Word on the street is that Apple's next Mac OS X installment, Mac OS X 10.6, will be seeded to developers attending the company's World Wide Developer Conference (WWDC) this year, for rapid testing and an even more rapid release to manufacturing. What do you think they're calling it? Like an endangered feline perhaps?

TUAW claims tipsters let them in on the fact that "Apple may be working to seed developers with an early build of Mac OS X 10.6 at this year's WWDC." While the news is awesome, the build isn't, according to the publication, as it focuses on "stability and security," adding few to no extra features compared to Mac OS X 10.5.

According to the same source, Mac OS X 10.6 may reach its gold status as soon as December, when Apple is planning to ship it to manufacturing. The official release is said to occur early next year, in January. The unveiling will take place at Macworld Expo, according to the TUAW tipster. 10.6 will indeed be a landmark release for Apple. The sixth Mac OS X iteration will be the first to completely dump the PowerPC (I had to upgrade anyway) to become a 64-bit Intel-only Mac OS X.

The rumor comes only a week after Mac OS X 10.5.3 was released, along with the Apple Mac OS X Server Update 10.5.3 and the Apple Security Update 2008-003. Mac OS X 10.5.3 includes general operating system improvements that enhance the stability, compatibility, and security of Leopard-running Macs. The Cupertino-based corporation assured Mac owners that installation of Mac OS X 10.5 was simple and that the new build was packed with over 300 new features. Most importantly, it works with the software and accessories everyone already has.

Following three months of successive seeding, the latest build of Mac OS X 10.5.3 included just one new fixed issue - a Kernel performance fix. Build (9D34) asked Apple's developer community to focus on eleven areas: Audio Applications, Video Applications, 802.1X, Active Directory/Directory Services, AirPort, Back To My Mac, Graphics, Installer, Mail, Spaces, and Time Machine.

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