Sightings: Mac OS X 10.4.3, J2SE 5.0, xSan 1.2, iTunes 5.0.2
Apple this week offered its developers a variety of new pre-release software updates, according to reports already published on the Internet. Meanwhile references to a new version of iTunes also surfaced early this morning in an apparent hiccup by the company or its iTunes software update notification system.
Mac OS X 10.4.3
Another pre-release build of Mac OS X 10.4.3 was among the software seeds reportedly released by the company. Now at build 8F31, the third maintenance release to Tiger is is approaching 110MB in size and includes well over 500 minor fixes and enhancements.
Mac OS X 10.4.3 continues to include references to unreleased PowerMac and PowerBook models, according sources. The frequency in which Apple has released new builds of the update indicates that a release is on tap for the first half of October.
New Java software seed
Apple this week also offered developers a third limited distribution software seed of J2SE 5.0, which delivers improved reliability and compatibility for J2SE 5.0 on Mac OS X v10.4.2 or later.
Although the Java software update is not compatible with existing versions of Mac OS X for Intel, Apple has reportedly told developers to look for an updated version of J2SE 5.0 in an upcoming software seed of Mac OS X for its Developer Transition Kits.
Xsan updated focusing on bug fixes
Meanwhile, Apple continues to work on improving its network file system software. Xsan 1.2, due out later this year, will reportedly focus on stability, packing various Xsan Admin improvements and better performance when sharing an Xsan volume using AFP.
iTunes 5.0.2 in the pipeline?
According to several reader reports, Apple may also be preparing to released its third update to iTunes in four weeks. Shortly after midnight on Friday, users of iTunes 5.0.1 reported receiving notices that they could update to iTunes 5.0.2.
Users who followed the download link were only offered the option of downloading the current iTunes 5.0.1 release.
Mac OS X 10.4.3
Another pre-release build of Mac OS X 10.4.3 was among the software seeds reportedly released by the company. Now at build 8F31, the third maintenance release to Tiger is is approaching 110MB in size and includes well over 500 minor fixes and enhancements.
Mac OS X 10.4.3 continues to include references to unreleased PowerMac and PowerBook models, according sources. The frequency in which Apple has released new builds of the update indicates that a release is on tap for the first half of October.
New Java software seed
Apple this week also offered developers a third limited distribution software seed of J2SE 5.0, which delivers improved reliability and compatibility for J2SE 5.0 on Mac OS X v10.4.2 or later.
Although the Java software update is not compatible with existing versions of Mac OS X for Intel, Apple has reportedly told developers to look for an updated version of J2SE 5.0 in an upcoming software seed of Mac OS X for its Developer Transition Kits.
Xsan updated focusing on bug fixes
Meanwhile, Apple continues to work on improving its network file system software. Xsan 1.2, due out later this year, will reportedly focus on stability, packing various Xsan Admin improvements and better performance when sharing an Xsan volume using AFP.
iTunes 5.0.2 in the pipeline?
According to several reader reports, Apple may also be preparing to released its third update to iTunes in four weeks. Shortly after midnight on Friday, users of iTunes 5.0.1 reported receiving notices that they could update to iTunes 5.0.2.
Users who followed the download link were only offered the option of downloading the current iTunes 5.0.1 release.
Comments
10.4.0 -> 200 new features
10.4.3 -> 500 fixes
Originally posted by kim kap sol
OS version slogans
10.4.0 -> 200 new features
10.4.3 -> 500 fixes
I think the number of fixes is measured relative to 10.4.0, but still...
Originally posted by sjk
iTunes 5.0.2? I wish Apple would fix the ()&#$ iPhoto bug that's causing it to beachball, even after rebuilding/reconstructing the library a few times.
You speak is if the problem affects everyone. It just may be an issue on your computer.
iTunes 5.0 didn't deliver nearly the number of new features that I was expecting. I think they don't want to rock the boat too much or people might fall off. "It's floating great, just leave it".
Originally posted by coolfactor
iTunes 5.0 didn't deliver nearly the number of new features that I was expecting. I think they don't want to rock the boat too much or people might fall off. "It's floating great, just leave it".
If it ain't broke, don't fix it.
One of the features I'd really love to see in iTunes/iPod that I doubt I ever will: the ability to assign multiple artists to a song so that duets don't have to be listed under either one or the other or neither artist in the iPod menus. Just a small thing that bugs me. More reasonably, better support for the 'grouping' tag would be nice.
Originally posted by jdbartlett
If it ain't broke, don't fix it.
One of the features I'd really love to see in iTunes/iPod that I doubt I ever will: the ability to assign multiple artists to a song so that duets don't have to be listed under either one or the other or neither artist in the iPod menus. Just a small thing that bugs me. More reasonably, better support for the 'grouping' tag would be nice.
In a pinch, you could always just add the duet singer to the "composer" section, or alternately in the notes.
Originally posted by coolfactor
You speak is if the problem affects everyone. It just may be an issue on your computer.
Of course not all bugs effect everyone and any implication that this one did was unintended. This particular bug affects different users on different systems with different varieties/sizes of iPhoto libraries. It's reproducible once it "randomly" appears. I've been able to "manually" repair the libraries so iPhoto temporarily behaves properly but the trouble eventually reappears. The common denominator seems to be images imported from a Canon SD200. I haven't gotten around to the time-consuming task of hopefully isolating it with enough detail for a bug report that Apple hopefully pays attention to.
I've noticed a lot of bugs using OS X since 10.1 and this is the only one I can remember where a "reasonable" workaround has eluded me. To stop importing Canon SD200 images qualified as unreasonable because it would make iPhoto essentially useless for my family. Thus my frustration.
iTunes 5.0 didn't deliver nearly the number of new features that I was expecting. I think they don't want to rock the boat too much or people might fall off. "It's floating great, just leave it".
More sophisticated users will always be wanting for new features (and certain bug fixes), as you and I and lots of other folks here do for iTunes. But the most important question for me is whether a particular app is useful and productive right now. iTunes 5.0.1 is, as it currently is. iPhoto 5.0.4 isn't, with that bug I described and would be without it. It's a simple matter of "want" vs. "need".
And that ends the long and and boring explanation of the point of my other post.
Originally posted by Commodus
In a pinch, you could always just add the duet singer to the "composer" section, or alternately in the notes.
Where two singers of equal importance and role sing one song (eg, a duet), who's the secondary artist? At the moment, I slam one name in the title and the other in the artist (so that I can still use the second artist in iTunes search). I'm against using composer field for anything other than classical composers, though. Makes it easier to access my classical vs rock/pop collection.
Tiger is a total mess right now. Almost as buggy as 10.0.0, with inane design issues.
I hope Apple gets their act together. Longhorn is shaping up as a really solid OS, and Leopard needs to leap ahead--with QUALITY--since Longhorn is a solid knock-off of OS X which looks to be "good enough" to prevent the switchers Apple so desperately needs.
Originally posted by sjk
iTunes 5.0.2? I wish Apple would fix the ()&#$ iPhoto bug that's causing it to beachball, even after rebuilding/reconstructing the library a few times.
I think it's likely that the iTunes bugs affect more people. I'm not sure what that iPhoto bug is, though I did have to rebuild the library once.
Apple has customized Mail and iTunes, hardly "inane". Tiger is still far more consistent and useable than alternatives.
"I hope Apple gets their act together. Longhorn is shaping up as a really solid OS, and Leopard needs to leap ahead--with QUALITY--since Longhorn is a solid knock-off of OS X which looks to be "good enough" to prevent the switchers Apple so desperately needs."
What do you know about Longhorn / Vista?! Ha, it's a demo, an early developer release, but suddenly it's a "really solid OS"? Why isn't MS going to sell it for another year if its so solid?
If you think "design issues" are paramount to an operating system gaining users, maybe you should take a look at Windows now. Windows xp has 256 color crap icons mixed in from NT. Vista will look even worse, since it will combine flashy new Aero graphics with the FisherPrice xp stuff and older NT appearances.
And as for stability and bugs, have you ever used a Windows product prior to its first service pack?
Originally posted by JeffDM
I think it's likely that the iTunes bugs affect more people.
Yep, but the only bugs that matter are the ones that bite you.
Originally posted by Somynona
Any sign of them switching Quartz 2D Extreme on by default?
I thought we all agreed to give up on that?
Originally posted by a_greer
I have bitched and moaned in the Apple support forum ad-nauseam about this so let me say it here...Podcasts in the library is NOT good feature, hell, many users find it to be a glairing bug! Hey Apple FIX IT NOW (just make the new all inclusive library optional, nothing fancy)!!!!!!
Having an option is a good idea, but I liked having them in my "library", though partly due to problems I have with how iPods handle them. I don't like how the iPods stop playing and bump back to the main menu at the end of every track in the podcast menu, and I don't like spending time figuring out what podcast channel was most recently updated. I wanted podcasts to show up in the "Recently Added" playlist, until 5.0.1, I was still using iPodder.
Originally posted by a_greer
I have bitched and moaned in the Apple support forum ad-nauseam about this so let me say it here...Podcasts in the library is NOT good feature, hell, many users find it to be a glairing bug! Hey Apple FIX IT NOW (just make the new all inclusive library optional, nothing fancy)!!!!!!
I bet the opinion that this is a "glaring bug" would be different If podcasts had been included in the library when they were first introduced in iTunes 4.9(?)
I strongly favor a library that includes podcasts and whatever other content iTunes is managing. Or the ability to create a smart playlist that's a union of the main library and the podcast "pseudo-library" would be acceptable. The original podcast implementation was flawed because neither of those alternatives existed, causing an irreconcilably fragmented view of iTunes-managed content.
Fortunately someone on the iTunes team understood that and came up with at least a partial "fix" in v5. It ain't perfect yet but_now it's more aligned with my way of conceptualizing and using the iTunes interface. If I wanted to, I'd create a smart playlist that excludes podcasts and use that as a non-all-inclusive main pseudo-library. I have no reason to hide content in the all-inclusive main library by twiddling options, only with the ephemeral action of searching.