In addition to all the great new software for iPhones and iPads such as an update to iOS 5.1 and a brand new version of iPhoto for iPads, Apple has also issued updates to the Mac versions of iPhoto, iTunes, GarageBand and Xcode as well.

The update to iPhoto sees it hit version 9.2.2 and brings security and stability updates as well as the ability to delete images from Photo Stream. The latest version of iTunes, now at 10.6, adds the ability to play 1080p HD movies and TV shows from the iTunes Store.

For Garage Band, the update brings it to version 6.0.5 and according to Apple “…supports general compatibility and addresses overall stability and performance.” These including the following:

• Updates compatibility with GarageBand for iOS projects
• Fixes a playback issue with the GarageBand Lesson preview videos
• Corrects issues with some software instruments triggering incorrect or stuck notes

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With all the speculation and hype surrounding Apple’s iPhone, iPad and iOS, it’s nice to actually get some concrete details about the company’s next version of the OS that powers its Mac hardware. That’s right, the cat-themed software is back and this time around it’s called “Mountain Lion.”

Apple today released details of the next version of its Mac OS, also known by the more technical name as Mac OS X 10.8, and they are going to be good news for those of you wishing your Mac was more like your iPhone or iPad. Some of the highlight of the new release include the arrival of iMessage on the Mac as well as Notification Center.

Other new features include Game Center integration, AirPlay mirroring, enhanced iCloud support and a number of redesigned apps. A developer preview of OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion will be released on Thursday of this week and the updated OS will become available to end users this summer.

For more, check out the full press release from Apple after the break.

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You have to give Apple credit, they do release updates to their OS X and iOS operating systems pretty frequently. And when they do, the updates usually fix quite a few issues.

Case in point this week is the company’s most recent update to Mac OS X, the other operating system that doesn’t run the iPhone or iPad. This latest update brings the software to version 10.7.3 and sports a slew of enhancements and bug fixes.

Here’s a list of the major ones:

• Add Catalan, Croatian, Greek, Hebrew, Romanian, Slovak, Thai, and Ukrainian language support
• Address issues when using smart cards to log into OS X
• Address compatibility issues with Microsoft Windows file sharing
• Address an issue printing Microsoft Word documents that use markup
• Address a graphics performance issue after sleep on some earlier iMacs that use ATI graphics
• Resolve a Wi-Fi connection issue when waking from sleep
• Address an issue that may prevent Safari from opening before joining a wireless network
• Fix a potential issue authenticating to an SMB DFS share
• Include RAW image compatibility for additional digital cameras

OS X 10.7.3 is available now via Software Update. However, we recommend downloading the larger, but usually far more stable, Combo Updater and using that. It usually works out better.

Well, that didn’t take very long, did it? Today Apple released an update to its operating system for Macs which brings it to version 10.7.1. The 10.7.1 update is recommended for all users running OS X Lion and includes general operating system fixes that enhance the stability and compatibility of your Mac, including fixes that:

• Address an issue that may cause the system to become unresponsive when playing a video in Safari
• Resolve an issue that may cause system audio to stop working when using HDMI or optical audio out
• Improve the reliability of Wi-Fi connections
• Resolve an issue that prevents transfer of your data, settings, and compatible applications to a new Mac running OS X Lion

For detailed information on this update, please visit this website: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4764.

We’re going to try it right now on a few of The Flickcast’s Macs. We’ll let you know if we run into any issues. Meantime, if you take the plunge, let us know how it goes in the comments.

I don’t know about you out there at other companies but we here at The Flickcast are a diverse group located in several different locations across the U.S., Canada and more. One of the ways we keep in touch and get things done is with the great innovation called Skype.

We’ve been using it for quite some time and are pleased to report that it has been updated to version 5.3 for Mac OS X. The update adds support for Apple’s latest OS X Lion operating system as well as HD video chat. Users will now be able to send and receive HD-quality video using their built-in Mac webcams or other HD-capable cameras external cameras. Nice.

According to Skype, HD will work best for those with internet connections that can maintain at least 1.5Mbps upload/download throughput. So those of you on dialup are out of luck. And really, why are you still on dialup anyway? Time to move on. The software is compatible with with OS X Leopard and later versions of Apple’s OS.

As expected, Apple today updated it’s best selling laptop, the MacBook Air, and its smallest Mac, the Mac Mini. In addition, the company released the latest version of its operating system, known as Mac OS X 10.7 Lion, for devices that are not iPhones, iPads or iPods.

The MacBook Airs now feature Intel i5 or i7 processors as well as better storage options, a Thunderbolt port and a backlit keyboard. The Mac Minis also feature i5 or i7, Thunderbolt and similar new specs bringing them in the line with the rest of Apple’s current hardware.

Here’s the specs on the new Mac computers:

• Mac mini Base model: 2.3GHz CPU with 2GB of RAM, and 500GB of storage
• Mac mini: 2.5GHz CPU with 4GB of RAM, and, 500GB of storage
• Mac mini server: 2.0GHz CPU, 4GB of RAM, and two 500GB hard drives
• MacBook Air 11″: Base model: 1.6GHz CPU, 2GB of RAM, and 64GB of storage
• MacBook Air 11″: 1.6GHz CPU, 4GB of RAM, and 128GB of storage
• MacBook Air 11″: Built to order model: 1.8GHz CPU, 4GB of RAM, and 256GB of storage
• MacBook Air 13″: Base model: 1.7GHz CPU, 4GB of RAM, 128GB of storage
• MacBook Air 13″: 1.7GHz CPU, 4GB of RAM, 256GB of storage
• MacBook Air 13″: Built to order: 1.8GHz CPU, 4GB of RAM, 256GB of storage

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It’s gold baby! That’s right, the next version of Apple’s flagship operating system for Macs has just gone Gold and been seeded to developers.

The next version, known as OS X 10.7 Lion, is now at build number 11A511 and the download is available immediately on Apple’s developer website. Of course, that’s only if you’ve paid your $99.00 to be an Apple OS X developer. If not, no Lion for you — at least not yet.

Due to this being the GM and barring any major glitches with it, we should expect it to be the final version before the update is released in the wild for everyone.

That launch will be sometime next month with the update being available in Apple’s Mac App store. It will cost $29.00, which seems pretty reasonable.

With today’s update to Apple’s Mac OS X software (aka Snow Leopard), it just may be the last one we ever see. With OS X 10.7 (aka Lion) set to ship in the next few months, Snow Leopard may end up finishing its life at version 10.6.8, which is the update number released today.

This update addresses the following:

• Enhance the Mac App Store to get your Mac ready to upgrade to Mac OS X Lion

• Resolve an issue that may cause Preview to unexpectedly quit

• Improve support for IPv6

• Improve VPN reliability

• Identify and remove known variants of Mac Defender

The combo updater for 10.6.8 is available from Apple and is 1.01 GB. You can also get the delta updater by going to Software Update on your individual Mac.

For more information about the update, head on over to Apple’s website.

This morning at a keynote event held to kick off its Worldwide Developer Conference and hosted by Apple CEO Steve Jobs the company announced details of several of its upcoming products. These included the much rumored iCloud service as well as the upcoming updates to iOS, called iOS 5, and Mac OS X, code named Lion.

Here’s the scoop and highlights on the announcements:

iCloud

According to Steve Jobs: “Keeping these devices in sync is driving us crazy. We’ve got a great solution to this problem… We’re going to demote the PC and the Mac to just be a device. We’re going to move the digital hub, the center of your digital life, into the cloud.”

• Store all content in the cloud and push it to all devices – “iTunes in the Cloud”

• Mobile Me Out, iCloud In – 100% Free

• iTunes Match – Will look for your songs and match them in iTunes – $25.00/Year

• Backup – Your device will backup important info once daily. To restore or with new device, just sign in and all info will be there

• Photo Stream – Photos (first 5000) uploaded to cloud and available on all devices and Apple TV

• Documents – iWork app sync files with the cloud so available on all your devices. Will still sync Mail, Contacts and Calendar as well

• 5 GB Free Storage

• Developer Beta Available Today. iTunes in the Cloud will run on iOS 4.3 today

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As if new, updated MacBook Pro computers weren’t enough, Apple also decided that today was the day to unveil details on the next version of its flagship Mac operating system OS X. The update, known as OS X 10.7 (aka Lion) is now available to developers. Hopefully, that means a release to the rest of us is only a short time away.

In a press release today touting the developer release, Apple writes that Lion “takes some of the best ideas from iPad and brings them back to the Mac.” Some of the new features we can expect with Lion include Mission Control, Launchpad, and multitouch gestures as well as several others including:

• New Mail application (thank goodness): widescreen layout like the the iPad and Conversations, which automatically groups related messages into one easy to read timeline, more powerful search and support for Microsoft Exchange 2010
• AirDrop: copy files wirelessly from one Mac to another with no setup
• Versions: automatically saves successive versions of your document as you create it, and gives you an easy way to browse, edit and even revert to previous versions
• Resume: brings your apps back exactly how you left them when you restart your Mac or quit and relaunch an app
• Auto Save: automatically saves your documents as you work
• New FileVault: provides high performance full disk encryption for local and external drives, and the ability to wipe data from your Mac instantaneously
• Mac OS X Lion Server: makes setting up a server easier than ever and adds support for managing Mac OS X Lion, iPhone, iPad and iPod touch devices

Apple is expected to release the Lion sometime during the Summer. In the meantime, check out the full press release detailing the update after the break.

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We know, we know, Apple announced all this new cool stuff yesterday. Sadly, we were having some technical problems here at the site yesterday and we didn’t get a chance to bring you the news about what the company announced. So, in the interest of thoroughness, here’s what Apple had to say. Get your credit cards ready.

First up is the new version of Apple’s Mac OS X operating system. This version, known as OS X 10.7 or Lion, sports the following new features and enhancements:

• Multitouch gesture support
• App Store: Mac apps available in a centralized location with a payment system, 1-click purchasing, customer reviews, screenshots, etc
• Launchpad – app home screens for OS X
• Full-screen apps
• Auto-save and auto-resume within apps
• Mission Control: unification of full-screen apps, Expose, Spaces and Dashboard

Lion will launch this coming Summer, though no specific release date was provided. The Mac App Store will be available within 90 days, however, as an addition to Snow Leopard.

Next, let’s turn to Apple’s suite of applications called iLife. As expected, the suite was updated to give us the new iLife ’11.

Here’s the specs:

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We’ll give you three guesses what will be announced at this event Apple will be holding on October 20th and the first two don’t count. That’s right, if you can’t tell from the obvious animal peeking out from behind the Apple logo what the company’s got up its sleeve, you need to turn in your amateur detective decoder ring.

Having a bit of trouble? Okay, we’ll give you some hints. That animal, it’s a lion. So, that means the next version of OSX will probably be called Lion because, in case you re not aware, Steve Jobs likes cats and all of the version were named after some sort of cat. The most recent, of course, being Snow Leopard.

So, it follows that the next one, aka OS X 10.7,  will be called by a cat name as well. Oh, we can also assume this event will focus quite a bit on the Mac itself, at least judging from the tag line “Back to the Mac.”

Whatever happens, we’ll bring you all the news. In the meantime, let the predictions begin. . .