Question on the OS for a new to Mac guy..

[Overg]

Just wondering, comin from windows I know the sequence of the OS and the numbers, like from windows 7 to 8 and so on. And every number is completely new OS.
Now apple seems to have very unusual numbering, all the OS I saw in the last years are cats names, thinking its a new OS completely revel its still the same OS 10 but small increments...
So is every cat is really new OS? Or small increments?
Also is OS 11 will be a "cat " as well or this will be totally redesign OS like win8?

 

[miles01110]

Some increments have been major updates, others have been minor. There's no discernable pattern.

Nobody knows if/when OS 11 will be released, so it's pointless to speculate on naming.

 

[throAU]

OS X = 10.*

Second digit is the major revision (cat name: Leopard, Lion, etc), third digit is the patch level (think, windows service pack)


So, 10.6 = last major release, 10.7 = current release, 10.8 = upcoming release

10.6.1 = 10.6, patch level 1 (equivalent in Windows world would be Vista SP1)


Patch levels are free upgrades. To go to a major release is a paid upgrade, like Windows vista -> Windows 7.

OS X upgrades tend to look reasonably consistent, unlike Windows the UI has not had any MAJOR changes since 10.1. Things have been added and tweaked, yes - but if you know how to use 10.1, you know how to use 10.8...

 

[forty2j]

The cats started out as code names, but enough people found out about them and liked them that they became brand names as well. The actual version number should also be plainly visible on whatever packaging you're looking at, or by looking at -> About This Mac.

The current release version is 10.7.4. Both 10.7.5 and 10.8 come out in a couple weeks. We've already heard that there's a 10.9 in the works, so we can't even fathom 11 yet.