macOS Will a Mac Developer Program give you the CURRENT version os OS X for free?

[Soulstorm]

I have searched all over the internet however, I couldn't find any answer on this (or I found, but it was too subtle to convince me).

I am already an iOS developer, and I have recently made an application for OS X. I don't want to necessarily distribute it through the App Store, but this new developer ID is starting to worry me. It seems I will need to obtain a developer ID. I know about the option of allowing applications from 3rd party "unknown" developers to be installed, but I would really like to obtain a developer ID, and it seems a Mac Developer Program is the only choice.

However, since I also intend to purchase Mountain Lion, and my budget is limited, my Mac Developer Program purchase will be based on these factors:

1) If I purchase a Mac developer Program now, will I have access to the final version Mountain Lion when it will be officially released? Or will I need to pay for Mountain Lion again in order to purchase it?
2) If 1) is true, will it require a password that expires at some time and you will need to give a new one to re-use it (like the server editions need?). I'd hate to have to renew my developer program just to keep using my main OS!

If anyone can provide me with any information on this matter, I would be grateful.

 

[lloyddean]

1 Yes
2 No

 

[AlanShutko]

1) If I purchase a Mac developer Program now, will I have access to the final version Mountain Lion when it will be officially released?

Yes.

2) If 1) is true, will it require a password that expires at some time and you will need to give a new one to re-use it (like the server editions need?).

No. The build is in your App Store account and are completely equivalent to the release build.

 

[Soulstorm]

Thank you both.

 

[ArtOfWarfare]

Wait, let me make sure I've got this perfectly straight.

Because I'm already a Mac OS X developer (started selling my app on the Mac app store in January,) I'll be able to download the release version of Mountain Lion, free of charge?

Where will I get it from? The developer portal? If I try to get it via the MAS, will it:
1 - Not allow me to get it?
2 - Give it to me for free?
Or
3 - Charge me full price when I could have easily just gone elsewhere as gotten it for free?

 

[AlanShutko]

The way it works is that the developer portal for Mac (http://developer.apple.com/mac) will have two tabs, one for Lion and one for ML.

In the downloads sections on ML, there's a space to get a code for the current developer preview. Eventually, it will be replaced with the golden master. You'll click on that, it'll open MAS to redeem the code and ask you for your Apple ID. Once you do that, it'll pop ML into your App Store account just as if you'd bought it.

Even if you don't catch it right away, the downloads section will list OS X "..." with the button to redeem a code. It's hard to test if you already have Lion, but I went through the process when Lion was released. It works.

If you go and purchase ML before you get a code from the dev portal, you'll be charged. So don't do that.