Macintosh, or for newer models, Mac, is a brand name which covers several lines of
personal computers designed, developed, and marketed by Apple Inc. The original Macintosh was
released on January 24, 1984; it was the first commercially successful personal computer to
feature a mouse and a graphical user interface
(GUI) rather than a command line interface. Apple consolidated multiple consumer-level desktop
models into the 1998 iMac, which sold extremely well. Current Mac systems are mainly targeted
at the home, education, and creative professional markets. They are: the aforementioned
(though upgraded) iMac and the entry-level Mac mini desktop models, the
workstation-level Mac Pro tower, the
MacBook and MacBook Pro laptops, and the Xserve
server.
Production of the Mac is based on a vertical integration model in that Apple facilitates all
aspects of its hardware and creates its own
operating system that is pre-installed on all Macs. Apple exclusively produces Mac hardware,
choosing internal systems, designs, and prices. Apple does use third party components, however;
current Macintosh CPUs use Intel's x86 architecture (formerly the AIM alliance's PowerPC and
originally Motorola's 68k). Apple also designs the operating system for Macs, currently Mac
OS X 10.5 "Leopard". This is in contrast to most IBM compatible PCs, where one vendor provides
the operating system and multiple vendors create the hardware. The modern Mac, like other
personal computers, is capable of running operating systems such as
Linux, FreeBSD, and Microsoft Windows, considered
to be the Mac's biggest competitor.
Mac OS X version 10.5 “Leopard” is the sixth major release of the Mac OS X operating
system for Apple’s Mac line of personal computers, and is the successor to Mac OS X v10.4 "Tiger".
Leopard was released on October 26, 2007, and is available in two variants: a
desktop version suitable for personal computers,
and a server version, Mac OS X Server. Apple offers a
reduced-cost upgrade to people that purchased new Apple computers after October 1, 2007 that do
not already have Mac OS X v10.5 pre-installed or a Leopard upgrade DVD included.
Leopard contains over 300 changes and enhancements, covering core operating system components as
well as included applications and developer tools. Leopard introduces a significantly revised
desktop, with a redesigned Dock, Stacks, a semitransparent menu bar, and an updated Finder that
incorporates the Cover Flow visual navigation interface first seen in iTunes. Other notable
features include support for writing 64-bit graphical user interface applications, an automated
backup utility called Time Machine, support for Spotlight searches across multiple machines,
and the inclusion of Front Row and Photo Booth, which were previously only included with some
Mac models.
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