Adobe today has posted Lightroom Beta 2 for Mac, the latest development release of its upcoming application for professional photographers. Beta 2 is a Universal Binary, which means it contains native code for both PowerPC and Intel processors. The release notes summarize the changes:

• Now available as a Universal Binary for compatibility with Intel- based Apple hardware
• Crop and Straighten tools included in the Develop module
• Ability to add music to slideshows
• White balance support for the Nikon D2X, D2Hs and D50
  cameras
• Ability to create hierarchical keyword sets
• XMP Import and Export capabilities. (Please consult Known Issues list for details)
• Improved Edit in Photoshop capabilities
• Improved metadata handling

The software is a free download from the Adobe Labs web site. Ultimately, the software is expected to ship for both Windows and Mac platforms, and a beta version for Windows is also planned for release later in the extended public beta period. The PhotoshopNews web site has published additional information about Lightroom Beta 2.