OS X v10.2
AKA Jaguar

by Eden Maxwell

Page 2 of 7

Finding

Finder. The Finder now sports a new quick file search from the toolbar, or conveniently from any folder window, for a better view of files and a faster way to locate them. Spring-loaded folders, one of the most requested features from Mac OS 9 that had been summarily dropped in Mac OS X. have been resurrected. Spring-loaded folders work in all three Finder views; icon, list, and column. When you hold an item over a folder rather than dropping it in immediately, the folder will zoom open beneath your cursor to reveal the contents within.

There’s also a redesigned Get Info window with collapsible panels that provides immediate and more direct access to statistical information (size, kind, and file location) and features for a highlighted icon [Command I], including: Name & Extension, Open With, Preview, Ownership & Permissions, and Comments.

Tip: By default the Find function scours your computer for a number of different languages besides English. You can turbo charge the Find function by selecting preferences from the Finder menu. Click the languages button at the bottom and deselect at will. Do you really need Portuguese or Swedish?

Sherlock 3. Apple’s all-new Internet Services tool displays a personalized view of information via 10 channels that include: stock quotes, maps, restaurants, movies, Yellow Pages, flight information, eBay, foreign language translation, a dictionary and more. Each channel presents information in an interface customized for the type of information you’re viewing. Apple has taken action most frequently performed on the Internet and made them simpler, faster, and more flexible. Let’s say you found a website with the information you were seeking but it’s in Russian. You can use Sherlock to translate the text.



For movie fans, this feature alone may make Jaguar worth the price of admission. If you want to know which films are playing near you, you usually have to call several theaters or visit a couple of websites to find the right time and location. Even then, if you aren’t familiar with a movie, it’s hard to decide if you want to see it. Buying tickets means either waiting in line or finding a website that will let you buy them. With Sherlock 3, you can see all that information in one place, and you can modify your choices instantly. Want to see what’s playing at the theater across town? Just select that theater from the menu. All the current movies showing will be listed. See one that you like? Just click on the name of the film and the showtimes will be listed. Haven’t seen the preview? If one is available, a QuickTime movie trailer will be automatically displayed in the window. And if you like what you see, use the Buy Tickets button when that service is available. Can you smell the popcorn?

Rendezvous. This is Apple’s underlying home networking technology that is only and incredibly useful for users on a network. You can now link computers and devices instantly without any configuration via Ethernet, AirPort, FireWire, USB or Bluetooth (a cable-less technology that allows devices to communicate using radio signals). The days of struggling to make sense of networking protocols and the cryptic fields in configuration windows are over. Rendezvous empowers you to add an electronic device easily, like a computer or printer, to an existing network. It is now possible to create instant networks of multiple devices without the need for complex networking configurations.

Rendezvous is ideally suited for ad hoc local area networking. Bringing your Mac into the range of another AirPort-enabled Mac or plugging it into a network via an Ethernet cable automatically configures the computers and allows them to discover each other’s file services. Each computer magically appears in the “Connect to” dialog, making it easy to share files. In addition to computers, Rendezvous opens up exciting possibilities for device-to-device interaction, enabling automatic configuration and communication between many kinds of smart devices. For now Rendezvous is still limited, but its potential will eventually enable new features and services for future products.

Continued
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