John Paczkowski

Recent Posts by John Paczkowski

OS X Mountain Lion Gets Faster Browser, Facebook Integration

Apple watchers have been jawing about the company’s forthcoming OS X Mountain Lion operating system for some time now. During the company’s Worldwide Developers Conference this morning, they got their first good look at it.

As expected, the OS has much deeper integration with Apple’s iCloud service, including new features like Reminders, Notes and Messages — a chat app that supports iMessage and other IM protocols — and something Apple is calling “Documents in the Cloud,” a feature that keeps your documents updated and synced across your devices. Another new feature is dictation. This morning, Apple’s Craig Federighi explained quite simply: “Anywhere you can type, you can talk.”

Though not announced on stage, Facebook integration is also coming to Mountain Lion via an upcoming software update. This will allow users to post photos, links and comments from within apps, and also adds the ability to receive notifications and post status updates from the Notification Center in Mountain Lion.

Also onboard:

  • A new version of the Safari browser with a faster JavaScript engine, a unified search bar and iCloud tabs that display open pages across various devices.
  • Power Nap, a feature that keeps your Mac working while it sleeps. It fetches software updates, updates your Photo Stream, and performs other simple tasks while you’re away from your machine.
  • AirPlay mirroring, which allows a Mac to share its screen with a TV or projector.
  • Game Center, a popular gaming feature from iOS.
  • Some new features for China: Improved Chinese input method, new fonts, and sharing support for popular Chinese Web sites.

Mountain Lion will be available next month via the Mac App Store for $19.99. That price is good for Mac users as far back as Snow Leopard. And one purchase updates all your Macs.

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