Apple seeds Mac OS X Update 10.3.6 build 7R12

Posted:
in macOS edited January 2014
In its latest developer release of Mac OS X 10.3.6, Apple asks developers to test DVD playback and mass storage devices.



Apple Computer this week provided its developers with a new build of Mac OS X Update 10.3.6, a forthcoming maintenance release that will further fortify the company's Mac OS X 10.3 "Panther" operating system.



Since seeding the software to its Apple Developer Connection (ADC) members last week, Apple has ammended the list of areas where developers should focus their testing. The company is now asking that tests be run on DVD playback quality and mass storage devices--including external hard drives, optical drives, and card readers.



Prior to providing the system software to its ADC members, Apple said the update would deliver improvements to web browsing, audio, USB, graphics card drivers, and OpenGL. The company asked that developers diagnose new versions of Safari (1.2.4) and Calculator (3.2), while also focusing their testing efforts on audio applications, graphics, FireWire, USB, and OpenGL-intensive games.



Mac OS X 10.3.6 will also reportedly include significant changes to the handling of optical media, such as CDs and DVDs. Likewise, Apple has encouraged its developers to experiment with disc burning.



Although Apple had previously distributed a developer preview of Safari 1.3, the software does not appear in Mac OS X 10.3.6. According to sources, the Safari 1.3 preview may fail to function properly in current builds of the Mac OS X 10.3.6 Update. The incompatibility is subsequently noted in Apple's internal list of known issues.



The lastest developer release of Mac OS X 10.3.6, build 7R12, is only the second build to be posted to ADC members. And while the development of the system remains in the earlier stages, an official release is expected by mid-December.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 16
    What about bug fixes? 10.3.6 better be a lot less buggy than 10.3.5 if they expect a lot of people to use it.
  • Reply 2 of 16
    sabonsabon Posts: 134member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by commun5

    What about bug fixes? 10.3.6 better be a lot less buggy than 10.3.5 if they expect a lot of people to use it.



    What bugs are you finding with 10.3.5. I've got two machines (G3 blue & white tower & 800mhz G4 iMac lamp) and haven't found any bugs yet.
  • Reply 3 of 16
    bigbluebigblue Posts: 341member
    In fact, 10.3.5 is the most stable OSX version I ever used. Besides a few small (Finder) glitches, it works smooth as butter. And no crashes at all.
  • Reply 4 of 16
    m01etym01ety Posts: 278member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by BigBlue

    In fact, 10.3.5 is the most stable OSX version I ever used. Besides a few small (Finder) glitches, it works smooth as butter. And no crashes at all.



    Ditto. (And I can't believe it's not butter! )
  • Reply 5 of 16
    I'd like more information on the changes in optical drive handling and disk burning. It's one of the areas where OS-X is a bit of a let down. For example, allowing the option to leave a disk open for further sessions when burning from the desktop. One of the many things I can do using WindowsXP at University but can't on my PowerBook, to my embarrassment.
  • Reply 6 of 16
    neoxneox Posts: 2member
    Browse the Apple Discussion forums on Apple's site and you will see that there are a few glitches with Sleep, and the DVD player freezing peoples system. The later has happened to me more then a few times and forces a power down, just like the old OS 9 days. Apple has also acknowledged the bug to some individuals there...



    It sounds like 10.3.6 will fix this issue at least, as it is one of the areas mentioned to test...



    -NeoX
  • Reply 7 of 16
    rraburrabu Posts: 264member
    I find 10.3.5 to be the buggiest OSX version to date. Although that may be because I've run into a bug that bugs me.



    On my iBook, I use fast user switching so my girlfriend and I each use our own accounts. We typically put the computer back to the login screen before closing the lid. Sometimes, when we open the iBook, there is no login screen; just the blue background. Mind you, I haven't done troubleshooting into why this is. Maybe I have a bad plist...
  • Reply 8 of 16
    and how after you burn a disk the "empty cd" and your newly burned cd is on the desktop even though you already ejected the disk. You would have to go and manual eject the disks even though they are not there.
  • Reply 9 of 16
    bigbluebigblue Posts: 341member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Ichiban_jay

    and how after you burn a disk the "empty cd" and your newly burned cd is on the desktop even though you already ejected the disk. You would have to go and manual eject the disks even though they are not there.



    Restarting and holding down your mousekey while rebooting will force-eject any cd. But it's true that this should not be necessary. There should be a force-eject method without rebooting.

    Maybe someone knows a nifty trick with the Terminal or something ?
  • Reply 10 of 16
    If you open firmware on startup (APPLE+O+F) , type the command, eject cd . then, macboot . this is a little trick I use often. Cheers .
  • Reply 11 of 16
    pbpb Posts: 4,255member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by BigBlue

    There should be a force-eject method without rebooting.

    Maybe someone knows a nifty trick with the Terminal or something ?




    You can always try to eject a CD from the Disk Utility. Sometimes, a stuck CD, especially after a failed eject, can be not visible in the Finder, but the Disk Utility can always see it and eventually (always in the cases I tried it) eject it. If it doesn't work, you can launch the terminal and try the following:



    hdiutil eject disk1 -force



    Sometimes you have to logout and login again for these tricks to be effective. If this too fails, I think reboot is you last resort.
  • Reply 12 of 16
    I hope Apple fixes their graphics drivers with this release. Video drivers have been a bane for the Mac for gaming. For all you know, they might have benchmarked HALO on the new iMac with a unreleased version of the nVidia driver.
  • Reply 13 of 16
    bigbluebigblue Posts: 341member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by MacMatt

    If you open firmware on startup (APPLE+O+F) , type the command, eject cd . then, macboot . this is a little trick I use often. Cheers .



    Do you end up in the same 'environment' as with Cmd-S, or can the same commands be used here ?
  • Reply 14 of 16
    chris vchris v Posts: 460member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by BigBlue

    Do you end up in the same 'environment' as with Cmd-S, or can the same commands be used here ?



    It is not the same environment. Open Firmware is the boot ROM that resides on the motherboard, and command+s just takes you to the single-user mode of unix, which will be running from your hard drive. I don't know one way or the other about CD ejecting commands in unix, though, so sorry I can't answer that question.



    The only bug I've experienced with 10.3.5 is trying to select files in a column while an mpg is playing in the preview pane. This is most definitely a pain, but it has been really stable for me on all my machines. 50 days and counting on my Powerbook, and it's been to Boston and back. (oops, now it'll crash for sure, since I bragged.)
  • Reply 15 of 16
    costiquecostique Posts: 1,084member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by BigBlue

    Do you end up in the same 'environment' as with Cmd-S, or can the same commands be used here ?



    Nope. Open Firmware is a self-contained wisdom, while Cmd-S takes you to a single-user mode, which is a somewhat limited BSD CLI anyway. The full version is always available in Terminal.app.



    If you wonder what the heck OF is, click here and here, for example.
  • Reply 16 of 16
    bigbluebigblue Posts: 341member
    Interesting literature, guys. Thanks for the info.
Sign In or Register to comment.