mouse work, too.
Almost any device that connects to a computer via USB, audio cable, or Bluetooth will work with a Mac. That includes digital cameras, external hard drives, printers, keyboards, speakers, and more.
You can even use a right-click mouse with a Mac. And with thousands of device drivers included with OS X, you can start using these devices as soon as you plug them in — no need to manually download additional software.
A Mac can even run Windows.
Have a Windows application you need to use once in a while? No problem. Every new Mac lets you install and run Windows at native speeds, using a built-in utility called Boot Camp.
Setup is simple and safe for your Mac files. After you’ve completed the installation, you can boot up your Mac using either OS X or Windows. (That’s why it’s called Boot Camp.) Or if you want to run Windows and Mac applications at the same time — without rebooting — you can install Windows using VMware or Parallels software.*
Connect to PCs over a network.
The Finder not only lets you browse files on your Mac, it also makes it easy to find files on other computers — both Mac and PC — on your home network. Computers that allow file sharing automatically show up in the Shared section of the Finder sidebar, allowing you to browse files and folders you have permission to view.
