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Seven under-the-radar OS X Lion features you might have missed

Tuesday, July 19, 2011 · 2:02 pm · 35 Comments

“While we’re all waiting to read John Siracusa’s highly anticipated Lion review (expect it to go up this week!), we decided to dig into the under-the-radar goodies that Lion will offer among its ’250+ new features’ that might tip the scales in its favor,” Chris Foresman reports for Ars Technica.

Seven under-the-radar OS X Lion features you might have missed:
• Archiving e-mail
• WebKit2
• Improved security (improved address space layout randomization (ASLR) as well as application sandboxing system-wide)
• Merging folders
• Full disk encryption
• Unified iChat buddy list
• Mac OS X virtualization

Full article here.

Categories: News

Tags: OS X Lion

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Comment Feed

35 Comments

Nerd Beautiful

Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 2:07 pm · Reply

You can spank my a** and call me Nancy, but I’m excited about the wallpapers and screensavers… and I don’t even know what they’ll be.

Yeah, I know…
- kingmel
  
  Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 2:10 pm · Reply
  
  Hey, Nancy! I’ll spank you later.
- Ballmer's left nut
  
  Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 2:27 pm · Reply
  
  You can bet at least one of the wallpapers will be the image of a roaring lion.
  
  My wallpapers, on the other hand, are rather simpler. I just take pictures of balls, round ones, and use that as my wallpaper.
  
  No, seriously that are loads of wallpapers to choose from on the JPL website that showcase the wonders of the universe. You might like that for your desktop.
- ObservationDeck
  
  Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 3:16 pm · Reply
  
  I’d like to see a couple of intergalactic flying toasters during the start up screen. I guess miss the days when you could change the startup image by dropping pictures into the startup screen folder…getting mighty tired of the same image…(yeah, I know the workaround is to never shut down or restart!!!)
  - Predrag
    
    Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 3:39 pm · Reply
    
    No workaround. Just drop your JPG file inside System/Library/CoreServices. Make sure you call it DefaultDesktop.jpg.
    
    I’m surprised how many hard-core Mac users here aren’t aware of the simplicity of this change.
    - ObservationDeck
      
      Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 5:31 pm · Reply
      
      @Predrag & @Buster
      
      Thanks — will check it out in Snow and Lion.
      …may the flying toasters be with you…
  - Predrag
    
    Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 3:43 pm · Reply
    
    If you wish, you can even change the Apple logo on the Login window panel to something else. It is a simple TIFF file, 90×90 pixels in size, and it is located inside the loginwindow.bundle, which is inside /system/Library/CoreServices/SecurityAgentPlugins/. Right-click on the bundle, “Show Package Contents”, navigate to Contents/Resources and find applelogo.tif. Replace it with whatever you want.
    
    By the way, this (and the above) work for both Leopard and Snow Leopard. I don’t know where these are located in Tiger or earlier.
    - Buster
      
      Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 4:54 pm · Reply
      
      Predrag…tried it in Snow Leopard but it didn’t work. Not sure what I may have done wrong. I even renamed it applelogo.tif. It was a 90 x 120 pixel tif file.
      
      Maybe I can do it in Lion
      - FTB
        
        Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 7:47 pm · Reply
        
        90×90 is the maximum.
        the 90×120 you used will not work.
        
        Change the background
        http://osxdaily.com/2010/01/25/change-the-mac-login-screen-background/
        
        and the changing of the Logo on the login screen.
        http://osxdaily.com/2007/02/22/customize-the-mac-os-x-login-screen/
        
        Step by step for 10.4-10.6
        looks just like what they said above.
  - Michael Blasco
    
    Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 6:45 pm · Reply
    
    I use Visage to adjust startup screens and login screens.
- FTB
  
  Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 3:26 pm · Reply
  
  Also curious about the new default wallpaper is. But I doubt I’ll use it.
  
  My current wallpaper is a HDR picture of a lake. Native resolution on my iMac, also have the same pic on my MBP and my gaming pc.
  
  It’s from some Mac wallpaper site. Has all the images in native Mac resolutions, and iOS sizes. No odd sizes that windblows uses.
  If I could remember the site/pic I’d post it.
  - FTB
    
    Wednesday, July 20, 2011 - 12:49 am · Reply
    
    If anyone cares.
    http://realhdwallpapers.com/wallpaper/609/HDR-Lake-Wallpaper.html
    
    Thats my current wallpaper. Makes me want to slap the water with my line. (I fly fish, or… Try to anyway )
    
    Thats the site that has the wallpaper already sized for pretty much any Apple product.
- llibsetag
  
  Wednesday, July 20, 2011 - 4:10 am · Reply
  
  Well thank me twice & spank me silly!
sjmdesigns

Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 2:39 pm · Reply

I have over 987 Star Wars images rotating as desktop BKGs and the same images rotate through as a Screen saver.

Call me Crazy
- Mac Plus
  
  Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 2:42 pm · Reply
  
  Hello Crazy. Now call me a cab.
  - sjmdesigns
    
    Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 2:45 pm · Reply
    
    The best thing is I don’t detect any slow downs as each Desktop pic changes every minute
    
    all the images are hires too (not print hirez, but high quality screen images)
  - Buster
    
    Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 4:17 pm · Reply
    
    Hi Cab. Just don’t call me late for dinner.
  - Jax44
    
    Wednesday, July 20, 2011 - 12:10 am · Reply
    
    ” Call me Groucho and I’ll call you in the morning”.
- Johnny Appleseed
  
  Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 4:33 pm · Reply
  
  This is my plan also. The only images I have that are hi-res enough for my incoming 27″ iMac’s screen are hundreds of Lucasfilm publicity images!
  - sjmdesigns
    
    Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 5:45 pm · Reply
    
    I just love the imagery of SW, especially the concept art. Plus, Ralph McQuarrie is so inspiring to me as an artist/designer (I do hope I spelled his name right)
    - heathen
      
      Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 7:19 pm · Reply
      
      So jealous, total SW nerd here too. Now are these 987 desktops from concept drawings and the films, or fan created? Is this from collecting over time, or does Lucasfilm have some really awesome desktop gallery somewhere?
      
      I have some of these for my 17″ lapstrosity…
      http://wallpaperswide.com/star_wars-desktop-wallpapers.html
      - FTB
        
        Wednesday, July 20, 2011 - 12:51 am · Reply
        
        LOL
        that Stormtrooper coming out of the keyboard!
Beans

Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 2:45 pm · Reply

I’m buying Lion solely for the unified iChat buddy list. It only took them what, 6 years to make this “improvement”?
- Predrag
  
  Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 3:32 pm · Reply
  
  It wasn’t like Mac users everywhere were loudly clamoring for such a feature. It was done when it made the priority list. I’m glad there’s at least one person who might find it useful (i.e. the work on it wasn’t wasted).
MacOldie

Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 3:01 pm · Reply

I really love all the new features in Lion. Anybody think Quicken will update to Lion so I can install it. I’m hating Quicken right now it’s my only holdback.
- Spade
  
  Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 3:42 pm · Reply
  
  Upgrade to iBank or MoneyWell instead – you should be able to export your Quicken data and get it working in either app.
  - rws
    
    Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 5:00 pm · Reply
    
    MoneyWell is a joke, it doesn’t even support Brokerage accounts. Just downloaded it and while it looks like you can set one up, it treats it like a simple checking account.
- rws
  
  Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 4:37 pm · Reply
  
  iBank can’t handle portfolios very well. I’m in touch with them over the issue and they claim it is “on the list” to correct but no word yet when. I do like their product overall though.
- chris
  
  Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 4:46 pm · Reply
  
  Try See Finance.
  - rws
    
    Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 7:33 pm · Reply
    
    @Chris,
    
    Just tried MoneyDance and it seemed to handle odd lot sizes very well. Haven’t had time to go over either MoneyDance or See Finance yet. Looking at it now. Have you by chance reviewed both and prefer See Finance? If so, why? Thanks.
- Quevar
  
  Wednesday, July 20, 2011 - 8:47 am · Reply
  
  Quicken has dragged on Mac users too long. I think this should be the last straw and we should just move on. I am planning to move to iBank. They have been making steady improvements for years and seem to be a generally responsive company. My guess is that they will add many of these features in the next year as they see a large increase in people switching.
TheMacAdvocate

Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 3:07 pm · Reply

@Beans

That’s sad. Adium and Trillian has been doing this forever. Trying installing a 3rd party app.
Spade

Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 3:43 pm · Reply

WebKit2, excellent! http://trac.webkit.org/wiki/WebKit2
Jon

Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 6:10 pm · Reply

The media always talks about the same old things:

Here is something new:

Lion includes large smooth mouse pointers! My clients are already excited.

A Feature I wished Lion included:

The ability to specify if an app should open in Full Screen or Maximized (Menu bar and dock visible) or in a normal window. That would make a lot of former windows users very happy.
- FTB
  
  Tuesday, July 19, 2011 - 8:08 pm · Reply
  
  you saying we can finally increase the size of our tiny pointer… without the pixels?…
  
  Although i have been using the PinPoint trial for a few days. i like it. On app store for .99 right now, and i’d grab it if i could…. AppleID temp disabled really pissing me off. (especially with Lion tomorrow)