Apart from releasing a developer preview of OS X 10.8 "Mountain Lion", Apple has also released Messages - the successor to iChat.

If you install Messages, it replaces iChat although Apple has assured that iChat services will continue to work.

If you've noticed a "netsession" process running on your Mac then there's a simple explanation for it, especially if you're a Netflix user. Like many video-on-demand websites, Netflix uses Akamai NetSession to ensure that streaming of movies is smooth and reliable. This effectively means that your Mac's resources are being used in a P2P network to deliver high quality video content. Some users may or may not be entirely comfortable with this.

Akamai has servers around the world and content is delivered to you by the closest one to where you are. In addition to this though, Akamai NetSession uses P2P technology to deliver content from other users watching the same content as you in order to spread the data burden.

NetSession isn't supposed to consume many physical resources and Akamei claim that it poses no security risks:

The Akamai NetSession Interface captures and stores about the same information as a standard web server. The Akamai NetSession Interface is made up of various networking protocols designed to manage the distribution of files over IP networks and is solely used for that function. And just to be clear: The Akamai NetSession Interface is networking software only. Absolutely zero personal information is *ever* captured, shared or stored via the Akamai NetSession Interface.

However, even if you're not a Netflix user, it's possible that NetSession has been installed onto your Mac via an Adobe installer. Adobe uses Akamei Download Manager to deliver large software downloads and it uses NetSession to do this.

The other thing to be aware of is that NetSession may also show-up under a different process name on your Mac such as "rsmac" followed by a number - see a discussion here on this.

If you don't want any Akamei related products on your Mac, go to "/Applications/Akamai/" and simply delete the folder. If that doesn't work, there are two alternative removal methods suggested by Akamai:

Macintosh Alternative Uninstall

Go to the command line of your computer. In the Application -> Utilities folder, double-left click Terminal. Go to the Akamai NetSession Interface installation folder, which is normally /Applications/Akamai/ Type the command AdminTool uninstall -force Press the Enter (Return) key to complete the command.

Alternative Method Using Launch Unload This alternative method may be used, for example, if you deleted AdminTool without running the AdminTool uninstall steps described just above. This uninstall involves required steps of manually stopping the client, then removing the installation directory, the automatic startup script, and the preferences panel.

Go to the command line of your computer. In the Application -> Utilities folder, double-left click Terminal. Go to the Akamai NetSession Interface installation folder, which is normally /Applications/Akamai/. Type the following lines, and after typing each line, press the Enter (Return) key to complete the command: launchctl unload ~/Library/LaunchAgents/com.akamai.client.plist rm -rf /Applications/Akamai rm -rf ~/Library/LaunchAgents/com.akamai.client.plist rm -rf ~/Library/PreferencePanes/AkamaiNetSession.prefPane If the NetSession client isn't stopped when you have gone through these steps, restart your computer to complete the operation.

If you're just unsure about whether to allow Akamai NetSession to run, read the detailed description about exactly what it does on Akamei's website.

When we migrate from one operating system to another, a common mistake is to try and use the new OS in the same way as the old one. Therefore, we've compiled series to help new Mac users get to grips with the basics of OS  X:

Windows and Mac OS X, now simply called “OS X” by Apple, have common elements, but they also have a lot of differences. For these reasons, each operating system has its defenders and detractors.

This is a short introduction as to what you’ll find when you start with OS X and the equivalent functions in Windows.

Desktop

Like Windows, Mac OS X starts with a boot screen and a log-on screen if you have one or more user accounts protected with a password. When you access your account, you’ll see the Mac OS X Desktop - a familiar concept in Windows. But that’s where the similarities end.

The main elements in the Desktop are the task bar and the Dock. In OS X, the most important element is the Dock, situated at the bottom of screen. If you want, you can put it on the left or right side of your screen. In the Dock you’ll find direct links to OS X apps like Finder, Bin and System Preferences.

The second important element in OS X Desktop is the task bar, at the top of the screen. This is divided in three areas: an Apple icon, a menu with OS X information, software updates, system preferences, most recent documents and Mac shutdown or reboot. You'll also find menu drop-downs dedicated to the app that you are using at any one time.

Fans of handy app and folder launcher Quicksilver will be pleased to hear that it has now been updated to work with Lion.

Despite the introduction of integrated search Spotlight in OS X, Quicksilver remains a very popular application with Mac users. If you've never used it, Quicksilver allows you to search just about any program, folder or file with a few keystrokes. You don't have to go searching through your files and you don't have to worry about how your folders are arranged.

The new update also features 40 other new feature additions, fixes and changes including automatic plugin updates.

One of the things that Quicksilver users prefer over Spotlight is that it "learns" from your search requests and recalls those items that you search for most frequently. The other bonus is that unlike Spotlight, Quicksilver can be extended with plugins including everything from dialing a phone number to interacting with iTunes.

Check out Quicksilver on Lion by trying it for yourself here.

One of the biggest changes in Lion is the introduction of iOS like features and greater use of Trackpad gestures instead of mouse movements. If you're completely new to Trackpads, or just use yours like a finger controlled mouse, gestures are basically the same kind of hand movements and finger strokes that you use to navigate a touchscreen phone.

Gestures allow you to open, close, rotate, move, select, start, change, query simply with a few finger movements. Lion features a new System Preferences pane for Trackpad movements and each gesture has a video tutorial to help you get going. Here's our guide to getting the most our of gesture of Lion:

Tap to click

A classic single click.

Secondary Click

This is the equivalent of a right-click. You can get it by choosing between three options: a touch on the trackpad with two fingers, a single finger touch in the lower right corner of the trackpad, or a single finger touch in the lower left corner of the trackpad.

Search

This probably is the most hidden of all gestures. While surfing the web, with a three finger double click on any word, a pop up appears, showing the definition of the Oxford Dictionary installed by default in the OS. You also get a wide range of synonyms provided by the built-in Thesaurus.

Drag with three fingers

This option is unchecked by default. If selected, by touching the trackpad with three fingers and moving them you'll move the active window around the screen.

With the recent release of the Golden Master version, it looks like Lion will be officially released either this week or next. Before rushing into upgrading though, take a deep breath and consider some of the following to ensure you have no nasty surprises:

• Lion will only upgrade if you're running OS X 10.6.8.
• Your processor must be an Intel Core 2 Duo, Core i3, Core i5, Core i7 or Xeon CPU.
• You must have at least 2GB of RAM.

If you're unsure about these 3 basic requirements, click on the Apple logo in the top left of your screen and select About This Mac:

If all of the above are correct then consider the following:

• Obtain an Apple ID. If you're an iTunes user, you'll already have one but if not, you'll have to create one because for the first time, Apple are releasing a new operating system via the net i.e. The Mac App Store.
• Have a credit card ready. Lion costs $29.99. If you don't have a credit card, you can use an iTunes gift voucher. Note that Apple Gift cards will not work in The Mac App Store.
• Make sure you have at least 8GB of free hard drive space. If you're need to clean some space but can't quite identify which files are taking-up so much room, try DaisyDisk or OmniDiskSweeper (which is now free).
• Backup your hard drive. If something should go wrong with the installation of Lion, it's essential that you have a backup of your data. Time Machine comes free with OS X and is ideal for this or alternatively, Super Duper! is another excellent backup tool.
• Lion doesn't support PPC Macs so Rosetta Apps won't work with it. If you're running older versions (usually 5 years or more old) of any of the following and can't afford to upgrade them to an Intel version, don't install Lion just yet as they either won't work or you will experience problems with them: Creative Suite, Quicken 2007, Microsoft Office 2008, Rosetta Stone Language Software, Freehand and Appleworks. For a breakdown of which major apps are and aren't compatible with Lion, check here.
• Have some updated Printer Drivers handy. Since some older printer drivers require Rosetta to work, you may find that your printer doesn't work with Lion. You should be able to find updated drivers on the developer website although if the printer is really old, you'll be out of luck.
• Be extra cautious if you use Apple Mail or Aperture. Both applications are particularly sensitive to OS changes as was illustrated with Mail when Snow Leopard arrived. It may be worth waiting at least a few weeks before upgrading to Lion if you rely on either or both and can't afford to waste time re-configuring them.
• Throw away your Magic Mouse and buy a Magic Trackpad (about $69). Well, you don't have to throw away your Magic Mouse but you'll probably feel like it if you've ever used a Magic Trackpad. Lion has been optimized to be more like using an iPhone so you'll miss out on many gesture features if you don't have a Magic Trackpad although it's not essential.

If you are concerned about teething issues when upgrading, the best single piece of advice is simply wait! Most of the problems with Snow Leopard were ironed-out within a month-or-so of the release and so if you're not desperate to have Lion on your Mac immediately, take it easy.

There are bound to be issues that arise after upgrading, so if you discover any when Lion is released, let us know in the comments below!

Onyx is one of the best free maintenance tools for Macs. However, I've noticed a bug with it recently that could cause some users to panic. On starting the application and allowing the start-up disk test to run, Onyx displays a "The volume needs to be repaired" warning, referring to the start-up disk.

I did what Onyx asked for. I inserted the Snow Leopard installation disk, held down the "C" key to force the Mac to boot from the disk and then ran Disk Utility to repair the startup disk. After Disk Utility reported everything was fixed correctly, I restarted my Mac, ran Onyx's startup disk test again and got exactly the same error message!

I've tried with both the stable and latest beta release of Onyx and the problem persists. It seems that this is an issue affecting many users, even including people who have just bought new Macs, so it's probably safe to say that it's a bug in the program, and not a sign that your start-up disk is about to fail!

However, it is still highly advisable to back up everything before using Onyx, just in case.

iTunes is a great multimedia application but as I argued a while back, its high time Apple launched a less bloated and intrusive lite version of iTunes for all those that don't want or need all the added extras. If like me, you just want something that plays music without added extras such as Ping, Genius and the iTunes store, then check out some of these alternatives to iTunes on Mac:

Audion

If you've recently switched to Mac from Windows and miss the good old days of simple music players like Winamp, then Audion could be for you. Audion is a simple but powerful music player that makes playing music easy - no music stores, no ads and no bloated syncing options. Simply drag and drop music into it and enjoy. The Audion project is discontinued but fortunately, the developers have decided to make it completely free by providing the serial number for it on their website. There are many other great features in Audion such as an Alarm so you can wake up to your favorite tunes  and lots of different skins which you can use to give Audion a whole new look.

Vox

Vox (formerly known less flatteringly as 'ToolPlayer') is a bit simpler than Audion but definitely slicker in my mind. Vox's biggest asset is that it supports a huge array of formats - it plays almost anything. One extra cool feature is if you're trying to listen to a whole album, Vox will automatically detect that the song you are loading is the first track of the album and load the rest of the tracks at the same time. Vox also now supports Growl alerts for track changes and even scrobbling to Last.fm.