The image above shows how the wireless connectivity dropdown menu looks like in Snow Leopard (left) and Lion (right). The “AirPort” name has clearly been replaced with simply “Wi-Fi.” This change could save some trouble for new Mac users when setting up their first mac. Often times, they search in vain for Wi-Fi controls only to find something called AirPort.

“AirPort” has been the name of Apple’s 802.11 wireless connectivity since 1999, but Apple is the only one that uses it to refer to Wi-Fi. Now with the increasing popularity of the name Wi-Fi and the confusion that AirPort can cause it appears that Apple will be dropping the name when the Mac OS X 10.7 Lion arrives. The recent reports of supply shortage for the Apple AirPort devices may also have something to do with this. Perhaps, the rumored AirPort refresh may also be rebranded as Wi-Fi.

[via MacRumors]

It’s unclear if Apple would promote the Mac App Store method by releasing Lion there first; nonetheless, many OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard users are likely to opt for the easier download route, already being familiar with the concept of downloading sizable updates and bugfixes. Of course, those running earlier versions of OS X do not currently have Mac App Store access, so they would need physical versions of any Lion upgrade.

The move is being seen as further evidence of Apple’s shift to as close a purely digital software world as possible. Back in February it was suggested that the company planned to do away with boxed software in its stores; while that is yet to happen, the space allotted to software has been reduced. Meanwhile, Apple is also expected to drop optical drives from its future notebooks, saving space – and allowing for sleeker hardware – as well as power. A significant design overhaul is tipped for the next MacBook Pro refresh, which could well include deleting the SuperDrive.

In fact, long-clicking causes all the icons to “jiggle” just like on iOS devices, and then after a quick “Are you sure?” dialog the app is gone. It only apparently works for software downloaded and installed using the Mac App Store – you’ll have to drag regular apps out of the Applications folder and to the trash as normal – but it’s another sign of Apple’s mobile paradigms crossing over to the desktop.

To be fair, OS X’s existing system isn’t exactly difficult, but users migrating from Windows can end up confused by the absence of a “Add/Remove Programs” dialog. Since the iOS range is acting as a gateway-drug to Mac ownership for many, carrying across the same interactions certainly makes sense.

[via MacRumors]

If the bugs are truly absent then it could mean Apple’s release schedule accelerates, however that’s unlikely to be the case. OS X Lion is expected to see its full release in the summer, potentially around WWDC 2011 which is expected in early June. A developer preview was pushed into the wild last month, complete with full-screen app support, pinch and double-tap zoom in Safari and a document saving system called Versions.

“At this point, I want to focus less on products and more on science” Serlet said; the executive holds a doctorate in Computer Science, but is yet to confirm his next project.

The news will likely refuel controversy over Apple’s intentions toward OS X, which many have predicted will “dumb down” to the point where a more structured platform, like iOS, replaces it. The company is expected to release OS X Lion (aka OS X 10.7) later this year, having pushed out a developer preview back in February.

Press Release:

Bertrand Serlet to Leave Apple

CUPERTINO, California—March 23, 2011—Apple® today announced that Bertrand Serlet, Apple’s senior vice president of Mac® Software Engineering, will be leaving the company. Craig Federighi, Apple’s vice president of Mac Software Engineering, will assume Serlet’s responsibilities and report to Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. Federighi is responsible for the development of Mac OS® X and has been managing the Mac OS software engineering group for the past two years.

“I’ve worked with Steve for 22 years and have had an incredible time developing products at both NeXT and Apple, but at this point, I want to focus less on products and more on science,” said Bertrand Serlet, Apple’s senior vice president of Software Engineering. “Craig has done a great job managing the Mac OS team for the past two years, Lion is a great release and the transition should be seamless.”

Federighi worked at NeXT, followed by Apple, and then spent a decade at Ariba where he held several roles including vice president of Internet Services and chief technology officer. He returned to Apple in 2009 to lead Mac OS X engineering. Federighi holds a Master of Science degree in Computer Science and a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from the University of California, Berkeley.

Serlet joined Apple in 1997, and has been involved in the definition, development and creation of Mac OS X, the world’s most advanced operating system. Before joining Apple, Serlet spent four years at Xerox PARC, then joined NeXT in 1989. Serlet holds a doctorate in Computer Science from the University of Orsay, France.

The eviGroup method involves point-to-point WiFi connections with a simple proximity-based UI, that aims to bypass complex file sharing permissions and configurations. There’s no word on when eviGroup plans to actually produce an app based on it, however.

Still, it looks like Ruiz is taking a sanguine attitude toward the whole affair, suggesting that “business is business” and pointing out that, because of the way European patents are formulated, it’s the specific technique which is covered rather than the concept itself. The advantage of eviGroup’s system, he suggests, is that it’s platform-agnostic, and so will work with more than just Mac OS X Lion devices.

In Lion, they’re described as “HiDPI display modes”, and they basically work in the same way as the high-DPI graphics on the iPhone 4 and latest-gen iPod touch. Graphics will be twice as detailed, but intended for double-resolution panels: they’d be the same size on a 2880 x 1800 MacBook Pro screen as on a 1440 x 900 version, but have twice the number of pixels and so be smoother, more information-dense and generally more beautiful.

Now, software support for HiDPI display modes is the first step, but it will take high resolution panels for notebooks and desktops to actually deliver those graphics to the end-user. That might take some time, at least if we want them to be affordable. Still, with Apple rumored to have invested $3.9bn in displays for its various product lines, it looks like the company is taking high-resolution graphics very seriously.

AirDrop is added as a new icon in the Finder sidebar, and when clicked OS X Lion automatically scans for nearby users also using AirDrop. If they’re in your Address Book then you’ll see profile photos, too; otherwise it will be a MacBook name.

Files to be shared – whether music tracks, documents, images or something else – can be dragged from the Finder window straight onto the AirDrop contact’s name and, after the transfer request has been accepted by that person, automatically shuffle over and straight into the person’s Downloads folder. Closing the Finder window automatically turns off AirDrop, so that you won’t inadvertently show up in other people’s search results.

What remains to be seen is what happens to existing apps using the AirDrop name: there’s already an iOS game called AirDrop [iTunes link] as well as a company making a podcast downloading app [iTunes link].

There’s also Resume, which automatically brings you back up to speed with the apps and documents you had open after a reboot, along with Mission Control, a bird’s-eye view of of open windows grouped by app, thumbnails of full-screen apps, and Dashboard. Mail 5 has an updated UI to take advantage of widescreen displays, and there’s Conversations (Apple’s name for threaded messages).

“With AirDrop in Mac OS X Lion, you can send files to anyone around you —  wirelessly. AirDrop doesn’t require setup or special settings. Just click the AirDrop icon in the Finder sidebar, and your Mac automatically discovers other people nearby who are using AirDrop. You’ll even see contact photos for those who are already in your Address Book. To share a file, simply drag it to someone’s name. Once accepted, the file transfers directly to the person’s Downloads folder. When you’re done with AirDrop, close the Finder and your Mac is no longer visible to others.” Apple

Apple has also integrated OS X Server into a single SKU; Lion Server is built into the client version of the updated OS. If you’re a developer you can check out all the changes and new features here at the updated checklist; the release itself will be seeded through the Mac App Store.

Press Release:

Apple Releases Developer Preview of Mac OS X Lion

CUPERTINO, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Apple® today released a developer preview of Mac OS® X Lion, which takes some of the best ideas from iPad™ and brings them back to the Mac® for the eighth major release of the world’s most advanced operating system. Lion features Mission Control, an innovative new view of everything running on your Mac; Launchpad, a new home for all your Mac apps; full screen apps that use the entire Mac display; and new Multi-Touch™ gestures. Lion also includes the Mac App Store℠, the best place to discover, install and automatically update Mac apps. The Lion preview is available to Mac Developer Program members through the Mac App Store today, and the final version of Lion will ship to customers this summer.

“Developers are going to love Mission Control and Launchpad, and can now start adding great new Lion features like full screen, gestures, Versions and Auto Save to their own apps.”
“The iPad has inspired a new generation of innovative features in Lion,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. “Developers are going to love Mission Control and Launchpad, and can now start adding great new Lion features like full screen, gestures, Versions and Auto Save to their own apps.”

Mission Control is a powerful, entirely new feature that unifies Exposé®, Dashboard, Spaces®, and full screen apps to give you a bird’s eye view of every app and window running on your Mac. With a simple swipe, your desktop zooms out to display your open windows grouped by app, thumbnails of your full screen apps as well as your Dashboard, and allows you to instantly navigate anywhere with a click.

Launchpad makes it easier than ever to find and launch any app. With a single click, Launchpad displays all your Mac apps in a stunning full screen layout where you can launch, re-order or organize apps into folders. You can also arrange apps into multiple pages and swipe between them.

Lion brings the full screen experience that iPad users love to the Mac. With one click, your application window goes full screen, taking advantage of your Mac’s brilliant display. You can swipe from one full screen window to another and even back to your Desktop or Dashboard.

New Multi-Touch gestures and fluid animations give you a natural and intuitive way to interact with your Mac. New gestures include pinching your fingers to zoom in on a web page or image, swiping left or right to turn a page or switch between full screen apps and swiping up to enter Mission Control.

Lion also includes the Mac App Store, where you can find great new apps, buy them with your iTunes® account, and download and install them in just one step. Apps purchased from the Mac App Store are installed directly into Launchpad.

Additional features in Lion include:

A new version of Mail, with an elegant, widescreen layout inspired by the iPad; Conversations, which automatically groups related messages into one easy to read timeline; more powerful search; and support for Microsoft Exchange 2010;
AirDrop, a remarkably simple way to copy files wirelessly from one Mac to another with no setup;
Versions, which automatically saves successive versions of your document as you create it, and gives you an easy way to browse, edit and even revert to previous versions;
Resume, which conveniently brings your apps back exactly how you left them when you restart your Mac or quit and relaunch an app;
Auto Save, which automatically saves your documents as you work;
The all new FileVault, that provides high performance full disk encryption for local and external drives, and the ability to wipe data from your Mac instantaneously; and
Mac OS X Lion Server, which makes setting up a server easier than ever and adds support for managing Mac OS X Lion, iPhone®, iPad and iPod touch® devices.
Apple designs Macs, the best personal computers in the world, along with OS X, iLife, iWork, and professional software. Apple leads the digital music revolution with its iPods and iTunes online store. Apple is reinventing the mobile phone with its revolutionary iPhone and App Store, and has recently introduced its magical iPad which is defining the future of mobile media and computing devices.

According to the leaky sources, Apple is preparing “at least four” upgraded MacBook Pro models. While there’s no mention of Sandy Bridge, they do say there’ll be a “slight change in chassis design” along with OS X 10.7 Lion preinstalled. Previous rumors suggested the new MacBook Pros would switch from NVIDIA GPUs to AMD’s Radeon range, though the entry-level models in the Apple portable line-up would use Sandy Bridge’s own integrated graphics capabilities.

As for that “mainstream” iMac, details are scant but a new panel size is tipped. Since it seems unlikely Apple would undercut their entry-level $1,199.99 21.5-inch iMac, perhaps more likely is a mid-scale iMac that would slot in-between it and the flagship 27-inch units.

All the talk about a touchscreen iMac turned out to be true, but ony a half-truth. The end result is actually a MacBook that features a touchscreen, plus everything else you might expect to find on an iPad, and now it’s on the MacBook. You’ll get applications. The main effect of Lion is that it was specifically inspired by iOS, and this is the result.

The MacBook will feature an App Store, which will feature an application amount that many would expect. There will also be App Home Screens, Auto Save, and applications will resume from where you left off, depending on the app, after you launch it again after closing it. Stay tuned as more is still coming.

Two things to point out here, one of which will be very obvious. The applications won’t work in a vertical screen, as the MacBook’s display is horizontal by default. And, while the Mac App Store is one feature of the announcement, the implementation of the LaunchPad is great. It basically brings up a list of your applications on your desktop display, just as you’d see on an iPhone or iPad. Lined up in a horizontal grid, and easily accessible right there.

As for a release date? It looks like Apple is keeping Lion in the oven for awhile longer. They just announced that it will be available in the Summer, 2011. No exact dates yet, but that will change soon enough.

Press Release

Apple Gives Sneak Peek of Mac OS X Lion

CUPERTINO, California—October 20, 2010—Apple® today gave a sneak peek of Mac OS® X Lion, the eighth major release of the world’s most advanced operating system. Shipping next summer, Lion is inspired by many of iPad’s software innovations. Today’s sneak peek highlighted just a few of Lion’s features, including the Mac® App Store℠, a new way to discover, install and automatically update desktop apps; Launchpad, a new home for all of your Mac apps; system-wide support for full screen apps; and Mission Control, which unifies Exposé®, Dashboard, Spaces® and full screen apps into an innovative new view of everything running on your Mac, and allows you to instantly navigate anywhere.

“Lion brings many of the best ideas from iPad back to the Mac, plus some fresh new ones like Mission Control that Mac users will really like,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “Lion has a ton of new features, and we hope the few we had time to preview today will give users a good idea of where we are headed.”

The Mac App Store brings the revolutionary App Store experience to OS X, making discovering, installing and updating Mac apps easier than ever. Like on iPad™, you purchase apps using your iTunes® account and they download and install in just one step. App updates are delivered directly through the Mac App Store, so it’s easy to keep all of your apps up to date. The Mac App Store will be available for Snow Leopard® within 90 days and will be included in Lion when it ships next summer.

Launchpad makes it easier than ever to find and launch any app. Similar to the Home screen on iPad, you can see all the apps on your Mac elegantly displayed just by clicking the Launchpad icon in the dock. Apps can be organized in any order or grouped into folders, and you can swipe through multiple pages of apps to find the one you want.

Lion includes system-wide support for full screen applications. With Lion, you can enter full screen mode with just one click, switch from one full screen app to another with just a swipe of the trackpad, and swipe back to the desktop to access your multi-window applications.

Mission Control presents you with a unified view of every app and window running on your Mac, so you can instantly navigate anywhere. Mission Control also incorporates the next generation of Exposé, presenting all the windows running on your Mac grouped by application, alongside thumbnails of full screen apps, Dashboard and other Spaces.

Apple designs Macs, the best personal computers in the world, along with OS X, iLife, iWork, and professional software. Apple leads the digital music revolution with its iPods and iTunes online store. Apple is reinventing the mobile phone with its revolutionary iPhone and App Store, and has recently introduced its magical iPad which is defining the future of mobile media and computing devices.