If "free" and "new" aren't tempting enough to try Yosemite, a look at some of the new OS' features may be enough to coax anyone with a Mac made after 2006 to try out the latest version of Apple's desktop platform.
For anyone who missed Apple's October conference and has avoided any recaps of the event thus far, the ability to talk to people through Macs was a highlight of the Yosemite reveal. With an iOS device close by (loaded with iOS 8 for calls and iOS 8.1 for texting), Yosemite users can answer and initiate both calls and text on their Macs.
Apple's Craig Federighi and Steven Colbert demoed Yosemite's speaker-phone capabilities in a skit that drew giggles, but there's a well of features that make the latest version of OS X well worth the installation.
"OS X Yosemite ushers in the future of computing, where your Apple devices all work together seamlessly and magically," says Federighi, Apple's senior vice president of software engineering. "It's something only Apple can do, and it's available today."
Super-sentient Spotlight search
Like iOS' brighter and more intensive Spotlight, the search on Yosemite has been buffed to scour both the web and local files. By pulling both local and remote content into its searches, some users may find themselves spending a lot less time posing questions to Apple rival Google.
Handoffs across the gridiron
As best friends, Yosemite and iOS 8's relationship extends beyond trading phone calls and text messages. The Handoff feature enables users to pause work on document on a Mac (one from 2012 or newer) and pick it up from the same spot on an iOS device, or vice versa, as long as the devices are near one another.
Screen sharing via Messages, proof work is under way
It's probably one of the most useful and seldom-used technical support features. The nature of sharing views of desktops with a stranger can be a bit nerve wracking, but not so much when the other party is a familiar person. Yosemite users can share their desktops with whoever the want to, via Messages, as long as the other person has Messages, too. Click Details and select the screen-sharing icon.
Close iOS tabs remotely, just because
Just in case there's a tab left open on an iPad or an iPhone that's been left on a desk in a room full of coworkers that needs to stay secret, Yosemite users can close iOS tabs remotely.
Dark Mode, because the night is dark and full of errors...
When the sun goes to bed and there's still much work to do, Dark mode makes it a little easier for Yosemite users to carry on. Found under the General section of the Preferences menu, Dark mode dims the dock and translucent menu bar from light gray to black to lessen the strain on the eyes.
