14 DAY TRIAL // The flagship Mac OS X Lion wallpaper featuring ‘Fuji Mountain’ has been leaked to the internet. Every Mac user out there, including those running old versions of Mac OS X, like Cheetah and Tiger, can now get a small taste o Lion, be it only via a simple, aesthetically pleasant picture.
The image in question, a 705 KB download, is available at its original 2560 × 1600 resolution in .jpg format here.
Mount Fuji is the highest mountain in Japan at 3,776.24 m (12,389 ft). It is an active stratovolcano that last erupted in 1707–08, according to Wikipedia. It is one of Japan's "Three Holy Mountains" along with Mount Tate and Mount Haku.
Situated at about 60 miles south-west of Tokyo, Fuji Mountain features an exceptionally symmetrical cone, making it one of the symbols of Japan. No wonder Apple found it to be wallpaper-worthy!
The picture used by Apple seems to be taken either at sunrise or sunset. The angle at which it was shot shows a beautiful ‘flaw’ in its original design, likely engraved during its violent past.
As for Mac OS X Lion, the OS is scheduled to make its way to customers this Summer, after Apple gives it the final touches spanning several beta testing sessions in the months to follow.
The Cupertino, California-based technology giant has recently seeded the first developer build to those enrolled with its paid programs, enabling them to test out the various new functions it offers by combining the best elements from Mac OS X Snow Leopard and the iPad version of iOS.
The Lion preview is available to Mac Developer Program members through the Mac App Store - currently available only on Mac OS X 10.6.6 (Snow Leopard). Lion itself has the the Mac App Store preinstalled.