OS X Mountain Lion Upgrade 2012 and its Download Requirements

Apple's latest operating system, the OS X Mountain Lion, will be coming out soon, but before you go out and buy the new interface, here are some things you should know. Based on requirements released by Apple, not everyone will be able to enjoy the fruits of Cupertino labor.

The OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion is expected to be released July 25, a day after Apple discloses its earnings report.

When the OS X Lion (10.7) was released in 2011, it was made available only through a download from the Mac App Store, just like Mou. And while most Macs had this, some of the computers did not actually have the technical specs required to run the new operating system. This left some users with an OS X that didn't work, and $30 down the drain.

Apple hopes to rectify this by allowing the new OS X Mountain Lion update to scan your computer to make sure it can even run the software. The OS X Mountain Lion will require an Intel Mac with OS X 10.6.8 or newer, 2 GB of ram, and 8 GB of hard drive space.

Here are the upgrade steps from Apple's website:

Step 1:

Your Mac must be one of the following models:

- iMac (Mid 2007 or newer)

- MacBook (Late 2008 Aluminum, or 2009 or newer)

- MacBook Pro (Mid/Late 2007 or newer)

- MacBook Air (Late 2008 or newer)

- Mac mini (Early 2009 or newer)

- Mac Pro (Early 2008 or newer)

- Xserve (Early 2009)

If you are running Lion, you can find out if your current Mac qualifies by clicking the Apple icon at the top left of your screen, choosing About This Mac, then clicking More Info.

Step 2:

While you have the About This Mac window open, check what version of OS X your Mac is running.

If you are running Lion (10.7.x), you're ready to update to Mountain Lion. Go to Step 3. If you are running Snow Leopard (10.6.x), update to the latest version of OS X Snow Leopard before you purchase OS X Mountain Lion from the Mac App Store. Click the Apple icon and choose Software Update to install Snow Leopard v10.6.8, the latest version.

Step 3:

Open the Mac App Store from your Dock to buy and download Mountain Lion. Then follow the onscreen instructions to install it. If you don't have broadband access, you can visit any Apple Retail Store to get help with downloading.