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Yesterday, Steve Jobs announced that the new Apple operating system is going to be called “Snow Leopard.” As a Mac loyalist, I was struck by the name’s vulnerabilities. There’s no doubt that snow leopards are gorgeous creatures, but the cats carry a lot of baggage. If the Mac brand had asked veteran political strategist and spin-master Karl Rove to vet the creature a little more, I’m sure these are a few of the facts he would have pointed out:
1) Snow Leopards aren’t leopards.
If the new operating system was supposed to be the evolution of Mac’s Leopard, then they got this wrong. In truth, snow leopards are much more closely related to cheetahs. The weak snow leopard/leopard connection could cause problems if brought up in Microsoft attack ads.
2) They can’t roar.
While snow leopards are deadly creatures that can jump 50 feet in one pounce (seriously, 50 feet!), their inability to speak up shows why they never would have landed the opening frame gig in MGM movies. Like their relatives the cheetah, their communication is limited to snarling sounds.
3) They’re the symbol of the Girl Scout Association of Kyrgyzstan.
The Girl Scouts aren’t the only group snow leopards are affiliated with. The creatures have a long history of posing for flags and patches. They’ve also been used on emblems for the Tatars, the Kazakhs, and they even appeared on an old seal given to Soviet mountaineers who had climbed the USSR’s highest peaks. The association with cookies and little girls, however, is arguably the strongest (and possibly the coolest).
4) They hide behind their tails.
When snow leopards curl up and take shelter, they often use their bushy tails to protect their faces and most vulnerable areas from the cold.
That said, I’m sure Mr. Jobs’ people know exactly what they’re doing, and that Apple’s new OS will do fine. In fact, the creatures are pretty darn cute, and just typing the words snow leopard over and over leaves me hankering for an upgrade.
Comments (12)
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Snow Leopards are also one of the most endangered species in the world. I remember a few months back in my WWF catalog [I was "adopting" endangered animals as xmas presents] it saying that there is only a very small amount still living in the wild. Maybe Jobs is trying to put more attention on environmental issues?
posted by C.Bukowski. on 6-10-2008 at 12:15 pm
–”Maybe Jobs is trying to put more attention on environmental issues?”–
No, he’s just running out of big cats.
posted by EV on 6-10-2008 at 12:25 pm
It would be nice, however, if he would use this naming as an opportunity to shed some light on them. But maybe he’s leaving it to Mangesh?
posted by kate on 6-10-2008 at 2:32 pm
Having a snow leopard as a symbol sur beats the heck out of purple pansies or a pine tree for Girl Scouts! Knowing nothing more than tha makes me totally want to go meet the Kyrgyz Girl Scouts!
posted by Larriann on 6-10-2008 at 9:18 pm
Steve should start using small cats then. Go Ocelot 1.0!
posted by Danny on 6-11-2008 at 6:58 am
Snow Leopards are not closely related to Cheetahs. The are in the same subfamily as leopards. Cheetahs has their own genus and different from most big cats.
posted by Mike on 6-11-2008 at 2:26 pm
They are notoriously hard to observe in the wild, disappearing into their environment (behind their bushy tail) and incredibly fast and stealthy. I sorta like the analogy: perfect for an update but not a full release.
posted by Raoul on 6-11-2008 at 4:12 pm
It would be completely awesome if Apple took a cue from MacHeist (aside from the new iPhone ad), and designate something like 5% of gross (or net?) sales for the quarter in which they launch Snow Leopard.
I’d pay off my lingering debt in jiff to buy a new Mac and “contribute.”
posted by ErichD on 6-11-2008 at 6:35 pm
I once, many moons ago, worked at a zoo which had a snow leopard breeding program. They are beautiful animals native to the Himalayas. I once saw a zoologist give them some cat nip. It was fun to watch. They could roll a bowling ball as a house cat rolls a toy.
posted by gus on 6-11-2008 at 8:25 pm
“They hide behind their tails”
You say that like it’s a bad thing. Sounds to me like it’s a smart thing–using what they have to protect themselves.
But does any of this really matter?
posted by Tim on 6-13-2008 at 1:33 pm
I had a chance to visit The Ski Channel which is having all sorts of contests where you can win 3 nights in Crested Butte, lift tickets, and much more.
posted by mike on 6-28-2008 at 11:10 am
I’ve heard there are some wildlife groups trying to get Apple to do more stuff with the actual S.L.’s lol. I don’t know- people are saying it’s good PR for Apple- they should jump on that.
posted by mike on 11-3-2009 at 2:35 pm