Since the release of Apple’s latest operating system, Snow Leopard (10.6), there have been two main patches. These have both been relatively minor in terms of fixes and changes, though the latest update, 10.6.3, aims to be a bit more substantial when it comes to upgrades.
As discovered by Hardmac forums, the beta of the 10.6.3 update includes OpenGL 3.0 support, bringing many more graphical capabilities to the operating system. As AppleInsider noted, graphics cards found in Mac computers support OpenGL 3.0, so the only step now is to improve the software somewhat; a step being taken in the latest update. So far, 22 out of 23 extensions are now supported, though the majority of the associated OpenGL 3.0-specific functions are yet to have support in 10.6.3.
Backwards compatibility is said to be there in 10.6.3, as one would expect; in addition to that, support for OpenGL 3.1 is at 12 percent, whereas OpenGL 3.2 is a bit further, sitting currently on 33 percent. If you’re a Mac user, the latest update will hopefully become available soon, as Apple seems to be progressing quickly with it.
Coming in at two months after their previous update, Apple have today released their latest major update for Snow Leopard, which also arrives with a security patch that includes their previous OS X release, Leopard.
The Snow Leopard update to 10.6.2 arrives with a host of fixes that are aimed at improving the reliability of the operating system itself, while others are aimed at technical bugs related to Apple software that comes pre-loaded (Mail, Safari), as well as improvements to iWork, iLife, Aperture, Final Cut Studio and fixes for some graphical and font issues.
Fixes included in the Snow Leopard update:
- an issue that caused data to be deleted when using a guest account
- an issue that might cause your system to logout unexpectedly
- Spotlight search results not showing Exchange contacts
- the reliability of menu extras
- an issue in Dictionary when using Hebrew as the primary language
- shutter-click sound effect when taking a screenshot
- an issue with the four-finger swipe gesture
- an issue adding images to contacts in Address Book
- an issue in Front Row that could cause sluggish or slow frame rates hile watching videos
- creation of mobile accounts for Active Directory users
- reliability and duration of VPN connections
- general reliability improvements for iWork, iLife, Aperture, Final Cut Studio, MobileMe, and iDisk
- overall improvements to VoiceOver performance
- this update addresses video playback and performance issues for iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2009) and iMac (27-inch, Late 2009) computers that may occur in some situations while AirPort is turned on
You can find the full list of Snow Leopards fixes at Apple’s website, the 10.6.2 update can be downloaded manually from Apple here or via Software Update in Snow Leopard.
The released security update fixes a list of flaws in numerous software used on both Leopard and Snow Leopard for applications such as Quicktime, plus included features such as Spotlight, to add to a number of other parts of the OS X system.
The security update is included in the Snow Leopard 10.6.2 update, but for Leopard users, you can download the update via the Software Update utility or by downloading it manually from Apple here.
Apple has released a second beta version of the next Snow Leopard update (10.6.2) to its developers, according to AppleInsider.
According to users of this beta build, the new update has improved almost 150 “general focus areas” since the last update, 10.6.1, was released only weeks ago. These include updates to core services like Time Machine, Spaces and Front Row as well as several applications including the new QuickTime Player, Photo Booth and Address Book.
AppleInsider also reports that the update particularly focuses on Wireless Wide Area Network (WWAN) support for mobile data services and adds enhancements to MobileMe, iDisk, Exchange support and NTFS and WebDAV filesystem support.
Finally, the new update fixes performance and stability issues that are largely tied to drivers and OSX’s OpenCL compiler, includes a number of security patches and bugs including updates to the software update service, printing and parental controls, and fixes a bug caused when switching between applications using the Dock.
Users across the internet have reported several issues with Snow Leopard since its release in August 2009, with the first update, 10.6.1 being issued to users just days after launch. This initial update fixed numerous issues including an outdated version of Adobe Flash that shipped with the operating system.
No expected release date has been issued for the 10.6.2 update at this time.
