OS X 10.8.3 Released

 

OS X 10.8.3 Update
OS X 10.8.3 Update

Apple has released 10.8.3. Fixes a lot of issues, especially the one in which you could make a browswer crash by inputting a file address. You can download it from the Mac App Store, or if you want the combo link (updates any version of mountain lion) you can download it from Apple’s Website. I always like to grab the combo update and put it on my USB flash drive so I can update any family member or friends mac, without having to download additional updates.

Skype 5 Beta hits OS X

Skype Icon High Resolution

When Skype 5 Beta hit Windows, I was really upset that it didn’t hit OS X. The reason for that was the video conferencing, which is a really cool feature. Today thanks to my friend Michael, I learned that it has finally made its way over to my favorite Operating System. The startup screen and the main application window look much better! Finally Skype users on Mac OS X can rejoice as Skype has a long history of taking its sweet time with Mac OS X and Linux releases. Anyways you can download the beta here!

MacX Video Converter Pro Giveaway

MacX Video Converter Pro

Again the friendly people at MacX (Digiarty) have created a giveaway and this time I am more on time with posting it! There are six (6) days left to nab yourself a free copy of this video converting software for OS X. There are 420+ codecs built in so it can convert many types of video files. The converter supports many outputs and youtube conversion. So give it a try if you are always converting videos.

MacX Video Converter Pro Giveaway

Apple announces FaceTime for Mac

FaceTime Mac OS X

Today at the Back to the Mac event Apple introduced a couple of new things, one of them being Facetime for Mac OS X. This means you can now use your Mac to make free phone calls to iPhone 4, iPod touch, and other Mac users. I find this really cool, it is a step up from skype, and is free anywhere in the world. You can download the beta today, and start using it.

I just tried it and it’s pretty cool, looks like they just ported it from the iPhone 4/iPod Touch and just made some modifications to the interface. One thing that I found annoying is that you can’t just type in a number or email you want to FaceTime with, it has to be in your address book, or in your recents tab. Other than that it works well! You do have to sign up for an account, if you don’t already have an Apple Id.

What to expect at the Back to the Mac event Oct 20th, 2010

Back to the Mac.

Next Wednesday there is going to be a Back to the Mac event at Cupertino. They have teased the interwebs with this picture. Many claim that Apple wants to let you know that they are not just focusing on iOS devices (according to RBC though they are having a hell of a quarter thanks to the new iPhone 4), and that their Mac product line is just as important.

To start things off the rumor mongers have been saying that Apple might announce the next iteration of their OS X probably calling it lion as you can see in the picture above. To me this is a clear statement that the new operating system is not just a simple upgrade, and should have a slew of new features and optimizations. I feel that the gpu acceleration they wanted to introduce will make it into the cut of new features. Also hopefully a native 64 bit kernel that boots without the “6,4” boot trick. Finally when I had an SSD, I felt that OS X did not handle it well, and maybe it should implement TRIM or something like it. This news has got me so excited, and I just can’t hide it.

One More Thing… Apple Insider, Engadget, and all other tech blogs are reporting a hardware announcement. This hardware is the new Macbook Air which has been sized down to 11.6 inches and might run on a flash based memory called an SSD card. Hopefully they also announce a refresh to the Macbook pro lineup, and jump on ship for USB 3.0. Anyways this will all be happening at 10AM Pacific Timing on October 20th, 2010. So If I were you going to buy a mac in the next couple of days/weeks, don’t!

How to restore iTunes Library

Today I formatted my Mac Pro, and I always run into a problem with my iTunes Library. I like to keep it off my system drive as it is a small 120gb ssd drive. When I try to tell set my iTunes folder to the other hard drive it does not recognize the library and has no songs. This is made even more frustrating when Apple decides to keep updating the folder structure (9.2 in this case). So here is how to fix your iTunes library.

1. Copy the files and folders inside the iTunes folder to the system drive and click on replace all.

2. Click on the iTunes Library file.

3. Now iTunes should open up and have your library intact and will probably update it to the new format.

4.Copy it back to the location you wish to have it at.

5.Press option (shift on pc) while opening iTunes and it will ask you which iTunes library you want to load.

6.Click Choose Library…

7.Find the iTunes folder you want and click on the iTunes Library file.

8.Now it should be working fine, you can delete the old folder!

WinX HD Video Converter for Mac Giveaway

WinX HD Video Converter for Mac Icon

Today was the third Sunday of June, which means it was father’s day around the world. I made sure to contact my father and wish him a happy father’s day and let him know that he is appreciated. Sophia from WinX contacted me again and let me know that they are promoting their new converter software by giving it away on father’s day. Just by looking at the specs, this video converter can just about convert any file (it even supports Blu-ray .mts, m2ts files) to any output including preconfigured outputs for media devices (iPhone, iPad, Sony PS3,  Xbox 360, Zune HD, Blackberry, etc). It has the a similar interface as their other software, so if you have used any of their software it should be familiar. I think the Icon is really snazzy and reflects well with OS X’s great icon design. I would suggest that the interface be made more Mac like as reminds me of boilsoft applications on Windows. I know this application will come in handy because I do a lot of converting, especially when devices don’t support specific HD containers such as MKV.

To take advantage of this offer (which ends July 1, 2010) Visit the WinX HD Video Converter for Mac Giveaway page.

WinX HD Video Converter for Mac Screenshot
Click on image for full size

Os X 10.5.7 Released!

Finally I’ve been waiting for this for a couple of days! This update fixes many things (look below). Here are the download links

10.5.7 Delta Update (Must have 10.5.6 To install this upgrade) 443mb

105.7 Combo Update (Any version of 10.5) 729mb

To figure out which version of Leopard you are running. Click on the apple logo in the top left of the screen and click about this mac. (Below is an Example)

The Version of the operating sytem will be displayed like this (mine is currently 10.5.6)
The Version of the operating sytem will be displayed like this (mine is currently 10.5.6)

Address Book

  • Improves reliability of Address Book syncing with iPhone and other devices and applications.

AirPort

  • Improves the reliability of AirPort connections, including improvements when roaming in large wireless networks with an Intel-based Mac.

Client management

  • Improves reliability of synchronizing files on a portable home directory.
  • Fixes an issue in Mac OS X 10.5.4 and 10.5.5 in which managed users may not see printers that use the Generic PPD.
  • Client computers that use UUID-based ByHost preferences now respect managed Screen Saver settings.

iChat

  • Addresses an issue that could cause an encryption alert to appear in the chat window.
  • Setting your iChat status to “invisible” via AppleScript no longer logs you out of iChat.
  • Resolves an issue in which pasting text from a Microsoft Office document could insert an image rather than text.

Graphics

  • Includes general improvements to gaming performance.
  • Includes graphics improvements for iChat, Cover Flow, Aperture, and iTunes.
  • Includes fixes for possible graphics distortion issues with certain ATI graphics cards.

Mail

  • Includes overall performance and reliability fixes.
  • Improves Connection Doctor accuracy.
  • Fixes an issue that could cause messages identified as junk to remain in the inbox.
  • Fixes an issue that could cause Mail to append a character to the file extension of an attachment.
  • Addresses an issue that could prevent Mail from quitting.
  • Improves reliability when printing PDF attachments.

MobileMe

  • Contacts, calendars, and bookmarks on a Mac automatically sync within a minute of the change being made on the computer, another device, or the web at me.com.

Networking

  • Improves Apple File Service performance, especially when using a home directory hosted on an AFP server. Important: If you are using Mac OS X 10.5.6 (client) to connect to a Mac OS X Server 10.4-based server, it is strongly recommended that you update the server to Mac OS X Server version 10.4.11.
  • Improves the performance and reliability of TCP connections.
  • Improves reliability and performance for AT&T 3G cards.
  • Updates the ssh Terminal command for compatibility with more ssh servers.

Printing

  • Improves printing for the Adobe CS3 application suite.
  • Improves printing for USB-based Brother and Canon printers.

Parental Controls

  • Addresses an issue in which a parentally-controlled account could be unable to access the iTunes Store.
  • Includes general fixes for time limits.
  • Resolves an issue that prevented adding allowed websites from Safari via drag and drop.

Time Machine

  • Fixes issues that could cause Time Machine to state the backup volume could not be found.
  • Improves Time Machine reliability with Time Capsule.

Safari

  • Improves compatibility with web proxy servers.


General

  • Includes Mac OS X security improvements. See this website for more information.
  • Addresses inaccuracies with Calculator when the Mac OS X language is set to German or Swiss German.
  • Improves the performance and reliability of Chess.
  • Improves DVD Player performance and reliability.
  • Performance improvements for iCal are included.
  • Fixes an issue when running the New iCal Events Automator action as an applet.
  • Adds a Trackpad System Preference pane for portable Macs.
  • Improves compatibility with smart cards such as the U.S. Department of Defense Common Access Card.
  • Updates time zone data and Daylight Saving Time rules for several countries.

Freeagent Desk Mac OS X Icon

Today I thought well if the freeagent desk drive comes with an icon for windows, there should be a nice icns version for mac, however I was wrong. So I made one which turned out ok. However the edges aren’t so great, but you can’t tell unless you open it in an image editing program. (The icon is in icns format) So enjoy this and if you want to know how to change your icons of a drive. folder, application just follow my tutorial here

free-agent-Mac-Icon

Freeagent Desk Mac OS X Icon (2303 downloads )