14 DAY TRIAL // Word on the web is that the rumored golden master version of Mac OS X Snow Leopard (build 10A432) may be a preliminary release still, according to one report. MacMagazine describes build 10A432 as a preview, accusing bugs, including Mail instabilities, scroll bar errors, and quite a few freezing applications.
The mag claims we may still be dealing with a preliminary build of Snow Leopard, citing Apple itself as saying “This is a preview build" in the seed notes. Of course, every build will be labeled as a preview until Apple decides it has a reliable version to print on discs for mass production. “Nothing prevents the company from announcing a few days it was declared GM, but I think unlikely,” says the author of the piece. “I say this also based on information and screenshots that a reader has just sent,” goes a rough translation of the text in question.
MacMagazine also cites a user who has installed and used the build for a few days only to find “several bugs in the system (to name a few special: instabilities in Mail.app, errors in the scroll bar, Safari slow and locking applications here and there), which may indicate that the time has not yet reached a GM.”
Earlier this week, numerous Mac-focused sites claimed that OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard Build 10A432 was likely the final version of the software, preceding its official release next month. Build 10A432 reportedly went GM (Golden Master) at the beginning of the week. It was even said that the software was already on its way to manufacturing, “where it will be pressed onto optical media ahead of a formal availability date next month,” AppleInsider said.
It remains unclear whether Apple is yet to release another Snow Leopard build to developers ahead of the operating system’s official debut. Either way, Mac OS X 10.6 is expected to arrive sometime next month.