Mac OS X Snow Leopard: An Overview

Mac OS X Snow Leopard was released, by Apple, on the 24th August 2009, replacing the previous version, which was named Leopard.

At the time Snow Leopard was pushed by Apple as the most advanced operating system in the world.

It certainly got a good reputation and earned many converts from the PC world.

But its reign has come to an end with the release of Mac OS X Lion in July 2011.

But Mac OS X Snow Leopard will hang around for a while, people won't instantly switch.

Why? Well, Snow Leopard was the best version of Mac OS X yet.

It was largely rewritten and as a result was faster and very stable, so users are still very happy with it. The second reason is that it always takes a bit of time for a new release, such as OS X Lion to be fully stable, and free of bugs.

Image courtesy of Apple

One of the reasons that I like any version of Mac OS X is that it is based on Unix.

From a techie view point the Mac OS X Unix roots appeals to my geek side, but as an average user you don't need to worry about this!

All you need to know is that your Mac computer is more secure as a result.

At the moment Apple are pushing the many new features appearing in OS X Lion, notice that they have dropped the 'Mac' from the name, but it is worth remembering that many of the core functions and utilities found in Mac OS X Snow Leopard will still exist in Lion.

Let's take a look at the main features found in Mac OS X Snow Leopard. The screenshot below shows the default Snow Leopard desktop. It is well designed and follows very strict user interface guidelines laid down by Apple.

Mac OS X Snow Leopard Desktop

The first thing you notice is the minimalist desktop. You get the menu bar at the top of the screen and the dock at the bottom and nothing else. This basic layout hasn't changed in Mac OS X Lion.

The Apple Menu

In the top left hand corner of your screen you can see a small black Apple. Click on this and you get a drop down menu which is shown below. This is commonly known as the Apple menu.

As you can see this menu is the focal point for system information and for performing some admin tasks.

By this I mean you can get information about your Mac, check for software updates, control the dock's behaviour and get access to other system preferences.

If an application does decide to play up then you can force it to quit. Finally, this is where you log-out, hibernate, restart or shutdown your computer.

The Apple menu is always visible, even with an application open. But the other menus on the left-hand side of the menu bar can vary depending on the application you have open at the time.

The Spotlight Search Tool

Let's switch our attention now to the right hand side of the menu bar, starting in the top right hand corner of the screen. Here we can see a little magnifying class. Clicking on it reveals a search window called 'Spotlight', which gives you the ability to perform a system wide search.

The results flash up instantly and are updated as you add another letter, immediately showing what it thinks is the top hit, but also mail messages, the definition of the word, web pages, documents and files etc that contain similiar data. It is a very impressive tool which you will use frequently!

OK, carrying on moving from right to left across the menu bar, as shown in the picture above, you can see the date and time, battery status, speaker volume, network settings, bluetooth, backup info using Time Capsule. Each can be clicked on to open up more information or access to preference settings etc.

The Dock

The Mac OS X Snow Leopard Dock

Moving from the top of the Mac OS X desktop to the bottom we find the Dock, the focal point for applications, files and your favourite folders.

The picture above shows the default Dock, which includes a set of default application icons, two folders, one the Applications folder and the other the Documents folder. Last, is the Trash icon.

Working from left to right across the application icons we find the following;

• Finder
• Mac App Store
• Dashboard
• Mail
• Safari
• iChat
• Address Book
• iCal
• Preview
• iTunes
• Photo Booth
• iPhoto
• iMovie
• GarageBand
• Time Machine
• System Preferences

So from the moment you start Mac OS X for the first time, you already have some great software to use.

You will notice that three items in the list above are bold - iPhoto, iMovie and GarageBand. These three applications are bundled as part of the iLife'11 software suite which is included with each new Mac, and comprises the following software in total;

• iPhoto
• iMovie
• GarageBand
• iWeb
• iDVD

But what do all of these applications and utilities do? Let's start on the left-hand side of the dock and see what each offers us.

Finder

Apple refer to Finder as your 'Home Base', by this they mean that everything you could possibly want is here. Applications, network devices, external drives and data are all visible in one place.

Mac OS X Snow Leopard Finder Window

If you are an ex Windows user then this is your Windows Explorer, but on steroids!

You can search your data and create smart folders making access all the more easier.

Mac App Store

Mac OS X Snow Leopard App Store Window

The Mac App Store went live on the 6th January 2011 and in one day had handled 1 million downloads. This is your new control centre for applications.

If you suddenly decide that you need a new piece of Mac OS X software then simply open the Mac App Store application, select a category or perform a search, find what you want, buy it, and watch it be installed on your Mac.

When your App is updated you will be notified and can then perform an automated update. If you are an iPhone or iPad user then you will be very comfortable with this way doing things.

Dashboard

Mac OS X Snow Leopard Dashboard

The Dashboard is your quick access information provider. Selecting it brings up a full screen desktop in which is displayed toys or tools, which are called widgets.

By default you get a calculator, clock and calendar, and weather widgets. But you can easily expand upon these to customise your Dashboard experience.

Mail

Mac OS X Snow Leopard Mail Window

Mail is the Mac OS X email client. It is a very powerful software package which allows you to collect all of your email accounts into one place.

It works with an Apple email account, like Mobileme, that end with me.com but it can also be set-up with any of your other email accounts, such as from your Internet Service Provider or Gmail, Yahoo, AOL, Windows Live Mail, and Exchange 2007 servers. All are catered for.

Safari

Mac OS X Snow Leopard Safari Window

Safari is Apple's own web browser. It is a very elegant and fast browser which has some nice features like reader, the ability to view pages like in a book.

It also has support for HTML5, the Internets new standard for web pages, and Safari extensions from the Safari Extensions Gallery.

iChat

As the popularity of the Internet grows more and more people are discovering the power of video conferencing and instant messaging.

If you have a Windows back ground then you will probably be aware of of software like Microsoft Messenger, or phone software like Skype.

But if you are running Mac OS X then you have access to Apple's own instant messaging software called iChat. You can communicate using video, audio and text.

The beauty of iChat is that it works with a number of different chat accounts including MobileMe, Google Talk and AOL Instant messaging (AIM).

If you want to chat with more than one person then this is ok. Obviously you can chat by text to more than one person, but you can also have a video conference with upto three people.

Not only do you get the normal messaging capabilities but you can stream a slideshow of photos, or present a Keynote presentation, all remotely.

Address Book

Mac OS X Snow Leopard Address Book Window

The Address Book is probably viewed as a very simple and straightforward application. Normally a collection of names and addresses. But on the Mac you get much, much more.

The Mac OS X version allows the normal entry of names, addresses, email addresses and web URLs. But you can now click on an address to open Google Maps for the location, print out address labels and retrieve email addresses from within Mail.

Address Book also uses the vCard standard so friends and colleagues can send you their business cards for inclusion in your address book.

iCal

Mac OS X Snow Leopard Calender

iCal is, as the name infers, a calendar. It is however a very powerful calendar. This is the third of three applications that work side-by-side within Mac OS X. Mail, Address Book and iCal work together to give you complete control over your schedule and contacts.

Within iCal you can create as many calendars as you want, such as one for Home, Work and School. Each one is colour coded and you can even sync with your calendar on MobileMe. When you create an event you can browse through your Address Book for people you want to attend and send an email via Mail.

If you receive an invitation via email, then iCal will automatically transfer the event into your calendar. All of your emails relating to calendar events are conveniently kept together to avoid you having to wade through your inbox.

Preview

Mac OS X Snow Leopard Preview Window

If your Mac is anything like mine, it has a huge number of files saved at any one time. These files can be documents, images and pdfs, and quite often I need to scan documents into my Mac from a local networked scanner.

What I need is a piece of software that allows me to browse these files or to scan documents, easily, and quickly.

Enter Preview, another useful piece of software packaged with Mac OS X. Preview is interesting because at first look it doesn't do anything. What I mean is that all you see is a menu bar, no windows!

You can use the menu to set-up devices, like scanners. But it's most common use is displaying files when you double click them.

Double clicking simply opens the file and displays it. You are not sometimes aware that it is actually preview that has opened the file - but it has!

Preview can handle many file types including PDF, JPG, GIF, HDR, TIFF, PSD, PICT, PNG, BMP, RAW, SGI, and DAE.

iTunes

Mac OS X Snow Leopard iTunes Window

If you like downloading music and video to your computer and then take it with you on the move via your iPhone, iPod or iPad then iTunes is for you.

Once you have discovered iTunes then you will probably never want to lose it!

Photo Booth

Mac OS X Snow Leopard Photo Booth Window

Sorry about the shock! That is me looking a bit shaggy during a Photo Booth moment. As I said on the home page this site needs to be FUN. I can spend hours looking at software designed for complex business solutions, but just occasionally you want a break and a bit of a laugh.

I am pleased to say that Photo Booth is a piece of software designed to be FUN. You will being laughing for hours and it is great for keeping the kids entertained while you have a bit of a dose!

If you have ever been on holiday to the seaside and stumbled across one of those photo booths that turn your image into some weird looking stranger. Then you can probably guess what this version of Photo Booth does. Give it a go and have a laugh.

iPhoto

Mac OS X Snow Leopard iPhoto Window

iPhoto is part of the iLife'11 software suite which is also bundled with every Mac computer. iPhoto is the an amazing tool for handling your photos and images.

The new vesion offers full screen viewing of your photos, share them easily with friends and family using Facebook or email.

iPhoto allows you to keep your photos grouped in albums, and the latest version allows you to create slideshows and even order photo cards.

If you own an iPad or iPhone your photos can be automatically synced into iPhoto so you have them all available in one place.

iMovie

Mac OS X Snow Leopard iMovie Window

iMovie is the second of the tools bundled with iLife'11. It allows you to take your precious home videos and turn them into epics! I'm not joking, you will be amazed at what you can do!

You can edit your movies and piece various portions together into mini films, you can add special effects and when you are happy your latest block buster can be published via Facebook, You Tube or even the CNN iReport.

Garageband

Mac OS X Snow Leopard Garageband Window

Garageband is the third of the tools bundled with iLife'11. Are you a budding musician. Are you interested in playing the piano, or learning the guitar.

But Garageband is much more than that! It is a fully working recording studio, allowing you to record songs and backing tracks and then edit them to create your album.

Time Machine

Mac OS X Snow Leopard Time Machine

How many times have you mistakenly deleted a file you wanted or had a computer fault which has wiped your data? Not very often - then your lucky! It can happen to you at any time, and probably when your least expecting it.

The solution then is to have some kind of backup schedule in place. Ideally it will happen daily without you having to do anything, other than know that all of your files are in safe hands! I’m very pleased to say that Time Machine provides that solution.

Firstly, you need an external backup device. This can be any external hard disk, but Apple’s own Time Capsule has been designed for the job. One you have your disk connected and powered up you then run Time Machine and go through the configuration process.

Once configured Time Machine will sit there day in day out backing up your data. If you ever need to retrieve a file then a superb graphical front end makes this task easy.

System Preferences

Mac OS X Snow Leopard System Preferences

If you look at the picture above you can see that the system preferences window is simply a graphical frontend to the system settings.

This is where you come if you want to make changes to the setup of Mac OS X Snow Leopard. If you want to add or delete user accounts, change the colour scheme or add a printer then this is where you perform the changes.