The cat's out of the bag, folks. Apple has just sent out a press wire announcing that their much-awaited Mac OS X version 10.5 Leopard is now being readied for sale this Friday, October 26, at an expected retail price of US$ 129. Mac OS X Leopard 10.5 is further expected to host a total of 300 new features - we've listed some of the more interesting ones below:

• Stacks: A new way to easily access files from the Dock
• Redesigned Finder: Lets users quickly browse and share files between multiple Macs
• Quick Look: A new way to instantly see files without opening an application
• Spaces: A new feature used to create groups of applications and instantly switch between them
• Time Machine: An effortless way to automatically back up everything on a Mac.
• Improved Parental Controls
• The complete Boot Camp release: Previously available only as a beta, making it possible to run Windows natively on Intel-based Macs
• Web Clip: Bringing anything that a user wants from a web page to Dashboard as a live widget
• New Photo Booth features: helping users create animated iChat buddy icons or fun effects and backdrops with still or video images
• An enhanced Dictionary with Wikipedia built in: Allows users to access up-to-date information
• A newly updated iCal with multi-user calendaring based on the new CalDAV standard
• An updated version of Front Row, making it even easier to play music or watch movies, TV shows and photos on a Mac using the ultra-simple Apple Remote.
  

Mac OS X Leopard 10.5 will require at least 51 2MB of RAM, and is designed to run on any Mac computer with an Intel, PowerPC G5, or G4 (867 Mhz or faster) processor. Set your calendars, and double-check with your resident Apple stores.