News Flush

Stuff that found its way into my inbox today:

Via pfig, 10.4.3 is out (Software Update lists it at 56.8MB):

The 10.4.3 Update delivers overall improved reliability and compatibility for Mac
OS X v10.4 and is recommended for all users.

It includes fixes for:

- AFP, SMB/CIFS, NFS and FTP network file services
- AirPort and Bluetooth wireless access
- Core Graphics, Core Audio, Core Image, and RAW camera support
- disc recording when creating and burning media
- .Mac sync services
- Spotlight indexing and searching
- Dashboard widgets: Dictionary, Flight Tracker, Stickies, and Unit Converter
- Address Book, AppleScript, Automator, Dictionary, Font Book, iCal, iSync, Mail,
   and Safari applications
- Disk Utility, Keychain Access, Migration Assistant, and Software Update
- compatibility with third party applications and devices
- previous standalone security updates

My favorite fix (right after the Acid2 support): "Addresses an issue in which high ASCII characters in a password could lead to a blue screen at startup, or prevent log in.". A blue screen? Oh boy.

I'm going to try it on my iBook first, just in case. More news:

Telenor bought Vodafone Sweden. The resulting company will still be under a Vodafone partnership agreement.
In the meantime, Telefonica grabbed O2, which is particularly interesting for personal reasons. I will be tracking this one closely to see what happens to their service portfolio...
The Eolas idiocy is still ongoing.
The iTunes Music Store is likely to change its name soon, now that it hit the one million mark in video sales. One million in a little over two weeks - I guess there's some form of demand there, much to the chagrin of naysayers...
Engadget on the JackPC I wrote about earlier.
The Blackberry/8700 Cingular advertisement. For what it can do, US$299 is a steal, but if you'd rather have a Pocket PC, check out a review of the latest 6700 series iPAQ (via Peter van Impelen).

Tao of Mac

News Flush