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Leopard 10.5.4 update

Yesterday Apple released OS X 10.5.4. I'm going to post the full list of changes as it's quite short. I get the impression that this is not the full list of actual changes because Apple asked developers to test more than just these areas in pre-release versions of this patch, unless those additions were taken out for some reason.

General

* Includes recent Apple security updates.
* Resolves an issue with saving and reopening Adobe Creative Suite 3 files on a remote server.
* Includes additional RAW image support for several cameras.
* Addresses an issue that may result in a partially installed X11 application.
* Improves L2TP VPN client reliability.

AirPort

* Addresses AirPort reliability issues with 5GHz networks.
* Addresses AirPort issues that may result in slower performance in Logic Studio or MainStage.

iCal

* Improves overall iCal reliability for meeting requests, cancellation notices, delegation, and syncing with iPhone.
* Resolves an issue that prevents deleting an iCal event without notifying the creator.
* Addresses an issue in which events in all calendars affect availability. A checkbox now enables information-only calendars to be transparent from free/busy lookups.
* Resolves a UI issue preventing delegated calendars from showing up as a separate window.
* Addresses an issue with copying and pasting attendees from one event to another.
* Resolves an issue in which iCal may not delete events after a specified time interval, even when set to do so in iCal preferences.
* Addresses an issue in which To Dos cannot be marked private.

Safari

* Addresses a potential performance issue when loading secure web pages.
* Resolves issues that may be encountered when accessing secure web pages with client certificates that reside on a smart card.

Spaces and Expose

* Addresses an issue in which switching from a space with a Finder window keeps the Finder as the active application instead of the application residing in the destination space.
* Fixes an issue in which dragging an application from the list of application assignments in Spaces System Preferences does not assign the application to the desired space.
* Resolves an Expose issue that may result in only a subset of windows being shown.

Delta installer (88 MB)
Combo installer (561 MB)

The combo updater is recommended for safety. Usual warnings apply - clone your system before installing, don't update in the middle of a project and if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Tiger users today received the Security Update 2008-004 patch which was included in the above update for Leopard.

PPC
Intel

This update marks a milestone for me. I always wait until at least version x.x.4 of an operating system before upgrading to it for professional use. This gives Apple time to iron out bugs and improve stability and gives third party developers time to make their software compatible with the new OS. So I will now be thinking about upgrading. It's complicated, however, by the fact that I am still on a G5 PowerMac and have a fair amount of PPC software that cost an arm and a leg to buy, so what I will probably end up doing is buying an Intel Mac Pro and gradually upgrading my software packages one at a time.