OS X Leopard Watch: Tech Digest's UK liveblogging/tweeting starts here

For Tech Digest’s latest information about the UK launch of Apple’s OS X 10.5 Leopard, bookmark this post and check back frequently.

Hint: If you find operating systems, and the liveblogging of them, immensely boring, then you’re advised not to continue reading this post. You’ve been warned!

11.10pm: Flagging a bit. Best bet is to stop the “live blog” and review some of the features in more depth tomorrow.

10.25pm: Startup is very quick now – almost straight to login screen
10.10pm: Quick Look is great – you can open multiple documents of different types and have them all there, without the original applications having to open, and just leaf between them. Complete PDFs, Excel spreadsheets. Brilliant.

Will have to check what applications (if not all) it supports. Seems very speedy, too, loaded things pretty quick. Impressed.

10.01pm: Application “Help” drop down menus now include a Spotlight-style search box, which appears to then only search in that application. It’s persistent (i.e. you type something and it searches, leave the menu, go back to it, the results are still there, but when there are results, the other normal menu items disappear) Not sure if I like that yet.

10.00pm: Snitter (a desktop client for Twitter) doesn’t work under Leopard.

9.35pm: Skype had me worried, complained about a wrong password, think the Keychain has been updated, but it’s in now. Not tried to use yet.

9.32pm: Mail has an RSS feed section now – not sure that’ll replace Google Reader but we’ll see.

9.30pm: Spotlight now indexes safari history items, which I don’t recall it doing before.

9.25pm: EyeTV works, Firefox loads fine, extensions I’ve got installed seem to work (some apparently won’t, initially), Spotlight is much faster.

OK time to do that permission verification.

9.05pm: Going to download the latest version of SwitchResX from the developer site (3.7.10) to see if it works in Leopard. I know this is boring for people without display issues, but it is bugging me big time! Please bear with me.

Oh by the way, Stacks is cool.

Spotlight looks fast, too, on a Core 2 Duo Intel iMac at least, though I haven’t tested the extra logic searching yet. The options page looks the same as under 10.4.

9.00pm: Spaces: Can have up to 16 spaces, in a 4×4 grid. Nice. Think 4 will do to begin with.

8.58pm: Might be mistaken, but Mail’s spam filters look to be better than before. We’ll see.

8.55pm: Displays is something will need to look at. Pain. It’s usable for now. On we go, looking to get the Stacks working. Moved dock to the bottom of the screen (used to have it far left) as the translucency looks better there.

8.40pm: OK the displays thing is bugging me, but we’ll carry on. Restarting just because, then rebuilding permissions etc. Usual stuff.

There were three software updates waiting, not sure if they were for Leopard compatibility. Probably. One was Garageband.

8.30pm: Something’s up with the resolution on my monitor, but I was having problems before, so hoping that SwitchResX works – crashed first time, now has loaded…

8.25pm: That last minute was a long one. Restarted, logged in. The “starfield” screenshot came up first, but then it went back to the last screen image I had. I might switch back. It appears not yet to have restored the screen resolution. Looks a bit odd.

Wow, everything I usually auto start is coming up and shouting at me. Skype wants a keychain access, Mail needs updating. Trying to get to the monitor settings. There’s some whooshing going on in the background too. Registration, probably. Hang on!!

8.15pm: Five minutes left to install. Hopefully. Time to make a cuppa (yeah, beer would be more rock’n’roll but i’m in my 30s haha) – then go!

8.10pm: Time remaining to install: about 8 minutes

Twitter transcript 3.30pm onwards

Leopard DVD being checked for consistency – 25% done
Home, unwrapping box, installing begins… (50 minutes ago))
Ok take that back traffic bad (about 1.5 hour ago)
Traffic out of town ok so far smooth journey please (about 1.5 hour ago)
Box looks great (about 1.5 hour ago)
Got it (about 1.5 hour ago)
Apple employees dancing scary (about 1.5 hour ago)
Sorry thiS crowd aint cheering (about 1.5 hour ago)
Ten minutes (about 2 hours ago)
120 now i am sure (about 2 hours ago)
“its just an os not britney spears” ha ha (about 2 hours ago)
Big boxes of shirts arriving (about 2 hours ago)
Ah someone showing off their iphone (about 2.5 hours ago)
Must be approaching hundred mark (about 2.5 hours ago)
Had 1st why are u queueing from passer by up to 70 more cheers im store (about 2.5 hours ago)
30 minutes to go not thinking about needing loo (about 2.5 hours ago)
Around 60 now but some are families (about 2.5 hours ago)
Passerby oh its iphone no afraid not (about 2.5 hours ago)
Costa doing a good trade! (about 3 hours ago)
K.id reading macworld site what about techdigest (about 3 hours ago)
Up to 40 or so lots of applause coming from store (about 3 hours ago)
The kid at front should videocast this but is watching youtube (about 3 hours ago)
Wow free water! I suggested a gig of ram4 first ten but i guess not (about 3 hours ago)
Up to twenty i think the t shirts are safe (about 3.5 hours ago)
Double digit queue one guy shouting about stacks lol (about 3.5 hours ago)
I would laugh ifsomeone queued thinking its iphone wonder how many at regent st (about 3.5 hours ago)
2 people left already but its always a kid at the front eh? (about 3.5 hours ago)
Seventh will do i have coffee (about 3.5 hours ago)
Not going first im queue! (about 4 hours ago)
Queue signs go al long way but other stores here close at 6 (about 4 hours ago)
Some bemused people as usual no queue yet (about 4 hours ago)
Apple store kingston closed as expected small rope area 4q (about 4 hours ago)
OK off to pick up Leopard – I never trusted FedEx to get a copy in time but sounds like I could’ve. Oh well. Fresh air b4 geekdom is good (about 4.5 hours ago)

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