Desktop
As you would expect, upon startup, your computer displays the desktop, your main work area. At the top of the screen is the navigation bar similar to the bar one finds at the top of every window in Microsoft Windows. This bar contains heading such as 'File' and 'Edit,' as well as the Apple symbol, with which you can shut down or sleep your computer. There is no 'Start Menu'; instead, everything is navigated via in Finder, which is similar to Windows Explorer. There are typically very few 'shortcuts' placed on the desktop, as most important programs and files can be accessed from the Dock at the bottom of the screen, and because the desktop is too beautiful to clutter up with icons. The Dock is similar to the shortcuts placed on a Windows Taskbar, but are larger and have a better design. From the Dock, one can launch frequently used programs, and Stacks can be placed here as well. Stacks are basically folder shortcuts that, when clicked, display a 'stack' of the subfolders and files contained therein, giving quick and easy (as well as beautiful) access to popular folders such as Documents, Downloads, and whatever folders you wish.
When one thinks of a desktop, the normal idea is a picture with a few icons, and perhaps a couple programs you have running. But all that changes with OS X Lion. Now, you aren't limited to one desktop--you can add as many as you want! Each desktop you add starts out empty, but with the same background picture as your original, and you can open programs just as you would on your first desktop. Certain programs compatible with OS X Lion allow you to use them in full-screen mode; that means what it says, and for me it means browsing the Internet with a 27-inch web browser, or watching a 27-inch full-screen video. The double-swipe (with Apple's Magic Mouse) feature allows you to switch between your various desktops and full-screen windows quickly and smoothly. Double-swiping means swiping sideways across your mouse with two fingers, and it redefines multitasking completely.
An extremely useful feature built into OS X Lion that goes along with multiple desktops is Mission Control. This allows you to get an aerial or birds-eye view of everything you have running. And with my iMac, "everything you have running" can literally equal "every program on your computer." To go into Mission Control mode, simply double-tap (not double-click) Apple's Magic Mouse with two fingers or use the shortcut key on the Magic Keyboard. The current program or desktop you are viewing will shrink and spread at its applications, allowing you to simultaneously see all the individual programs it contains. It also displays all the desktops and full-screen programs you have running, and everything is visible at once. This allows you to jump from one virtual side of your computer to another--and all in a second. You can also click and drag programs from one desktop to another, as well as from full-screen to a desktop of your choice. Once, I did a test to see just how well Mission Control (and this computer) works. I opened twelve separate web browsers at once and proceeded to swipe between them rapidly and to switch back and forth with Mission Control and it performed beautifully, all without a moment's hesitation.
From the original desktop, you can double-swipe sideways to view the Dashboard. This is essentially a full-screen widget board. To this screen you may add as many widgets as can fit, which, on my 27-inch iMac, is a lot. These widgets range in a variety of categories from a dictionary to a unit converter to a weather widget to a language translator, as well as many more that are available for download. You can also access Dashboard from your programs list, as well as from Mission Control.
One last feature I consider classifiable under Desktop is Launchpad. This feature unique to OS X Lion displays your applications in a 27-inch, full-screen layout of similar to that of an iPad. Not only can you have multiple home screens and even app folders, but you navigate by swiping through them with the touch-sensitive Magic Mouse, bringing the feel of an iPad or iPhone to the iMac. Launchpad is a very handy way of organizing and accessing applications on OS X Lion. There is even a shortcut key for it on the keyboard.
With full-screen applications, multiple desktops, and Mission Control, my computer workspace has moved from 27 inches to an infinite number of miles. You may doubt that an iMac can run so many programs simultaneously while still maintaining smooth animations and a workable speed, but it can. For your information, Adobe Photoshop fully loads in two seconds. This powerhouse of digital wonder can easily manage even the most tedious programs. And speaking of programs…
Programs
Even with an operating system like OS X Lion, a computer is no good without programs, and the programs that come with Apple computers are among the best. I can't dream of giving you every detail of such an expansive topic, but I plan to hit the highlights of several prominent applications.
Perhaps the most appropriate place to start is the Mac App Store. It comes pre-installed on the Macs, and I deem it as appropriate for first on the list because this is where users obtain most of their programs, and since we are talking about programs, this seems an ideal place to begin. Similar to the App Store for iOS, the Mac App Store lets you browse, search, download, and update your applications. What's so nice about this when compared with buying a disk containing the program is that you don't need a disk anymore, it's simply a digital download. You click, and the program is on its way. The amount and variety of apps available is astounding, and can only be comprehended when browsing for one's self, so I won't go into detail about items available on the Mac App Store, but it is amazing.
Address Book is what it is--an address book. iCal is, simply put, a digital calendar. Inserting contacts and calendar events is relatively easy, but isn't what sets Apple's Address Book and iCal apart. These programs allow those with an iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad to make a contact on their computer, and when they sync their mobile device, the contact will be on their device also. And it works both ways. For instance, let's say you're shopping and receive a call from a friend inviting you to dinner next Friday. You can simply check you iPhone's calendar to make sure you're free that night, and if you are, you can insert that calendar event. Upon your next sync with your Mac, the scheduled dinner suddenly shows up on your computer as well. And with iOS 5 and iCloud, your contacts and events are wirelessly sync to all your Apple devices instantly--no more typing your friend's new cell phone number into three devices just to have it where you need it. You do it once, and it's done.
Photo Booth can keep people entertained for hours with the numerous effects it adds to your webcam's image. It will warp faces quite hilariously, and can set you in places Paris or the beach by detecting your background and replacing it with video, making it appear as if you're riding a roller coaster.
iPhoto takes organizing your pictures to a whole new level. The normal features such as albums and events are included, but there are a couple of extraordinary twists to this application that you don't find in just any program. Places is one of them that allows you to see a world maps with the locations where you took your photos labeled on the map. Being able to search by location is an option you can disable, but it can be very useful. Faces is perhaps the most advantageous aspect of iPhoto. It is the face-recognition software section of the application. The way it works is it searches each picture you upload for faces. It then gives you these faces to name, and as you put in names, it associates the name with the face and remembers it for later. Then, if it recognizes anyone in the next photo or group of photos you name, it asked you if this is So-and-So. Clicking the check mark names that face and places it in that person's profile for further recognition of later photographs. You can then search you photos by faces via Faces to find all the pictures you have of any certain person. Like I said, I find this to be the most useful feature of iPhoto.
GarageBand is a powerful and diverse music mixing, editing, and creating software, with which you can make virtually any song you desire. It comes with dozens of built-in instruments, loops, and more, and can do about anything you want it to with its user-friendly interface.
All this and more comes with OS X Lion by default, and the App Store contains myriads of additional programs; some are paid and some are free. The potential of OS X Lion when paired with these applications is unlimited, and I plan to continue utilizing this potential to its fullest extent.
Backstage
Aside from the above visible features of OS X Lion, there are several passive qualities of this OS that you don't often see. A couple of them will be mentioned here. There's an auto-save feature built in so that, for instance, when you're working on a document in, say, TextEdit, the computer automatically saves it every few minutes. (There is a way to revert back to a previous version if you don't want to save your progress.) And you no longer have to save this work before exiting the application. After you name it at the initial saving, all you need do is click the exit button and it's safely stored away.
Apple has integrated a bit of code that lets you start an app where you left off and open a window in the same position as last time. OS X Lion will also reopen any windows and programs you had running when you logged out of or shut down your computer last. Is it late at night and you still haven't finished the project you've been working on? Do you have multiple windows open and don't want to have to go through and open them all again? You don't have to, as OS X Lion automatically remembers the windows you have open and will resume them open restart. This also comes in handy in perhaps its most acute form when the power goes out and your computer shuts down unexpectedly. Your work is not lost--the programs and windows resume as soon as you turn the computer on again.
To sum this entire article up into one paragraph, OS X Lion was made for Macs, and some aspects of the newer Macs were made for OS X Lion. The software in not only extremely functional as you have seen, but it is beautiful as well. The animations and graphic design of many of the features in this OS are stunning to say the least. The ability of the software to run smoothly on a Mac and the ability of a Mac to run the software smoothly both work together to make life with a Mac a never-ending awe. And not only do the animations run smoothly, but the programs load almost instantly and perform beautifully, all adding up to make OS X Lion and Macintosh computers ideal for work, recreation, gaming, and, succinctly put, life.
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