If you read our blog post the other day about Apple's new called OS 10.4.9, you would have been strongly advised that you should wait at least a couple of days before installing it just so you can steer clear of nasty stuff. Our warning was vindicated by recent news: The update has caused a lot of crashes in the past 24 hours.

Apple owners are complaining of computers hanging up. Allegedly, once you get the update, your Mac responds with an error, then stalls for an eternity. It wouldn't restart and if you try the crude way unplugging your poor computer and turning it back on, it hangs up again. Most victims ended up reinstalling their systems.

There are, however, some Powerbook users who did manage to get through without breaking a sweat. Our advice, wait a few more days, but if the urge is too strong, back everything up just so you don't go back to zilch.

Follow the read URL to see the threads regarding the matter.

 

There are some who believe that the Mac OS X Leopard will be released some time around May. How do they come up with this predicted release date? These are some hints:

• At WWDC 2006 (August 2006) Steve Jobs announced a "Spring 2007" Leopard release
• Apple executives continue to highlight a "Spring 2007" release
• The latest Leopard Build (9A377a) was released to Apple Developer Connection members on March 4, 2007 - buzz in the Apple community is that the release is far from stable and not ready for release
• Steve Jobs's WWDC speech indicated Leopard had several "Top Secret Features" that could not be announced until a later date
• Macworld 2007 (January 2007) didn't disclose any "Top Secret Features"
• No details of any top secret features have emerged since then
• Mac OS X 10.4.9 Tiger has been released

Aside from these, some other factors that say that Leopard will be released in May: Spring begins March 21, and Summer begins June 21. In short, Leopard will be released between these two dates, given the "Spring release". The release dates of Leopard books also happen around May and June.

And lastly, iPhone will be released at the WWDC 2007. The darling of Apple products deserves a strategic release date, and many think that the release of Leopard will not coincide with the release of the iPhone.

It looks like Apple's working hard to patch all the security holes on the Mac OS X. Security Update 2007-003 is currently the seventh one for this year alone, including third party software like Flash Player, OpenSSH and MySQL.

Well, we all know what would happen if you leave your Mac unprotected. That's just like ringing the chow bell and bellowing, "Come and get it!" Vulnerabilities can range from gaining full control of your machine or crashing it, which by all means are both very bad. Here's a quick rundown of which problems Security Update 2007-003 addresses:

• ColorSync
• CoreGraphics
• Crash Reporter
• cups
• Directory Services
• DiskImages Framework
• Flash Player Plug-in
• Foundation
• gnutar
• OpenSSH
• Print Center
• QuickDraw
• sudo

If you have a Mac OS X v10.3.9 and Mac OS X Server v10.3.9, you'll need to download this megapatch. Owners of Mac OS X v10.4.9 can rest easy as this security patch is already installed within their version.

 Apple just came out with the latest update to its operating system called OS 10.4.9, which fixes some compatibility issues as well as added security. The update may not be for everyone, so don't get too excited. Apple recommend it to Power PC users running the OS X tiger and OS 10.4.8 versions.

ZDNet, however, advised everyone to wait a few days before installing the critical update. This is to help users know what they'll be getting into as other people try installing the update. This will protect users from bugs that may come along with the new software.

The update has the following features:

1. RAW camera support
2. Handling of large or malformed images that could cause crashes
- Image capture performance
3. Mouse scrolling and keyboard shortcuts
4. Font handling
5. Playback quality, and bookmarks in DVD Player
6. USB video conferencing cameras for use with iChat
7. Bluetooth devices
8. Browsing AFP servers
9. Apple USB Modem
10. Windows-created digital certificates
11. Open and Print dialogs in applications that use Rosetta on Intel-based Macs
12. Time zone and daylight saving for 2006 and 2007
13. Security updates

We'll update you on how the Macintosh community responds after trying out the new software.

Apple expressed its confidence that its Mac OS X Leopard will stack up very well against Microsoft's fledgling Windows Vista system, saying that the latter is not a threat at all.

"We believe we have the superior operating system on the market today, and this release will only extend that. With the features and functionally and stability and security of Mac OS X, I don't really see Vista as a threat," says Peter Oppenheimer, chief financial officer of Apple.

He pointed out that the high hardware demands of the Vista will either scare off or require users to buy a new computer, which opens an opportunity for their wares to be considered.

He also said that historically, Apple's revenues always see a spike whenever a new OS comes out, even though their product has kept relatively silent this year, with Apple choosing to show it off sparingly in shows and choosing to highlight its other products instead.

A definite release date is also yet to be announced, with Oppenheimer reiterating Apple's "this Spring" answer to the question. Details as to the new features were available and they are as follows:

1. Time Machine- a backup utility which can also be used for data versioning
2. Spaces- a virtual desktop
3. An updated version of the Spotlight search application
4. Boot Camp= a system that allows Windows to run on Macs.

Good news, Apple fanpeople. According to BusinessWeek.com, Prudential Equity Group analyst Jesse Tortora upgraded computer and iPod maker Apple Inc. on Monday. This was due to predictions of an earlier-than-expected launch of both the company's new operating system and Adobe's Creative Suite 3.

Tortora expects Mac OS X Leopard and Creative Suite 3 to be released simultaneously at the end of March. This is about one or two months ahead of Wall Street expectations. While we've just posted a clarification regarding the launch of Adobe's CS3, an early appearance for Leopard will surely be a delight for Apple fans the world over.

Tortora also predicted that Apple will benefit from the launch of the iPhone. The device is slated for a June release in the U.S., followed by Europe in the fourth quarter and in Asia in early 2007. Tortora boosted the Cupertino-based company to "Overweight" from "Neutral Weight" and raised his price target to US$ 105 from US$ 100.

Recently, VMWare has released Fusion Beta 2 which has the "Experimental 3D Acceleration" feature. The feature basically allows you to play certain games that require DirectX 8.1 in Windows XP Service Pack 2 virtual machines(VM). However, Mac users shouldn't rejoice just yet as the game selection is rather limited, and the games that it supports are pretty old.

VMWare has a list of games that are compatible with this current "experimental" feature:

• Aliens vs. Predator Demo
• Breath of Fire IV
• Grand Theft Auto III (NOTE: Set the Display Setup option Trails to OFF.)
• Hitman 2
• Lord of the Realms III
• Max Payne 1
• Max Payne 2
• Need for Speed Porsche Demo
• RalliSport Challenge
• Tony Hawk 3
• X-2 Rolling Demo

Additional features and fixes of note for this release:

• Snapshot feature which enables rollbacks if something goes wrong.
• Experimental support for Mac OS X Leopard (Note: There WILL be support for Mac OS X Leopard in the full release).
• Improved keyboard and mouse support Â? Third-party graphics tablets, keyboards, and mice no longer interfere with keyboard and mouse input.

So far, Fusion Beta 2 seems stable and the added features well thought out. However, it still is in the Beta stage, so you can expect certain bugs or problems to pop up aside from those that are mentioned in the release notes. You can learn more via the Read link below.

 

It came to our attention that Mac OS X has this "Summarize" feature that is very valuable. Quite unfortunately, it's such a waste that only a handful of people notice it. In simple terms, the "Summarize" feature takes a selection of text and generates a very precise summary of the text.

If you know about this already, consider yourself lucky. If not, then this is news for you. Here's how to access the above mentioned feature:

1. Open the program that holds the text you would like to summarize (it doesnÂ?t work on some programs, it works best on Mac programs like Safari, etc., but read below for a tip on how to make it work with any text)
2. Highlight the text that you want to summarize and click the program name you are using in the menu bar.
3. Navigate down to the services selection, and in there you will find Â?SummarizeÂ?.
4. After you click it, a window will instantly pop open with your summary in there. There are a few customizable options such as going from sentences to paragraphs, but it is pretty simple.

Lastly, to those who don't have support services, you can actually copy the text into a TextEdit. It can be found in Spotlight, by the way. Once you've copied it, summarize as you please.

Try this feature. I'm the type of guy who never explores his computer much. My fellow blogger Max F. and I were talking the other day regarding Firefox's' Bookmarks option and using keywords for efficient searching (sorry, I'm a Luddite). But the Mac OS X "Summarize" feature is something I was able to figure out right away.

 Living up to its name, the OS X Leopard just might be speeding into its eventual release into the wild (i.e. the consumer market) very soon - like, end-of-March-soon. Well, that's if web rumors are to be believed. Well Jobs did say they'd have OS X 10.5 available by Spring. That's a couple months earlier than what most of us expected.

With the release of Leopard also comes the new versions of iLife and iWork. We haven't heard follow ups from Apple HQ yet, but we're bound to spot something very soon. Stay tuned, folks.

Been having speed issues with Safari, eh? Yep, we know how annoying it is when you wait forever for the pages to load. So to help you out in that department, we're gonna tell you guys about the wonder that is Safari Speed 2.1.

Now a lot of you are probably using Safari Speed 2 already so we probably don't have to delve into that whole thing. But suffice to say, a lot of users have been complaining about some of that OS's features that slow down your computer's speed. To fix that, here's v2.1 which will help you load pages faster and customize your interface easier (to mention a few). Here are some more of the things you can expect in Safari Speed 2.1:

• faster page loading
• allows you to disable favorite icons and cache
• turn on and off Safari's debug menu
• PDF support
• easily switch interface between metal and aqua
• combines the features of previous applications
• support for multiple localizations
  

SafariSpeed 2.1 is actually a free upgrade for licensed users of SafariSpeed 2. And because SafariSpeed 2 is a shareware, you will be allowed to use it 11 times before they require you to register. Registration for SafariSpeed costs US$ 8 and can be paid via Scifience's online store.

Download: [Safari Speed 2.1 Trial Version]