Macs

Upon launching Safari 1.3 for the first time, I got a notification that the version of PithHelmet I was using wasn’t tested with Safari 1.3, so it would be disabled. Safari then promptly crashed. Well, that indicated one of three things. PithHelmet wasn’t actually disabling itself and crashing Safari. Something else was killing Safari. I had a botched install. The third option was very unpleasant. I knew PithHelmet was a SIMBL plugin, so I went to where my SIMBL plugins are kept. This is at “/Library/Application Support/SIMBL/Plugins/”. I noticed that not only PithHelmet, but AcidSearch was in there. Just to be sure, I moved both out onto the desktop and started Safari. It launched perfectly. Now, considering that PithHelmet said it was disabling itself and AcidSearch made no such claims, I figured PithHelmet might be safe to put back (though there wasn’t much point in doing so). I quit Safari, replaced PithHelmet, and started Safari again. It worked. ...

Apple has released the 10.3.9 update for Mac OS X. Here are the changes. Stickies Addresses an issue in which Stickies could unexpectedly quit when creating a new note. Addresses an issue in which new Stickies are invisible. Stickies windows can now be minimized (an issue with Mac OS X 10.3.4 through 10.3.8). Safari Accessing certain websites, such as msnbc.com, mail.yahoo.com, ticketmaster.com, and others, no longer displays a “bad server response” alert that could occur in Safari. Addresses an issue in which “safe downloads” files are not automatically opened after downloading. SSL webpages (pages with URLs that start with “https://”) load faster in Safari. Adds some important Verisign root certificates to Safari, allowing you to connect to certain secure websites that you might not have been able to surf before. Adds other trusted root certificates to Safari, such as VISA and RSA. Finder ...

Imagine my surprise when I read of the Tiger release announcement (April 29th) showed up in Bloglines (which I’m only using instead of NetNewsWire because I’m at work). It was almost anticlimactic. Months and months of anticipation built to a single moment when I read that it was (nearly) here and I let out a soft oh. As usual, MacCentral has done a nice writeup. I’m sure every other Mac news site will have a piece on it, so stop by then if you’ve got some weird aversion to MacCentral. ...

I recently got asked a question via email. I thought I’d share my answer. My problem is in the WiFi category. I have AirPort turned on, and around the corner from where I live is a Starbucks, as well as other apartments that have WiFi, so I get a few connections here and there. Among these are the connections, “default” and “linksys”. I don’t know which one is Starbucks, but I assume “linksys” as I get the strongest connection. “Default” only gives me 3 bars, but it spastically goes to 1 or none every few minutes, which results in me being disconnected from iChat very often. ...

Maybe it was an April Fool’s joke on Think Secret’s part. Maybe they were trying to set up a legal defense that they guess a lot (and are wrong). Maybe a delay was introduced. Who knows? At any rate, there was no Tiger announcement which would have made all the wakka-wakka gags almost bareable. Now my problem is that without Tiger as a new toy coming soon, I’m starting to eye a new SATA boot drive (a 300 GB drive). Keep me from spending money Apple!

It’s been rather quiet on the Mac front. Well, that’s not entirely true, we have the continuing saga of Apple versus the rumor sites. Very little has been decided in the courts, but that hasn’t stopped the Mac community at large from giving their fifteen cents. Unfortunately, the battles being waged are being clumped into one, making the debate wandering and unfocused. We have one group shouting “This is a freedom of speech issue!” while the other says (quite accurately) “This particular decision is not.” A pissing contest ensues. ...

Apple has released yet another security update. Fire up Software Update. Here’s what’s updated, followed by my explanation: AFP Server Available for: Mac OS X v10.3.8, Mac OS X Server v10.3.8 CVE-ID: CAN-2005-0340 Impact: A specially crafted packet can cause a Denial of Service against the AFP Server. Description: A specially crafted packet will terminate the operation of the AFP Server due to an incorrect memory reference. Basically, if you use Apple File Sharing, someone can knock down the program serving the files. This is more of a pain in the ass than a security risk. ...

It may start to look like I have a personal jihad against the fine folks at LowEndMac, but I really don’t. I enjoy a lot of their content. Their archived Mac technical information is pretty good. Well, it used to be. It’s now filled with missing files (Error 404 abound!) and all attempts to notify them seem to be directed into /dev/null (or “sent into the void” for my less geeky readers). Some of their articles are interesting and inspiring. ...

After spending a lot time surfing the net looking for the best upgrade for my Powermac, I decided on an ATi Radeon 9800 Pro Mac Edition video card. It’s the best video that will ever work in my Dual 1 GHz G4 Powermac. I know you’re all very excited for me. What’s even better about it, is that it will likely correct the KotOR problems I was having. There was an update that was supposed to correct it, but I was too disheartened to try it again. Besides, I barely have time for anything lately. I haven’t even been playing Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. ...

Don’t you just hate it when supposed “authorities” on computing can’t get their facts straight? Why yes, yes I do Dan Knight of Low End Mac. That’s why I’m taking you to task for ‘Creaky Operating Systems’ Good Enough for Millions. There were some mistakes in the original Washington Post article, but “correcting” them with more mistakes is plain irresponsible and loses you all credibility. Then again, Dan also wrote Apple does us a favor by not shipping a better mouse, so perhaps credibility isn’t on his agenda. ...