Category: apple

The big fruit company from Cupertino.

Mac OS X 10.4.3 is out

Posted on by david

Mac OS X 10.4.3 showed up today. According to Software Update:

The 10.4.3 Update delivers overall improved reliability and compatibility for Mac OS X v10.4 and is recommended for all users.

It includes fixes for:

  • AFP, SMB/CIFS, NFS and FTP network file services
  • AirPort and Bluetooth wireless access
  • Core Graphics, Core Audio, Core Image, and RAW camera support
  • disc recording when creating and burning media
  • .Mac sync services
  • Spotlight indexing and searching
  • Dashboard widgets: Dictionary, Flight Tracker, Stickies, and Unit Converter
  • Address Book, AppleScript, Automator, Dictionary, Font Book, iCal, iSync, Mail, and Safari applications
  • Disk Utility, Keychain Access, Migration Assistant, and Software Update
  • compatibility with third party applications and devices
  • previous standalone security updates

For detailed information on this Update, please visit this website: http://www.info.apple.com/kbnum/n301984

For detailed information on Security Updates, please visit this website: http://www.info.apple.com/kbnum/n61798

Thanks Scott!

Slight Divergence

Posted on by david

I’ve taken a short hiatus from WebObjects development to write some utilities for the local IT group. They need to automate system setup and deployment, so I’ve been working with AppleScript Studio, NetRestore, and radmind to facilitate that.

I’ve added a couple of new categories and I’ll be posting some articles to help me keep track of the things I’ve figured out.

To start with just a couple of cool things I’ve found useful:

  • fseventer is a very cool application that uses the same kernel additions in Tiger that make Spotlight possible. It provides a graphical real-time view of file access that makes it a treat to investigate where various system settings are stored.
  • In Panther and later there is a Objective-C to Perl bridge that makes manipulating .plist files very easy. This set of MacDevCenter articles give a very good overview.

Mighty Mouse

Posted on by david

mmouse.jpg

Leave it to Apple to come out with a multi-button mouse without multiple buttons. Instead they use sensors under the skin of the mouse to detect where the click occured. In addition there are “force-sensing” buttons to detect if you squeeze the mouse and a scroll ball that tracks vertical and horizontal scrolling.

It’s wired and at CAN$ 65 it’s a little expensive. But that’s OK, I’ve got a pair of scissors and absolutely no aversion to debt.

Printing from Classic in Tiger

Posted on by david

I don’t know why I didn’t see this elsewhere, but this is pretty sweet. According to this hint on macosxhints, in Tiger your Classic environment should be able to print to any printer you have configured in OS X… without needing to install Classic drivers, use the Chooser, or have AppleTalk enabled.

Did I mention that was sweet?