The Job

Apple Macintosh computers have long boasted fast, secure operation and outstanding approachability. Mac OS X 10.4 (Tiger) performed admirably, but all OSes become stale in time. Is an updated OS needed to fuel today’s powerful Mac computers?

The Tool

Mac OS X 10.5, known as Leopard, introduces numerous improvements to Apple’s popular OS. Besides new enhancements to the Safari Web browser, Mail, Spotlight and iCalendar and important new tweaks to the Dock, Leopard introduces an almost foolproof backup utility known as Time Machine.

All told, Mac OS X Leopard boasts numerous advantages:

  • Improved Dock features and functionality
  • Foolproof backups using the Time Machine utility
  • Updated Automater, Disk Utility and iCalendar applications
  • Simplified Firewall, Sharing and Network features
  • Cover Flow views within Finder, which simplifies finding needed files

There’s only one disadvantage I can spot:

  • My 1.5GHz PowerBook G4 now takes maybe 30 seconds longer to boot up. But that’s a small price to pay for all the new features and time-saving functionality cram-packed into Leopard.

The Right Tool for the Job?

Priced at only $129, the OS upgrade is a no brainer. The Dock’s time-saving features alone justify the purchase for this consultant-on-the-go. Were there ever any question, Time Machine’s ability to essentially ensure complete system backups occur automatically put the issue to rest quickly.

Read my comprehensive screenshot review of Mac OS X Leopard.