Apple uncages Leopard OS X 10.5

Leopard OS scheduled for release late 2006 or early 2007

The next version of Apple's OS X operating system will be called Leopard and is scheduled for release in late 2006 or early 2007.

Apple chief executive Steve Jobs revealed the news to delegates at the company's World Wide Developer Conference (WWDC) in San Francisco.

The launch is set to coincide with the release of Longhorn, the forthcoming version of Windows, that is scheduled for a late 2006 release.

In a jab at its much larger competitor in the operating systems market, Jobs pointed out that Apple has released five major versions of its OS X since Microsoft unveiled Windows XP.

With the transition from IBM's Power PC to Intel's Pentium processors taking centre stage at the developer event, Jobs said he would not be talking about Leopard for now.

He promised to provide additional details at a later date, most likely at one of the MacWorld Expos or at next year's WWDC.

Silicon Valley Sleuth: Apple & Intel: One hug to rule them all