Apple Thoughts - News & Reviews on all things Apple

"Mien Software has released MediaEdit 3.1.8 for the Mac, a consumer-level video editing tool, which supports standard painting tools and multiple layers. This update improves stability and support for Snow Leopard. This free update addresses the following: Improved support for Snow Leopard, fixed issues with non-english characters in file names and fixed an issue where clips can become corrupted after a join and a split"

Admittedly, I don't do a lot of video editing, other than home movies so forgive me if you are already a user and know about this program. Seems like a nifty program that is compatible with all Quicktime formats as well as being able to paint directly onto the frames of a movie. If you have another program that you use similar what is it? This one is available for a free trial period, or you can purchase for $59.95 USD and is now compatible with Snow Leopard.

"The third major update to Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard is getting closer to appearing in Software Update. A new beta of Mac OS X 10.6.3 (build 10D538) was released to a limited number of Apple developers last Friday."

This beta had an update to QuickTime to improve reliability, security and compatibility. Sounds like standard fare for these updates, but it also does some tweaking to the 64-bit Logic Pro audio suite and improved some printer communication and compatibilities. The release of 10.6.3 is expected around the end of February 2010.

"Apple on Tuesday released Security Update 2010-001 for Mac OS X Snow Leopard as well as versions for both client and server releases of its predecessor, Mac OS X Leopard. These updates improve the security of Mac OS X are recommended for all users of the respective versions."

Image Credit: jonathan-hardesty.com

The cat is upset you haven't updated yet, as it fixes some security problems associated with Adobe Flash. What are you waiting for?? Check them out here or just use your software update option. Or you can always go to Apple's support download page here.

"If you thought you just heard a disturbance in the Force-as if millions of voices cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced-then take a deep breath and relax: it's just a pair of Java software updates for Mac OS X."

Java for OS X 10.6, update 1 as well as Java for OS X 10.5, update 6 are both available via the software update feature, or direct from Apple. From the article,"The Leopard update, which requires Mac OS X 10.5.8 brings J2SE 5.0 to 1.5.0_22 and Java SE 6 to 1.6.0_17; J2SE 1.4.2 is disabled by default in this update, as it's no longer being updated. The 78MB Snow Leopard update brings Java SE 6 to 1.6.0_17 as well, and requires Mac OS X 10.6.2."

Apple has also posted a support info page for Leopard and Snow Leopard.

"Apple today released Mac OS X 10.6.2, the second maintenance update for Snow Leopard, via Software Update and the company's software downloads page. The update brings several bug fixes, reportedly including one for a serious issue involving Guest accounts that has caused some users to lose all data from their primary user accounts."

This should fix the guest account bug, which caused your home folder disappeared if you had the guest account enabled. But this update isn't without problems, mainly for those with the Atom processor. So if you have made yourself a Hackintosh, you will want to wait on this update. In a related story posted by MacRumours: "If you have an official Apple Mac then go right ahead and update to Mac OS X 10.6.2, but if you have a Hackintosh Mac Netbook... well you will want to hold off. It has been confirmed that the final release of 10.6.2 kills Intel Atom support officially. Hackintosh Guru StellaRolla reports:'The netbook forums are now blowing up with problems of 10.6.2 instant rebooting their Atom based netbooks.'"

"Macware on Tuesday announced an update to DiskTools Pro, the company's software utility for hard drive management. DiskTools Pro allows you to test and repair hard drive volumes, defragment files, create bootable backups, perform benchmark tests, and more."

This is version 3.5.1, and is available in either download or you can buy the box, either way it is $79.99 USD. However, if you currently own a version of this you can update via the "check for updates" option in the update menu. In this version they have improved Snow Leopard support, reduced memory and CPU usage and have added new scheduling abilities for backups among other things. 

"Windows Live Sync for Mac has been updated to build 14.0.8096.0903, finally adding Snow Leopard support. Windows Live Sync for Windows has been updated to build 14.0.8089.0726, and fixes an issue with Windows Easy Transfer."

If you were locked out of Live Sync after upgrading to Snow Leopard, this should fix the problem. You need to go to the Live Sync site, download the latest version, sign in with Windows Live ID and then download the Mac client software.

"A handful of recent threads on Apple's Support Discussion forums - backed up by our own testing - indicate that Snow Leopard suffers from a bug that prevents users from opening multiple recently downloaded files simultaneously."

So if you drag a group of files, say docs for example, into your word application icon, it will only open up one of them. Testing was done with Leopard and it worked fine for several users, but when they switched to Snow Leopard they ran into the bug. No word on a fix, but you can see the comments about it on the Apple discussion boards.

"If you experienced some odd performance problems on your Snow Leopard-running Mac early this morning -- say, right around the time of the Daylight Saving 'fall back' -- you're apparently not alone."

CPU spikes were the norm during the "switching hour" that was associated with having the "menu bar clock enabled" or having the clock "automatic set feature turned on." I guess CPU watching is one way to spend that hour, I instead chose to catch up with Fringe and eat some Halloween candy (pays to have a house that isn't convenient to get to this time of year). Anyway, the fix is to turn off the menu bar clock in System Preferences for a few seconds and it should go away. Although some on the message boards were reporting the problem went away as mysteriously as it appeared. Coincidence? Haunted OS?

"Encumbered by passwords? Eager to try unreleased software? Want to help out some classy Mac developers in their quest to kill bugs dead? If you missed out when Agile Web Solutions was offering a private beta of 1Password 3 to customers on Snow Leopard, there's good news! 1Password 3 is now available as a public beta for one and all. Yes, that means you. Feel special? You should!"

Image Credit: 1Password

I've found this very useful especially since it has an accompanying app for the iPhone/iPod Touch. This is a beta so you are forewarned (backup your keychain!), but I haven't had any problems with it so far and I like the much improved interface for the desktop. Also, this requires you to have at least OS X Leopard installed. They have added several new features, more info on that available at their website.

"Apple this week released new drivers for HP printers in its latest operating system, Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard. The file, labeled version 2.2., is a 383MB download available from Apple."

This update can be downloaded from Apple, and requires Mac OS 10.6.1. Short and sweet, but if you want more info on printer drivers from Apple, they have a special page set up.

"This week Apple released an update for Intel-based systems running Mac OS X versions 10.5 (Leopard) and 10.6 (Snow Leopard). Performance Update 1.0 is available direct from Apple for Snow Leopard and Leopard. It can also be downloaded via Software Update."

Basically this fixes the hard drive pausing issue that some are experiencing. Not sure your Mac is affected? You can go to the support page from Apple and see if it is on the list. If you need it, you can get it via Software Update on your Mac or go the Leopard or Snow Leopard update pages and download manually. This does require Mac OS X 10.6.1 or Mac OS X 10.5.8.

"A serious data-loss bug is affecting a small percentage of users who have upgraded to Snow Leopard and use guest accounts. Though Apple says the bug is "rare," it is working on a solution."

This was creeping up in reports in September, and what has happened isn't too much fun. If you update from Leopard and your guest account is enabled, then you run the risk of your home directory being wiped clean. Apple says they are aware of the problem and are working on a fix. No real fix other than making sure you don't have your guest accounts enabled when you upgrade, and to make sure you have a back up of all your data before you do the upgrade. You do have a back up line ready don't you?

"Being the operator of your computer is like being the captain of a ship: you need to be aware of what's happening on your boat in order to steer it right. Well, that and you always need to keep an eye out for pirates. Growl helps you stay informed: it's a notification framework that many of the applications you run today can use to display messages about what they're doing."

Growl now has full support for Snow Leopard, but Tiger users are left to walk the plank. The update fixes memory leaks, the Growl Mail bundle is operational and HardwareGrowler gets a new icon. Upgrade is only for Leopard and Snow Leopard, sorry Tiger.

"The Pixelmator Team released Pixelmator 1.5 today, an update to the revolutionary GPU-powered image editing tool that provides everything needed to create, edit, and enhance still images. Available as a free software update, Pixelmator 1.5, codenamed Spider, features Save for Web, a Slice tool, a Trim tool, Info Labels, and more."

This update gives Pixelmator Snow Leopard compatibility, as well as some other new features such as a Slice tool, Trim tool and Info Labels. This is a pretty powerful image editor, and with each update they make it easier to forget about other ones such as Photoshop. If you aren't sure about it, check out their video tutorials, which go over each function and you will see what I'm talking about. It is available now at the Pixelator site for $59.00 USD, or you can try it for 30 days before buying by downloading and using the fully functional demo. 

"The manufacturers of some of the most popular printers and multifunction devices have caught up with last month's release of Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard."

Image Credit: Amazon.com

So if your printer isn't working quite the way it should after you have upgraded to 10.6, or even 10.6.1, you can check on the downloads page to see if they have your driver. You can also check out the support page that lists the currently compatible printers. This is one reason why I usually wait for a bit to install updates. I love all the new features but I sure hate it when things don't work.

"Hot on the heels of the initial release of Snow Leopard (Mac OS X 10.6), Apple has delivered Mac OS X 10.6.1. The changes from Apple are coming with such fury right now, that it's been hard to keep up. But we're doing our best."

Image Credit: Apple

Pretty good article that covers a large majority of upgrades and fixes associated with not just Snow Leopard, but also of the programs that have been updated to make sure they work with the new version of Mac OS X. They go over some 64-bit compatibility upgrades to various programs as well as specific fixes that 10.6.1 handled.

"Some users may experience an issue where, after updating to Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard, the SuperDrive update, 2.1, runs and subsequently quits after their Mac restarts."

Apple has a knowledge base article on this very problem, and this article outlines how to go about fixing it. This occurs when upgrading some Macs to Mac OS X 10.6 from a previous operating system, a system that already had SuperDrive Update 2.1 installed. According to the article:

1. Open System Preferences and choose Accounts
2. Select your Admin account and click the Login Items tab
3. Highlight the Superdrive Update 2.1 checkbox
4. Click on the minus button and delete the item

This should fix the problem.

"Apple on Thursday released a relatively minor update for Mac OS X Snow Leopard that fixes an issue users had with the operating system that downgraded them to an older version of Adobe Systems' Flash Player."

This was just one of many updates yesterday delivered by Apple. This particular one fixed the Flash Player issue that Snow Leopard originally broke, which could potentially cause a security issue. And for Snow Leopard 10.6.1, they also updated the HP Drivers with this update. Apple also issued several updates for server, Tiger and iMacs running the ATI Radeon HD 2600 Pro or ATI Radeon HD 2400 XT graphics cards. You can get the whole list at the Apple download page.

"Matt Fisher is a 16 year old high school junior and Apple enthusiast who has been putting up tutorial videos on all things Macintosh since December of 2008. I just saw one that is so good I wanted to bring it to your attention."

This is a pretty good quick look at some of the "hidden features" of Snow Leopard. The video is only 4 1/2 minutes long, and he has several more listed on his YouTube channel.