IT takes wait-and-hope approach to Mountain Lion

On Thursday, Apple released the developer preview for Mountain Lion, which will be generally released late summer 2012. Among the key changes: Versions of applications and services originally created for the iOS mobile platforms; built-in integration with the iCloud service; and a new application security feature called Gatekeeper.

Apple’s focus continues to be individual consumers, not enterprise IT groups, according to analysts and IT users. In some cases, these “consumerized” features can naturally boost the usability, productivity and security for corporate Mac users. But what’s currently missing, or at least not yet apparent, is whether Apple will provide tools that make it possible to administer and secure Mac users in groups.

What's in a name with Mountain Lion apps

Mountain Lion OS X will include a number of new apps that made their debut on iOS, including Reminders, Notes, and Game Center. But in order to further the OS X-iOS convergence, a few Mac favorites will sport new names in Mountain Lion—names that will look very familiar to iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch users.

Mountain Lion: Messages replaces iChat, gets public beta

iChat is dead—long live Messages. With Thursday’s announcement of Mac OS X Mountain Lion comes the news that iChat is being upgraded and renamed to Messages, with support for the iMessage chat system introduced with iOS 5.

Mountain Lion: Hands on with Gatekeeper

Last year saw the arrival of the Apple-curated Mac App Store, a creation very much in the mold of the iOS App Store. And many people wondered: Would a locked-down version of Mac OS X, one incapable of running apps not approved by Apple, be far behind?

Apple certainly could have done something like that with Mountain Lion, the company’s planned update to Mac OS X that should arrive this summer. But it hasn’t—instead, the company has created a new way for developers to sign their work and a new set of options in the Security & Privacy preference pane. According to Apple, it’s all an attempt to improve Mac security. Here’s how the new Gatekeeper feature works.

Hands on with Apple's new OS X: Mountain Lion

Apple updates its iOS mobile operating system once a year. But why should the iPhone and iPad have all the fun? On Thursday Apple announced that it will release a new version of OS X—Mountain Lion—this summer, just a year after the release of OS X Lion.

Like Lion, Mountain Lion offers numerous feature additions that will be familiar to iOS users. This OS X release continues Apple’s philosophy of bringing iOS features “back to the Mac,” and includes iMessage, Reminders, Notes, Notification Center, Twitter integration, Game Center, and AirPlay Mirroring.

Apple readies Mac OS X Mountain Lion update for summer release

A year after it rolled out the Mac OS X Lion, Apple again plans to introduce a new version of its desktop operating system. The update—dubbed Mountain Lion—will ship this summer. As with Lion, this latest version of OS X will incorporate many features first introduced in Apple’s iOS mobile operating system, as Apple looks to bolster the interoperability of its two platforms.