Last week I covered some of the new or changed features with OS X Mavericks (iBooks, Maps, Finder Tabs, Tags, and Safari), and how to download it. You can read Part One here. Now I’ve got a few more things to talk about when it comes to Mavericks: Calendar, multiple displays, notifications, advanced tech, and iCloud Keychain.
Before I do that, though, here’s some news: Mavericks is now installed on more than 10 percent of all Macs, which is beating Mountain Lion’s adoption rate by a whole lot. This was all done in 10 days; it took Mountain Lion a month to get to this point. The reason: Mavericks is free. This was a truly brilliant move for Apple.
Anyway, back to the features!
Calendar
Calendar has a new look and some new features. We get continuous scrolling, so now you can see half of this month and half of next month (or half of last month and half of this month, whichever you want); and an event inspector, so you can create and edit events easier. The even inspector is really a great feature: when you start typing in the address, it suggests addresses and other places of interest, shows you a little map with your location pinpointed, figures out your travel time, and even tells you the weather forecast for that day and location.
Multiple Displays
If you have more than one display connected to your Mac, you’re going to love the new multiple displays features with Mavericks. Each display now gets its own menu bar, and the Dock will show on whichever display you’re working on. They got rid of Display 1 and Display 2. You can have a full-screen app running on either or both displays, and more than one app window on both, as well. Mission Control lets you drag whatever you want back and forth between displays, and gives you a bird’s eye view of what you’ve got going. The absolute best part about the multiple displays features is that now you can run Apple TV and AirPlay wirelessly on your HDTV so you can drag apps across the room if you have either of those things going on over there.
Notifications
Ahhh, notifications…I love this new feature. I’m terrible for putting things into my Calendar and then not checking my email often enough and I miss things. Now you get a pop-up in the top right corner of your screen showing you what you’ve got going, all without leaving the app you’re in. You can also reply to iMessage from there, delete an email, or respond to a FaceTime video call. It’s totally interactive; and if you walk away from your Mac, you’ll see a summary of notifications upon your return.
Advanced Tech
This is where your Mac’s battery will thank you. The designers of Mavericks looked at the operating system in general to see how to get the most out of your battery without losing performance. In fact, the system got a performance boost and it runs smarter, too.
iCloud Keychain
iCloud Keychain will remember all of your website user names and passwords, credit card numbers, and anything else you need to remember. It will generate passwords, offer quick credit card info entry, and the best part: it works across all your devices.
