Apple - iOS 5 - 200+ new features for iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch.

Apple's major overhaul of its iOS operating system arrives today, but amidst the excitement comes a major concern: Will iOS 5 function properly on older model iPhones? Or will there be an added circle of bricked-iPhone hell comparable to what happened in 2010 when the iPhone 3G took on iOS 4?

Fortunately for those who haven't pre-ordered the iPhone 4S or sold their old iPhones, iOS 5 isn't a destroyer--at least it didn't cripple my iPhone 4, which has been running the Gold Master Beta of iOS 5 since last week. So rest easy; you have a lot to look forward to with iOS 5. First we'll recap the bad news, though.

What You Don't Get

A few great features of iOS 5 require Apple's new dual-core A5 processor, which is only packed into the iPhone 4S and the iPad 2, such as:

Siri: If you're smitten with Apple's futuristic voice-operated personal assistant, you'll need the iPhone 4S: Siri requires that model's dual-core A5 processor. But Siri may not be your thing, and if it is, there are several Siri alternatives that work great on older-model iPhones.

AirPlay Mirroring:AirPlay Mirroring allows users to project what's on their iPhone 4S or iPad 2 onto the big screen, either through an AirPlay-connected HDTV or an Apple TV 2. If you want the convenience of AirPlay but don't want to upgrade, the Lifehacker site has great alternatives and a guide to making everything in your home AirPlay compatible.

What iOS 5 Does Bring to Older iPhones

But who needs Siri and AirPlay Mirroring when there are so many other features available in iOS5? Here are some:

Apple iCloud options in iOS 5iCloud: Back up your calendar, email, iWork documents (sorry, Microsoft Office), phone contacts and more, and access them all on your iOS 5 device, your OS X Lion-, Windows Vista- or Windows 7-equipped desktop, or via Apple's slick Web interface.

iCloud also remembers your past App Store purchases, so deleted apps or songs can be re-downloaded easily. Each iCloud account comes with 5GB of free storage; larger lockers cost $20 for 10GB, $40 for 20GB or $100 for 50GB, and can be purchased right from your phone. Most syncing requires a Wi-Fi connection and that your iPhone be plugged into a power source, so it's not completely wireless, but close enough for most.

iTunes Match: Apple's answer to the cloud music craze streams your iTunes library to your phone, so that eventually, you may be able to ditch hefty hard drives on your iPhone and access your entire song library remotely.

Photo editing in iOS 5 on an iPhone 4Photo Editing: The new photo-editing capabilities that are built into the iPhone's standard camera are minimalist but workable. Now, when you click the Edit button in your Camera Roll, you can crop, reduce red eye, or auto-enhance an entire photo. These features aren't nearly as in depth as other photo editing apps, such as Adobe's free Photoshop Express, but are great for touching up a picture on the go.

iOS 5 camera lockscreenQuick Camera Access and Grid Shots: You now have instant access to the default camera by double-clicking the home button on your iPhone's lock screen. You can also use the volume up button as a shutter and use a grid overlay to stage your photos.

iMessage: Your iOS 5 friends can now reduce their text message plans (if your carrier hasn't eliminated that option, like AT&T did) by using Apple's BlackBerry Messenger look-alike that functions essentially the same as SMS but doesn't work against your reserves and can include "read" receipts.

Safari options with Twitter in iOS 5Twitter: If you're not already a Twitter user, iOS 5 may make you one. Twitter is everywhere on iOS 5, including on Maps and in the Safari options menu, and it looks gorgeous. When you're setting iOS 5 up, Apple even asks if you'd like to download the official Twitter app. Sorry, Facebook.

Shortcuts in iOS 5 on an iPhone 4Short Messages: Under General > Keyboard > Shortcuts, you can save time by adding your own shortcuts, such as brb for "Be right back."

The Glitches

What's an iOS update without a few glitches? Well, iOS 5 may be the first major update I've seen that's almost flawless. I've only noticed slight lag in album art graphics when changing songs from the lock screen in my short tests--and that's it.

But that's when installed on an iPhone 4. I did not test it with an iPhone 3GS, so I'm eager to hear any complaints or observations from those users. Please comment.

Mass Shooting Seal beach California 9 Victims

Seal Beach police said the death toll from the salon shooting has risen to eight people. A ninth victim is in critical condition at Long Beach Memorial Medical Center.

"This could be one of our greatest tragedies," Police Sgt. Steve Bowles said.

The gunman opened fire inside the crowded salon Wednesday, littering the shop with bodies. Police said he acted alone, although investigators said they were still scrambling to piece together what triggered such violence.

Full coverage: Deadly shooting at Seal Beach beauty salon

Eyewitnesses said that he was targeting his ex-wife and that the two were involved in a custody dispute.

The alleged shooter was apprehended only a few blocks from the Salon Meritage, the Pacific Coast Highway shop that was bustling with customers and stylists when the shooting erupted.

One of the victims was apparently the owner of the salon, Randy Fannin, a relative said.

“Randy is dead,” said the owner’s niece, Tami Scarcella. “Randy is dead for sure.”

A middle-aged Anaheim woman who identified herself as Cindy said she was sitting in the chair getting her hair done by Fannin when a man walked in and started shooting.

“We thought it was maybe firecrackers,” she said. “But he just didn’t stop. Anybody he saw he was shooting.”

“It went boom, boom, boom,” she said, speaking outside the taped-off crime scene. “I was afraid he was going to shoot everybody.”

The afternoon shooting left the normally placid beach town struggling to make sense of the carnage. A policeman spokesman said the shooting had put the city and its small police force on unfamiliar ground.

Bowles said the crime scene was horrific. “There are victims throughout the entire salon," he said.

Witnesses and survivors alike were taken to a nearby apartment complex to settle their nerves. Others milled outside the police lines at the neighborhood shopping center, recounting what had happened.

Marissa Pei said she had been at the gym earlier in the day with a friend before bumping into her again outside the shopping center. She was sobbing.

" ''My friend is dead. My friend is dead,’ ” Pei said the woman told her. “I held her.”

Pei said she also spoke to a man married to someone who was at the salon.

“’My baby. She’s half of me,’ ” Pei recalled him saying. “ 'Please, God, don’t let her be dead.’ ”

Dion Martini, a manicurist at a nearby salon, said: "This is a shock to the whole community. All of us around here have worked together at one time or another."

Martini was busy with a client herself when she heard sirens and helicopters and knew something was wrong. When she learned a shooting had unfolded in a salon much like hers, she struggled to contain her emotions.

"I've been having chills and had to hold back tears," she said. "I just can't imagine anybody being that sick to go in and do that to anybody."

Dr. James Blake, a dentist, was in his 5th street office doing bridge work on a patient, as his hygienists cleaned other patients’ teeth, when he heard what he later learned were gunshots coming from the parking lot outside.

“Then there was a pause and a few more gunshots,” said Blake in an interview with The Times. “I didn’t see the shooter.”

Alarmed, Blake said his staff immediately locked the door to the office until police arrived.

The shooting “definitely was very unexpected” for Seal Beach, said Blake, who’s had his office in the shopping center since 1992।