“With a second preview version now in the hands of app developers, Apple’s next generation of Mac OS X, called Lion (Version 10.7), appears to be on track for its planned release to the public this summer,” Ryan Faas reports for Computerworld. “The company has announced several new features for the upcoming Macintosh operating system (some of which are lifted straight from iOS, Apple’s mobile platform).”

“Although Lion is still months away, Mac users don’t need to wait to get advances similar to the ones planned for the new operating system,” Faas reports. “In fact, several third-party applications and services already exist to meet the same challenges that Apple is aiming to address with Lion.”

Faas reports, “These free and low-cost tools can help you get results similar to those provided by Lion’s Launchpad, Mission Control, systemwide auto-save, Versions, AirDrop, enhanced multitouch capabilities and new Mail layout. Most of the apps work with Snow Leopard and Leopard (Version 10.5); some are available for Tiger (Version 10.4) as well.”

Read more in the full article here.