While the 3G iPhone seems to be making the majority of the headlines, a rather tasty little nugget of informations seems to be looming along the sidelines. Apple has officially announced that Snow Leopard Server, the next-gen Mac OS X server, will be delivering software technologies to better connect business and well as unleashing the power of multi-core hardware. The forthcoming release, v.10.6, is taking a different approach, focusing on performance over features. It will provide “a new generation of core software technologies that will streamline Mac OS X, enhance its performance, and set new standards for quality”, says Apple.
Apple Insider reveals that “Like its Mac OS X Snow Leopard client cousin, the new version of Server will deliver support for multicore processors with “Grand Central,” a new set of built-in technologies that makes all of Mac OS X Server multicore aware and optimized for allocating tasks across Macs that ship with multiple cores and processors. Similarly, the software will also use 64-bit kernel technology to support up to a theoretical 16 terabytes of RAM — or 500 times what is possible today — and leverage OpenCL to allow any application to tap into the vast gigaflops of GPU computing power previously available only to graphics applications.”
Snow leopard will also feature iCal 2 Server, “a new version of the open standards-based calendaring and scheduling service that will include group and shared calendars, push notifications, the ability to send email invitations to non-iCal Server users, and a browser-based application that lets users access their calendars on the web when they’re away from their Mac.”
Businesses will now benefit from from Collaboration and Remote Access with the power of group collaboration through wiki, blogs, mailing lists and RSS feeds. Also introduced is My Page, giving users a “convenient place to access their web applications, receive notifications, and view activity streams.”
Additionally, new Address Book and Mail Services will enhance the user experience.
My Take: I think that all of the hype over the iPhone 2.0 has greatly overshadowed how powerful an upgrade Snow Leopard will be. Focusing on unleashing the true power of an expensive machine like the Mac Pro will undoubtedly be received in high regard from professional users. While many of these features, I must say, will go unused be me, just knowing that my Mac Pro will finally be able to reach its potential will help me sleep at night.
