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However the list improvements to the OS go far and beyond those normally associated with just an garden-variety upgrade.

For example Snow Leopard will be optimised for multicore processors and will support OpenCL (Open Computing Language) so that developers can borrow computing power from the graphics processor and apply it to general, non-graphics applications.

The upgraded operating system will also boost the limit on addressable memory to the theoretical limit of 16TB, introduce QuickTime X, which will be a major update of Apple's media player that is based on technology used in the iPhone and it will also super-charge the Safari browser by adding the latest and fastest implementation of JavaScript.

According to Apple, Snow Leopard will also be smaller, making it even more efficient for users, and giving them back valuable hard drive space for their music and photos and other data.

And on the enterprise side, a market Apple is now looking to own, Snow Leopard will include built-in support for Microsoft Exchange 2007 in Apple's own Mail, iCal and Address Book applications.

So the with Snow Leopard officially announced and due out in 12 months, one thing has become crystal clear: the next version of Mac OS X is aimed squarely at the business market.