Apple on Friday released a “gold master” build of Lion to developers, providing a clue that it will ship the new operating system shortly.
“Gold master” (GM) is a label some developers use — Microsoft calls it “release to manufacturing,” or RTM — for software that has been completed and presumably is ready to send to duplicators and distributors.
In Apple’s case, however, Mac OS X 10.7, aka Lion, will not need to be burned onto DVDs, packaged in boxes and shipped to retail stores because it will be available only as a download from the Mac App Store.
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Sony’s ‘Welcome Back’ campaign may have drawn to a close a bit early, but the PlayStation Network won’t make its full return to Japan until later this week. As of July 6th, Japanese gamers will once again be able to access the PlayStation Store and Qriocity, bringing an end to a nearly three-month suspension enacted after April’s widespread data breach. These services have already been reintroduced across other parts of the globe, but Sony encountered notably stiffer resistance in its homeland, where authorities demanded assurance of the PSN’s security before allowing it to relaunch within their borders.