Apple's Snow Leopard OS Pounces on Amazon's Top Spot

An avalanche of pre-orders for Apple's operating system Snow Leopard has catapulted the product to the top of Amazon's bestseller list days after the e-tailer listed the operating system, officially called Mac OS X 10.6 on its Web site. Amazon is offering five versions of the software, including a family pack box set for $229 (including iWork and iLife), a standard version for $29, a five-user family pack for $49 and Mac OS X Server version 10.6 Snow Leopard, which retails for $499. Apple is not planning on releasing the software until September.

Mac OS X Snow Leopard, introduced at this year's Worldwide Developers Conference and built on a UNIX foundation, includes improved features such as a more responsive Finder, new look and features for Expos??« and Stacks, quicker Time Machine backup, faster common tasks and installation and a smaller install footprint. Snow Leopard includes built-in support for the latest version of Microsoft Exchange Server, so consumers can use Mail, iCal, and Address Book at home and at work. Snow Leopard is also half the size of the previous version and frees up to 6GB of drive space once installed.

The Expos??« feature allows users to unshuffle overlapping windows on the desktop into an organized thumbnail view, so users can quickly locate and switch to any window or get to any file on the desktop. "Say you're a Photoshop maestro and often have up to a dozen documents open at the same time. Expos??« makes finding the one you need incredibly easy," Apple's site describes the feature. "With another keystroke, Expos??« instantly tiles your Photoshop windows while causing the windows of other applications to fade to gray. The clutter cleared, you can easily find the document you need."

Apple said users will also notice a more responsive Finder; Mail that loads messages 85 percent faster and conducts searches up to 90 percent faster, Time Machine with up to 50 percent faster initial backup, a Dock with Expos??« integration, a 64-bit version of Safari 4 that boosts the performance of the Nitro JavaScript engine by up to 50 percent and is resistant to crashes caused by plug-ins. Snow Leopard also includes a new QuickTime X with a redesigned player that allows users to view, record, trim and share video to YouTube, MobileMe or iTunes.

Up until Apple's listing on Amazon, rival Microsoft had the latest version of its operating system, Windows 7, holding the top position on the Amazon rankings. Microsoft is offering the Windows 7 Home Premium Upgrade for $119.99, while the professional addition is listed on Amazon for $199.99.