Briefly: Mac OS X 10.5.5 to address AirPort glitch

[AppleInsider]

Development of Apple's upcoming Mac OS X 10.5.5 Update appears to be winding down, with only a couple of new fixes making their way into recent builds, including one aimed at wireless issues.

This past week saw two new pre-release distributions of the 320MB Leopard update fall into developers' hands. The first arrived mid week as Mac OS X 10.5.5 build 9F25, but contained no noticeable changes from the build the preceded it.

More recently, developers were treated to build 9F29. That build tacked on a pair of fixes, one of which tackles an issue between Macs and previously joined AirPort networks, people familiar with the software say. The second fix was related to a graphics framework.

Seemingly at the tail end of its development cycle, Mac OS X 10.5.5 is reportedly hindered by a single known bug that prevents emails from being searched properly in Apple's Mail application.

The fifth maintenance and security update for Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard now stands to deliver 125 bug fixes when it's released later this month.

[ View this article at AppleInsider.com ]

[amac4me]

I have to speculate that 10.5.5 will most likely be released just prior to the release of new Mac computers. It's widely expected that Apple will be updating the portable lines as well as the iMac.

[solipsism]

Originally Posted by amac4me

It's widely expected that Apple will be updating the portable lines as well as the iMac.

I'm going to have to disagree. The iPods and notebooks are due for an upgrade right now and that is more than enough to cover the special event, especially if the MB an MBPs are getting new cases. The iMac was updated only 4 months ago to a special Santa Rosa chip with Montevina characteristics. The average update cycle is 211 days; we are only at 127 days.

[mycatsnameis]

Is the airport issue mentioned related to the notorious MacBook dropped wireless issue (although also seen in MBPs I believe)? Hundreds of posts over in the support forums for that one dating back well over a year. Symptoms - flaky wireless connection that drops randomly, signal strength that seems to jump up and down for no apparent reason, resistant to s/w upgrades, fresh OS installs, changing router wireless channels etc. etc. Booting the machines into Windows reveals that the hardware works fine and the problem is strictly OS X related ...

[ByronVanArsdale]

Originally Posted by solipsism

The average update cycle is 211 days; we are only at 127 days.

Imagine what would happen to Apple's stock if all user's were on the same update cycle...

[jfanning]

Originally Posted by ByronVanArsdale

Imagine what would happen to Apple's stock if all user's were on the same update cycle...

I imagine it would go down

[Cubert]

Originally Posted by mycatsnameis

Is the airport issue mentioned related to the notorious MacBook dropped wireless issue (although also seen in MBPs I believe)? Hundreds of posts over in the support forums for that one dating back well over a year. Symptoms - flaky wireless connection that drops randomly, signal strength that seems to jump up and down for no apparent reason, resistant to s/w upgrades, fresh OS installs, changing router wireless channels etc. etc. Booting the machines into Windows reveals that the hardware works fine and the problem is strictly OS X related ...

I haven't seen that on my girlfriend's Macbook, but my old Powerbook has had problems with forgetting network passwords (OK for home but murder at work with their 26 random character password).

It also isn't consistent - OK for a few weeks and then flakes out.

[wheelhot]

Well, Im guessing we wont see any big updates from Apple until MacWorld 09, why?
Here is my reasons:
1. Apple bought PA Semicon, no one have any idea what are they going to use PA Semicon for, except for low powered high performance processor but we are not sure how will that fit into Apples product lineup except for the iPhone.
2. Apple decided not to use Intel latest chipset. So another why and who is going to update or make their chipset now?
3. Psycrap and OpenComputer is starting to sell OSX on generic ugly pcs, so Im quite sure Apple is going to find a way to address this and make sure it never happen again.
4. They are busy with getting iPhone 3G global.
5. SnowLeopard has a lot of nifty features that people are skeptical whether if apple could deliver.

So overall, there is alot of stuffs goin on within Apple. The only product update that I expect is the MacBook to aluminum. Maybe MBP and Apple Cinema HD display during Apple WWDC, it make sense wont it? Release and update for 2 professional products in a developers conference. Or maybe they would release a whole new updated lineup of their notebooks during MacWorld and release SnowLeopard on WWDC. So by MW10, Steve could boasts about how successful (or not) their Snow Leopard OS.

[Virgil-TB2]

I know this is an automated posting, but what a waste of time.

The link says the article is about a patch being released that addresses a wireless issue. Then we click and wait ... and the entire article pretty much just says the same thing. No word on *what* wireless issue, and followed by at least a couple of posts asking (essentially) "what wireless issue?"

These kinds of articles are a complete waste of space. If you haven't got the time to even write a paragraph or two of explanation, is this really an "article" at all? What's the point? To generate a lot of comments by being purposely obtuse?

[solipsism]

Originally Posted by wheelhot

Well, Im guessing we wont see any big updates from Apple until MacWorld 09, why?
Here is my reasons:
1. Apple bought PA Semicon, no one have any idea what are they going to use PA Semicon for, except for low powered high performance processor but we are not sure how will that fit into Apples product lineup except for the iPhone.
2. Apple decided not to use Intel latest chipset. So another why and who is going to update or make their chipset now?
3. Psycrap and OpenComputer is starting to sell OSX on generic ugly pcs, so Im quite sure Apple is going to find a way to address this and make sure it never happen again.
4. They are busy with getting iPhone 3G global.
5. SnowLeopard has a lot of nifty features that people are skeptical whether if apple could deliver.

So overall, there is alot of stuffs goin on within Apple. The only product update that I expect is the MacBook to aluminum. Maybe MBP and Apple Cinema HD display during Apple WWDC, it make sense wont it? Release and update for 2 professional products in a developers conference. Or maybe they would release a whole new updated lineup of their notebooks during MacWorld and release SnowLeopard on WWDC. So by MW10, Steve could boasts about how successful (or not) their Snow Leopard OS.D

I think we'll see major revisions of the MB and MBPs with some new tech on these notebooks that hasn't been used at large or well before by other OEMs.

1. The P.A. Semi issue is tough since we don't know what they were working on or when they started, we only know when Apple bought them out.
2. I thought this was defunct as very improbable. Intel has spent billions on R&D in this area. I don't see what Apple could do better by taking Penryn and slapping it on their own chipset. I certainly wouldn't buy a new Mac with an Apple-branded chipset being used in lieu of Montevina.
3. I think this is what Apple may be working on with P.A. Semi. The Mac clone issue was growing well before Psystar came on the scene. I know if I were Apple I'd want some sort of HW authentication.
4. They are, but they have released to over 40 countries and I don't think there are any major countries, in terms of potential sales, that need to target this year. The notebooks are due for an upgrade and a complete overhaul, and Montevina/Penryn is offering a perfect time with the lower TPD and smaller package size.
5. They still haven't released a proper Beta of SL. They could offer one next week, but I think that MacWorld will focus on SL functionality.

As stated, I think the MB and MBP will be completely overhauled, the MBA will get Montevina and will get considerably more juice for the same speed, and the iPods will get a price drop and/or capacity increase (maybe a colour change). Except the Nano being revamped to look more Zune-like, but with a dynamic click-wheel that changes with the orientation used.

[trboyden]

Originally Posted by mycatsnameis

Is the airport issue mentioned related to the notorious MacBook dropped wireless issue (although also seen in MBPs I believe)? Hundreds of posts over in the support forums for that one dating back well over a year. Symptoms - flaky wireless connection that drops randomly, signal strength that seems to jump up and down for no apparent reason, resistant to s/w upgrades, fresh OS installs, changing router wireless channels etc. etc. Booting the machines into Windows reveals that the hardware works fine and the problem is strictly OS X related ...

I hope so, Wi-Fi has pretty much sucked on my MacBook since I installed the initial retail version of Leopard. I have all of the issues you mention above. Reverting back to Tiger (wipe and re-install) didn't fix the problem either so I'm assuming it was a firmware fix that Leopard applied to the wireless card. I don't have a dual-boot system with Windows so I didn't try that though. I'm not sure I'd buy another MacBook now, especially where I can get a fully loaded 17" AMD 64 X2 notebook for $750 through OfficeMax. I'd probably buy an iMac if I got another Apple machine.

[mcarling]

My guess is that new iMacs will be released at MWSF.

[BWhaler]

Let's hope after five massive patches, Leopard is finally worthy of the Apple name.

Things like iCal, Spaces, and Firewall will still be a mess since their issues are more fundamental than bugs. But hopefully Apple has learned their lesson about shipping beta software--MobileMe, Leopard, Leopard Server, iPhones OS 2.0, etc.--and Snow Leopard will be the polished operating system--it just works and is clever and usable--we expect from Apple.

Speaking of the iPhone, I just hope for Apple's sake--and mine--it doesn't take 5 massive patches over 6 months--to get this iPhone 3G's not to suck to bad. I love Apple, but the new iPhone software stinks beyond belief.

[jmadlena]

Originally Posted by Virgil-TB2

I know this is an automated posting, but what a waste of time.

The link says the article is about a patch being released that addresses a wireless issue. Then we click and wait ... and the entire article pretty much just says the same thing. No word on *what* wireless issue, and followed by at least a couple of posts asking (essentially) "what wireless issue?"

These kinds of articles are a complete waste of space. If you haven't got the time to even write a paragraph or two of explanation, is this really an "article" at all? What's the point? To generate a lot of comments by being purposely obtuse?

I guess you missed the word "briefly" at the heading of the post. There's your first clue that the post would be very succinct. Perhaps there isn't more of an explanation because they don't know anymore? It's not like they are withholding information; they wanted to let the people that have been suffering because of this bug that a fix is perhaps on the way. They are just trying to inform us, not generate comments.

[rjtolman]

What I hope they fix is the external Firewire drives not mounting.

That just about drives me crazy in a school district with several hundred Macs running 10.5.4. Works without a problem in 10.4.11.

[kaiwai]

Originally Posted by rjtolman

What I hope they fix is the external Firewire drives not mounting.

That just about drives me crazy in a school district with several hundred Macs running 10.5.4. Works without a problem in 10.4.11.

What happens? I've got an external hard disk/firewire, and it works without fault.

What brand/model/make are these drives?

[solipsism]

Originally Posted by kaiwai

What happens? I've got an external hard disk/firewire, and it works without fault.

What brand/model/make are these drives?

In my case, I have the latest iMac with a 320GB 2.5" Lacie drive that will not recognize the drive if the machine is rebooted. Sometimes it'll prevent the startup from happening altogether.

On the other hand, I have 2nd to latest MB with a MyBook 1TB drive that never has any issues.

Both are using FW400. I haven't tried switching the drives to see if it's the external drive or the Mac since they are rarely ever together.

[BenRoethig]

I hope so. Connecting to my network has been spotty at best since 10.5.4. A couple tweaks to OGL and better graphics drivers would be better as well.

[elliots11]

I hope they do something with the Time Capsule. I have a Macbook Pro, so I guess I don't get the issues that Macbook owners have.

Since I've gotten the time machine (regardless of updating its firmware) I keep having problems with dropped connections, the TC disappearing and only reappearing after (sometimes multiple) reboots, and falling off whenever I move big files. I have a long ethernet cable that I can use when I need it, but damn, just transfer over the air... it's like 15 feet away. It's set up on N with wide channels, and I'm getting full speed with no interference, it should be fine. Sorry to gripe.

[PB]

Originally Posted by AppleInsider

The second fix was related to a graphics framework.

Hmm, let's hope they fix the display corruption issue in portables when scrolling through some PDF files or web browsers.

[mediaphile]

I have both a MacBook and a MacBook Pro, and have none of the aforementioned problems. At least, not since installing the various updates. My MacBook is first-gen but with Leopard installed, and the MBP is brand new, also with Leopard.

I haven't seen wireless network drop issues since I first installed the first versions of Leopard on my MacBook, and I've never had any issues with Firewire drives, 400 or 800.

[dmwalsh568]

Does anybody know if the security settings on the printer subsystem gets fixed in 10.5.5?

Right now we're in a world of hurt at a school with over 1000 machines, and only 3 administrators because adding a printer queue or even starting a stopped queue requires an admin password!

There are settings in Parental Controls and in Workgroup Manager, but those are not honored in 10.5.4 and it still asks for an admin password any time you try to add or start a queue. Although I'm pretty sure the users are able to reset the printing system which wipes out any queues created by an admin.

[mycatsnameis]

Originally Posted by trboyden

I hope so, Wi-Fi has pretty much sucked on my MacBook since I installed the initial retail version of Leopard. I have all of the issues you mention above. Reverting back to Tiger (wipe and re-install) didn't fix the problem either so I'm assuming it was a firmware fix that Leopard applied to the wireless card. I don't have a dual-boot system with Windows so I didn't try that though. I'm not sure I'd buy another MacBook now, especially where I can get a fully loaded 17" AMD 64 X2 notebook for $750 through OfficeMax. I'd probably buy an iMac if I got another Apple machine.

My issues started while I was still running Tiger and I upgrade to Leopard out of desperation. Still didn't help of course ....

[adrian.oconnor]

I cannot tell you how happy I would be if they really, truly fix the wireless connection problems.

Everytime we wake our iMac from sleep we need to manually disconnect/reconnect the Airport connection else it just stops working after a few KB of data are transfered.

The same iMac running Windows XP in Bootcamp is fine. A MacBook running Leopard on the same network is fine. Two HP laptops, a HP workstation, a Nintendo Wii and an iPod Touch on the same network are also fine. It's just the iMac running Leopard that always stalls when it wakes up.

Because my wife uses the iMac for her emails, and I sold her the idea of an expensive but beautiful Mac on the idea that it would not only look great but would also 'just work' better than the Windows machine it replaced (which of course really did 'just work', as it turns out), I'd really appreciate it if this very fundamental piece of functionality was fixed.

Has anybody with the wireless issue tried using the Atheros USB wifi stick and the OSX86 drivers? If 10.5.5 doesn't sort out the Airport problem, I might give that a go (and post my results here).

[jfanning]

Originally Posted by solipsism

In my case, I have the latest iMac with a 320GB 2.5" Lacie drive that will not recognize the drive if the machine is rebooted. Sometimes it'll prevent the startup from happening altogether.

On the other hand, I have 2nd to latest MB with a MyBook 1TB drive that never has any issues.

Both are using FW400. I haven't tried switching the drives to see if it's the external drive or the Mac since they are rarely ever together.

I have an issue with a WD MyBook 500GB drive connected with FW800, it will connect, and disconnect itself constantly

[kaiwai]

Originally Posted by jfanning

I have an issue with a WD MyBook 500GB drive connected with FW800, it will connect, and disconnect itself constantly

Disable power saving using sdparm.

[aresee]

For all of you who are having wifi problems, how crowded is your spectrum? Are you using the wifi in crowded apartments, coffee shops or dorms? I ask because the 2.4GHz band is a very busy/noisy band and there are many devices (like microwaves and cordless phones) that can knock wifi right off the air. I would suspect that these noise bursts will be most common in crowded areas and will have more drop outs than we do out here in the suburbs.

[BenRoethig]

Originally Posted by aresee

For all of you who are having wifi problems, how crowded is your spectrum? Are you using the wifi in crowded apartments, coffee shops or dorms? I ask because the 2.4GHz band is a very busy/noisy band and there are many devices (like microwaves and cordless phones) that can knock wifi right off the air. I would suspect that these noise bursts will be most common in crowded areas and will have more drop outs than we do out here in the suburbs.

iMac, iBook, 102.11b for a windows PC, microwave, and 4 cordless phones. The iBook running 10.3.9 and windows PC are further away from the router and have no problems whatsoever.

[aresee]

Originally Posted by BenRoethig

iMac, iBook, 102.11b for a windows PC, microwave, and 4 cordless phones. The iBook running 10.3.9 and windows PC are further away from the router and have no problems whatsoever.

The next questions are: What is the proximity between your microwave/phones and the problematic devices? Can you determine a correlation or not between the usage of the microwave/phones and drop outs?

I'm not saying that this is the problem. I am saying that I have a microwave within 20 feet of a base station that knocks air tunes off the air whenever it is operated. And that this might be a potential cause of wifi drop outs. As far as the manual disconnects/reconnects -- I might have had it once or twice, but rarely if I did. If I did I probably cleared it by cycling power. I know, this is no help to someone who really has the problem. An idea; for the people who have to manually log in after waking up, do you have wifi connectivity when the mac goes to sleep?

[macmamma]

Originally Posted by AppleInsider

The second fix was related to a graphics framework.

[ View this article at AppleInsider.com ]

Not sure what the graphics framework issue is, but I my graphics went wonky a few months ago - the initial startup screen looked fine, but then the colours shifted and my icons all look distorted now and things are jaggier. This is on a hi-res screen. Boosting the brightness seems to help a bit, but it's never made it back to the crisp look I had before. Every time I restart, it looks fine at first and then goes wonky again, so it seems like a software issue rather than a hardware issue (i.e., I know my machine CAN display things properly - it just won't do it...).

Has any one else had this problem??

I'm also having the typical wireless problems others have discussed with my Mac PBPro (it's a huge pain trying to get timemachine working). So double whammy.