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Apple has posted a new update, 10.5.4 for Leopard users that is stated to resolve an issue with saving and reopening Adobe Creative Suite 3 files on a remote server. This issue has resulted in corrupted Photoshop and InDesign files when documents have been saved over a network volume.

The update should show when running Software Update and is available as a stand alone installer from Apple Support Downloads. The stand alone installer is 88MBs while the combo installer is 561MB.

The 10.5.4 update also includes recent security updates as well general operating system fixes that enhance the stability, compatibility and security of your Mac. The 10.5.4 Update is recommended for all users running Mac OS X Leopard. Additional info about the update is here.

Original post by PSN Editorial Staff

Major Upgrade Features Improved Interface, Faster Browsing & Enhanced Image Processing

Press Release: CUPERTINO, California—February 12, 2008—Apple® today introduced Aperture™ 2, the next major release of its groundbreaking photo editing and management software with over 100 new features that make it faster, easier to use and more powerful. With a streamlined user interface and entirely new image processing engine, Aperture 2 also introduces new imaging tools for highlight recovery, color vibrancy, local contrast definition, soft-edged retouching, vignetting and RAW fine-tuning, and lets users directly post their portfolios on the .Mac Web Gallery* for viewing on the web, iPhone™, iPod® touch and Apple TV®. At a new low price of $199, anyone can easily organize, edit and publish photos like a pro.

“Many of the most respected photographers on assignment all over the world trust Aperture to organize, edit and deliver their images,” said Rob Schoeben, Apple’s vice president of Applications Product Marketing. “With its simpler interface and lower price, anyone can take full advantage of Aperture’s power.”

“At the end of the day, it’s all about the quality of the image,” said Sports Illustrated contributing photographer David Bergman. “Even before I begin making adjustments, Aperture’s new RAW processing gives me better images with more visible detail and better color rendering than any other program I’ve tested.”

“I used to have so much stress about post-production on a shoot, having to juggle multiple applications to make sure they all worked,” said Bob Davis, PDN Top Knots Wedding Photographer 2007. “With Aperture that’s no longer a factor. I can do everything all in one application.”

Featuring a new, easier user interface designed to be more intuitive and accessible, Aperture 2 now lets users navigate between Viewer and Browser modes with a single key command. Screen real estate is maximized for images with an all-in-one heads up display that allows users to toggle between library, metadata and adjustment controls in a single tabbed inspector. The All Projects view, modeled after iPhoto’s Events view, provides a poster photo for every project and the ability to quickly skim through the photos inside, and the integrated iPhoto® Browser offers direct access to all the events and images in the iPhoto library.

Performance has been enhanced in Aperture 2 so it’s faster to import, browse and search large volumes of images. Embedded previews let photographers caption, keyword and rate images as they are being imported, and with the ability to export images in the background, photographers can continue working while images are processed to JPEG, TIFF, PNG and PSD file formats. Quick Preview allows users to browse RAW images in rapid succession without having to wait for files to load, and the Aperture library database has been re-architected to provide fast project switching and near instantaneous search results, even when working with extremely large libraries of 500,000 images or more.

Aperture 2 delivers powerful new imaging tools for getting the most out of each photograph. Apple’s next-generation RAW image processing is at the core of Aperture 2 offering uncompromising image quality and precision controls that let users fine-tune the image profile for each of their cameras. New tools for improving and enhancing images include Recovery for pulling back “blown” highlights, Vibrancy for selectively boosting saturation without adversely affecting skin tones, Definition, which offers local contrast for adding clarity to images, Vignette & Devignette filters for providing professional visual effects and a true soft-edged Repair and Retouch brush for quickly and easily removing blemishes, cleaning up sensor dust and cloning away problem areas.

Aperture 2 works seamlessly with Mac OS® X, iLife®, iWork™, .Mac and Apple print products, so any image in the Aperture library can be accessed directly from within other applications, such as iMovie®, Keynote® and Pages®, and even from within Leopard™ Mail. Now with .Mac Web Gallery support, Aperture users can publish their photos once to view them on the web, iPhone, iPod touch and Apple TV. Books in Aperture 2 feature new theme designs, layout tools, customized dust jackets (including full-bleed) and foil stamped covers.

Pricing & Availability
Aperture 2 is available immediately for a suggested retail price of $199 (US) through the Apple Store® (www.apple.com), Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers. Owners of previous versions of Aperture can upgrade to Aperture 2 for just $99 (US). Full system requirements and more information on Aperture 2 can be found at www.apple.com/aperture.

Original post by PSN Editorial Staff

Apple has released the OS X 10.5.2 update (available in Software Update or the Combo Update).

From the web site:

About Mac OS X 10.5.2 Update
Add a new Mac to your Mac. Mac OS X v10.5 Leopard is packed with over 300 new features, installs easily, and works with the software and accessories you already have.

What’s New in this Version
The 10.5.2 Update is recommended for all users running Mac OS X Leopard and includes general operating system fixes that enhance the stability, compatibility and security of your Mac.

For detailed information on this update, please visit this website: http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=307109

Early indications are that the update addresses certain text field issues with Photoshop CS3 (10.0.1)

Original post by PSN Editorial Staff

Mac OS X is safer today — but not necessarily more secure for the long term — than Windows

Source: InfoWorld
Written by Matt Hines

As Apple continues to grow its worldwide market share and the company’s products find their way into more business environments, attackers are certain to follow and create greater volumes of exploits aimed at vulnerabilities in the company’s software, security experts contend.

According to industry analyst firm Gartner, Apple shipped just over 1 million Mac OS X-based computers during the fourth quarter of 2007, a gain of 227,000 over the fourth quarter of 2006. The analyst firm reported that Apple’s U.S. market share for 2007 jumped by 28 percent compared to 2006, rising to just over 6 percent.

And with Apple CEO Steve Jobs stating at last week’s Macworld Expo and Conference that the company has already sold 4 million iPhones and 5 million copies of Leopard (Mac OS X 10.5), its latest OS, since launching the products last year, the company’s prospects look stronger than ever.

However, malware researchers and industry analysts warn that as the sheer number of Apple end-point devices in use worldwide rise, so will the security concerns tied to the company’s products.

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Original post by PSN Editorial Staff

Source: ZDNet
Posted by Adrian Kingsley-Hughes

Data released by Net Applications for December 2007 tells us something that most of us already knew - that Mac is on a roll and gaining momentum every month.

While we should be careful about drawing market share conclusions from the Net Applications data (because this data only tells us what computers and operating systems are used to access a broad selection of web sites), month on month the Mac OS has seen stronger numbers.  Back in January 2006 Mac stood at 4.21%, by December 2006 this had risen to 5.67%, and then to a robust 7.31% by December 2007.  Either Mac users are surfing the web more, or the market share is growing.  Given how Net Applications collects this data, it’s safe to assume that market share has grown roughly in proportion with these figures.

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Original post by PSN Editorial Staff

Source: CNET
Written by Tom Krazit

The first update to Mac OS X Leopard has arrived, with fixes for bugs in Time Machine and Finder, among other things.

Version 10.5.1 is now available through Software Update or on Apple’s Web site. It’s a 110MB update that smooths out some of the more notable bugs reported in the first three weeks of Leopard’s life on the planet, and it arrives just one day after Apple shipped what will probably be the last update for Tiger, Mac OS X 10.4.11.

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Original post by PSN Editorial Staff

Apple has posted a TechNote for users of OS X 10.5 Leopard with Time Machine and Aperture. By extension, it also applies to Adobe Photoshop Lightroom users as well.

Issue or symptom

Running Time Machine backup or restore operations while Aperture is running may lead to inconsistencies in the Aperture database.

Products affected

• Aperture
• Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard

Solution

If you use Time Machine with Leopard, be sure to set Time Machine to exclude the Aperture Library from automatic backups. To do so:

1. Open Time Machine.
2. Click the Options button.
3. Click the “+” button in the Do not back up window.
4. Use the resulting file browser to navigate to the location of your Aperture Library. The default location is ~/Pictures/Aperture Library (where “~” represents your home folder).
5. Click the Exclude button.
6. Click the Done button.

Note that this means that your Aperture Library will not be backed up by Time Machine. Be sure to manually back up your Aperture Library.

Read original TechNote

Original post by PSN Editorial Staff

Source: Macworld
Written by Rick LePage

As Leopard gets out into both the developer and user communities, we’re seeing a few cautionary notes from developers regarding compatibility and performance. Recently, Apple and Adobe issued advisories regarding their respective image management and catalog applications, Aperture and Photoshop Lightroom…

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Original post by PSN Editorial Staff

Source: CNET
Written by Tom Krazit
Progress is measured in steps both big and small. The smaller ones may get less attention, but they are much easier to take.

It’s been a year of big steps for Apple. The company dropped the “Computer” from its name in January as a way of showing Apple was no longer just about the Mac, and the clear priority for 2007 in Cupertino was to get the iPhone out the door and selling briskly. Then, perhaps for kicks, it decided to overhaul its entire lineup of iPods.

Later today, Apple will take a smaller step, with the launch of Mac OS X 10.5, code-named Leopard. Leopard’s coming on scene later than expected, almost 30 months after Tiger (Mac OS X 10.4) launched in April 2005, in part due to the push to get the iPhone out in time. CNET’S review is in, and my colleagues Elsa Wenzel and Robert Vamosi are positive.

There are dozens of important new features in Leopard, perhaps most notably the Time Machine application that could make it easier for users to back up and restore their files. Backing up your files is generally a simple exercise with a external hard drive, but Time Machine is interesting because of the friendly way in which it lets you restore files, flying back in time (and space) to the last instance in which that file was saved.

But all the reviewers, including Apple favorites Walt Mossberg at The Wall Street Journal and David Pogue at The New York Times, felt compelled to point out that Leopard is very much an evolution of previous versions of Mac OS X, and not a dramatic breakthrough like some past releases. It’s certainly nothing like the tectonic shift Microsoft users went through in the switch from Windows XP to Vista, or Windows 98 to XP.

That can come off as a negative assessment. But it’s not.

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Original post by PSN Editorial Staff

As Apple gears up to release its OS X 10.5, nicknamed ‘Leopard,’ it is reminding Boot Camp users that the utility will expire when Leopard is shipped

Source: InfoWorld
Written by Gregg Keizer, Computerworld

Apple kicked off the month in which it plans to launch its new Mac OS X 10.5, “Leopard,” OS by reminding users that the beta license for Boot Camp — the utility that runs Windows XP or Vista on an Intel Mac — will expire as soon as the new operating system ships.

The news was no secret: Apple had spelled it out on the Boot Camp download page and in the EULA (end user license agreement) included with the beta and posted on the Apple site. “The term of this License … will terminate automatically without notice from Apple upon the next commercial release of the Apple Software, or December 31, 2007, whichever occurs first,” the EULA states.

According to Apple, Windows partitions already installed on Macs using Boot Camp will continue to work, but the Assistant software, which sets up and manages those partitions, will not once the license expires. “And Apple will not offer driver updates to beta users,” said company spokesman Anuj Nayar. However, Nayar did not respond to questions about whether Apple will make a final version available to Mac OS 10.4 users, and if so, at what price.

A support document posted last week only said: “The license to use Boot Camp Beta expires when Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard is available to the public. To continue using Boot Camp at that time, upgrade to Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard.”

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Original post by PSN Editorial Staff