• apple,  mac,  mac os x,  mac pro,  macbook pro,  mountain lion

    Apple Releases Mountain Lion 10.8.2 Update, iPhoto Updated

    September 20, 2012 /

    As if launching iOS 6 and a slew of app updates wasn’t enough to make Apple fan boys and girls go nuts, Apple also rolled out the Mac OS X Mountain Lion 10.8.2 update today.

    Update: Looks like iPhoto also received an update to add support for shared photo streams in Mountain Lion, new card and calendar themes, and performance and stability improvements.

    The OS X Mountain Lion v10.8.2 update is recommended for all OS X Mountain Lion users and includes new features and fixes.
    Updating your system
    You should back up your system before installation; you can use Time Machine.
    Do not interrupt the installation process once you have started to update your system.
    You may experience unexpected results if you have third-party system software modifications installed, or if you’ve modified the operating system through other means.
    Choose Apple () menu > Software Update… to check for the latest Apple software via the Mac App Store, including this update.
    Other software updates available for your computer may appear, which you should install. Note that an update’s size may vary from computer to computer when installed using Software Update. Also, some updates must be installed prior to others.
    You can also download the manual update installer. This is a useful option when you need to update multiple computers but only want to download the update once. These versions of the standalone installers are available from Apple Support Downloads.

    Additional Information

    This update is recommended for all OS X Mountain Lion users, and includes new features and fixes:
    Facebook
    • Single sign on for Facebook
    • Adds Facebook as an option when sharing links and photos
    • See Facebook friends’ contact information and profile pictures in Contacts
    • Facebook notifications now appear in Notification Center
    Game Center
    • Share scores to Facebook, Twitter, Mail, or Messages
    • Facebook friends are included in Game Center friend recommendations
    • Added Facebook “Like” button for games
    • Challenge friends to beat your score or achievement
    Other new features
    • Adds Power Nap support for MacBook Air (Late 2010)
    • iMessages sent to your phone number now appear in Messages on your Mac*
    • You can now add passes to Passbook (on your iPhone or iPod touch) from Safari and Mail on your Mac*
    • FaceTime can now receive calls sent to your phone number*
    • New shared Reminders lists
    • New sort options allow you to sort notes by title, the date you edited them, and when you created them
    • Dictation now supports additional languages: Mandarin, Cantonese, Spanish, Korean, Canadian English, Canadian French, and Italian
    • Dictionary app now includes a French definition dictionary
    • Sina Weibo profile photos can now be added to Contacts
    * Requires iOS 6

    General fixes
    The OS X Mountain Lion v10.8.2 update also includes general operating system fixes that improve the stability, compatibility and security of your Mac, including the following fixes:
    • Adds an option to discard the changes in the original document when choosing Save As
    • Unsent drafts are now opened automatically when launching Mail
    • Receive Twitter notifications for mentions and replies from anyone
    • URLs are shortened when sending tweets from Notification Center
    • Notifications are disabled when AirPlay Mirroring is being used
    • Adds SSL support for Google searches from the Smart Search Field in Safari
    • Adds a new preference to have Safari launch with previously open webpages
    • Resolves an issue that may cause the “Enable Autodiscover” checkbox to always remain checked
    • Enables access to the Mac App Store when Parental Controls are enabled
    • Support for @icloud.com email addresses
    • Resolves a video issue with some VGA projectors when connected to certain Mac notebooks
    • Addresses an issue that may prevent Active Directory accounts from being locked out
    • Resolves an issue that may cause the policy banner to re-appear prior to logging in
    • Improvements to SMB
    • Addresses an issue with NIS users when auto-login is enabled
    • Addresses an issue in which the Keychain may not be accessible
    • Ability to pre-authenticate a FileVault protected system
    • Addresses an issue that may cause Xsan to not automatically start after migrating from Mac OS X Snow Leopard
    For information about the security content of this update, please visit this website.
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  • app store,  apple,  mac,  mac os x,  mac pro,  macbook pro

    Smooth Sailing with Mac OS X 10.8.1 Update

    August 26, 2012 /

    Earlier this afternoon I finally got around to installing the Mountain Lion 10.8.1 update on my mid-2009 MacBook Pro.

    Mac OS X 10.8.1 is a small update weighing in at less than 40MB.  The whole install process literally took 5 minutes.  My Mac Pro will get upgraded tomorrow.
    You download the update from the Mac App Store rather than the Software Update control panel.  This is a change in how updates are downloaded with Lion (10.7), Snow Leopard (10.6) and earlier versions of Mac OS X.
    If you don’t have Mac OS X Mountain Lion installed on your Mac, you can purchase it for $19.99 from the Mac App Store.  Once you have purchased Mac OS X, you can install it on any Macintosh that you own and meets the minimum technical requirements.  Double check the specs.  Not all of the new features, like AirPlay are supported on 2011 and earlier Macs.  Updates to Mac OS X are free to download.
    I’m running the 17-inch model with 8GB of RAM and a 500GB disk drive.  I chose the 17-inch MacBook Pro line, now discontinued, to give me the best of both worlds; a desktop when connected to a 37-inch HD TV and a high resolution, large screen computer when I’m at my various meetings during the month.
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  • app store,  apple,  mac,  mac os x,  macbook pro

    Targeted Full Screen Mode in Mountain Lion

    July 21, 2012 /

    According to AppleInsider, Mac OS X Mountain Lion will feature a new full screen mode that should make it a much less annoying feature for Mac users who have multiple monitors.

    In Mountain Lion, you will be able to select which of your two or more monitors you want to be active when you enter full screen mode.

    “Apple’s solution in Mountain Lion is an incremental band-aid, but does expand the usefulness of Full Screen mode to users who connect to external displays. New in Mountain Lion is the ability to target which screen you want to go Full Screen in. In the screen shots above, Safari was taken full screen on an externally connected HDTV.
    This allows notebook users, for example, to connect to a big external display and use it for Full Screen work. Unfortunately, all the other screens are still blanked, but there isn’t a simple fix to addressing this in a sensible way. “

    In Lion, when you entered full screen mode, the primary display was the one that was used in full screen mode, blanking out any external monitors.  This feature is really annoying for, say, MacBook users who used an external monitor in addition to the MacBook’s display.  While not a complete solution, it will be a little bit better in Mountain Lion.
    Mac OS X Mountain Lion is expected to go on sale next week exclusively in the Mac App Store.  Mountain Lion will cost $19.99 for all Mac users with compatible hardware.
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  • apple,  ilife,  mac,  mac os x,  macbook pro

    iPhoto ’11 Updated to Version 9.3.1

    July 14, 2012 /

    Apple has released a maintenance update to iPhoto ’11 for Mac OS X.

    • Addresses a problem during the migration of albums from MobileMe Gallery that may cause photos to be moved from their original events to a new event called “From MobileMe”
    • Fixes an issue that in rare cases could cause 
    iPhoto ’11 is $14.99 from the Mac App Store.  The update is free to all customers who purchased iPhoto ’11 from the Mac App Store.
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  • apple,  mac,  mac os x,  macbook pro

    Apple Releases Golden Master OS X Mountain Lion to Developers

    July 10, 2012 /

    Earlier today, Apple released what is intended to be the final version of the next major OS X upgrade to developers.

    The “golden master” release of Mac OS X Mountain Lion, now more hiply referred to simply as “OS X Mountain Lion”, was released to developers for their final review.  The release has no know issues and is largely expected to be the version that will ship to customers later this month when he software goes on sale in the Mac App Store for $19.99.

    A list of major features can be found on the Apple website.  As with Lion before it, the “iOS-ification” of Mac OS X continues as Apple further blends the familiar interfaced used on the iPhone and iPad into their desktop and notebook Macintosh system software.

    When Mountain Lion goes on sale, it will support the following Macintosh models.

    • iMac mid-2007 and newer
    • MacBook late 2008 Aluminum or early 2009 and newer
    • MacBook Pro mid and late-2007 and newer
    • Xserve 2009
    • MacBook Air late 2008 and newer
    • Mac mini early 2009 and newer
    • Mac Pro early 2008 and newer

    Be advised that not all models of hardware will be able to take advantage of all of the new features such as AirPlay.  AirPlay will only work on mid-2011 models of Macs and the second and third generation Apple TV boxes. Bummer.

    For the full list of hardware and feature specific feature requirements, visit the Mountain Lion technical specifications page for more details.

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  • apple,  ios,  ipad,  iphone,  mac,  mobileme,  windows

    MobileMe Closed Down, iWork is Next

    July 2, 2012 /
    Yesterday marked an important milestone in Apple’s cloud strategy; the shuttering of MobileMe.  The iWork website is next on the chopping block and is currently scheduled to be shutdown on July 31.

    iCloud, introduced last year along side iOS 5 is the replacement for MobileMe and iWork.  MobileMe used to be a $99/year subscription service for synchronizing all sorts of information between your Macs, PCs and iPhones.  Even though the MobileMe service is, for all intents and purposes, “closed,” subscribers can still login to the MobileMe.com website and migrate their data over to Apple’s new iCloud service.

    iWork.com was launched in 2009 as a way for  iWork ’09 users to share their iWork documents with others.  Visitors to the iWork.com website are greeted a warning banner that the service is closing down at the end of the month.  iWork.com users were also notified via email that they will need to download their documents or risk losing them.

    MobileMe has not been the shining star that Apple had hoped it would be.  In Walter Isaacson’s autobiography of the late Apple co-founder, Steve Jobs, it is recorded that Walt Mossberg’s headline regarding MobileMe was “Apple’s MobileMe Is Far TooFlawed to Be Reliable.”  Anyone who has followed Steve Jobs “second act” at Apple knows that a headline was not going to be allowed to stand. Mr. Isaacon also recounts Mr. Jobs f-bomb laced furry at the MobileMe team.

    I was never a subscriber to MobileMe, as the $99 annual price tag seemed a bit steep for an email account, cloud storage, and personal data syncing, especially since Google offered similar services for free. (And I was a Palm Pre/webOS user at the time.)

    MobileMe users can start their iCloud migration from MobileMe.com.
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  • apple,  mac,  mac os x,  macbook pro

    Apple Unveils OS X Mountain Lion

    February 17, 2012 /

    In a move that surprised many, Apple today announced the next major release of Mac OS X 10.8, Mountain Lion.

    With Mountain Lion, Apple continues to blur the lines between OS X and iOS, so much so, the advertising tag line is, “Inspired by iPad. Re-imaged for Mac.”

    With more than 100 new features to look forward to, Mountain Lion is going to be a must upgrade for Mac users with modern hardware (2009 and later).  The tentpole applications for Mountain Lion include deep iCloud integration, Messages (replacing iChat), Reminders and Notes (taking over for features in the Mail application), Notification Center, Share Sheets, deep Twitter integration, Game Center, AirPlay Mirroring (requires a second generation Apple TV), and Gatekeeper.

    Additionally, the Software Update control panel will be making the jump from a stand alone application to a feature inside the Mac App Store application – just like the software update feature in iOS.

    You can read more about the major features of OS X 10.8 on Apple’s Mountain Lion website.

    With today’s announcement, Apple has made Messages available as a free download to Mac OS X 10.7 Lion users.  You can download Messages for OS X from the Apple website.

    While Apple was publicly talking about Mountain Lion today, they weren’t talking release schedules or pricing.  Apple was only saying, “OS X Mountain Lion arrives this summer.”  Mountain Lion, like Lion before it, will be available only as a purchase from the Mac App Store.  Registered developers can download a beta version of OS X Mountain Lion starting today with a $99/year paid subscription.

    I remember when Apple first started talking about how Lion was going to bring many of the iOS features to OS X and was not really looking forward to ‘dumbing down’ my Mac.  But Lion has been a nice upgrade and I’m perfectly comfortable with it, so much so, I’m looking forward to getting Mountain Lion installed sooner rather than later.

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  • apple,  lion,  mac,  mac os x

    Apple Releases Mac OS X Lion 10.7.3 Update

    February 11, 2012 /

    Earlier this week, Apple released the third update to their Lion operating system for the Macintosh.

    Mac OS X Lion 10.7.3 is a maintenance release for all Macs running the Lion operating system and Apple recommends installing the update if you are running a prior release of Lion.

    You can download the OS update using the Software Update control panel on your Mac, or you can download the update from the Apple website.  Mac OS X 10.7 Lion can be purchased from the Mac App Store for $29.99 (requires Mac OS X Snow Leopard 10.6.6 or later to purchase and upgrade).

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  • apple,  itunes,  mac,  mac os x,  macbook pro,  windows

    Apple Releases iTunes 10.4.1 Update

    August 29, 2011 /

    With all the fun and excitement that we’ve been experiencing here on the east coast (earthquakes, hurricanes, and power outages) you may not have seen that Apple has released a maintenance updates to iTunes 10.

    The maintenance update to iTunes 10.4.1 fixes issues with things like the addition of artwork, unresponsiveness when purchasing HD movies, issues launching iTunes after waking your Mac, VoiceOver support, and issues between iTunes and some third-party keyboards with multimedia controls.

    The 12MB update is available now via the Apple Software Update control panel.

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