wednesday 28 june 2006
Dear All -
I'm pleased to report that this mailing now goes out to well over 250 people, and again I'm pleased to
welcome a number of new clients since the previous post. (And, of course, if you DON'T want to receive
this posting - let me know!)
As always, this mailing does go out to a wide readership - some parts will be of interest to you, some will
be irrelevant. Skip the meaningless-to-you bits, and call me or email me with ANY questions.
Now to the news (a mixed bag this time!):
1. Fix for Entourage crashes
As part of a QuickTime 7.1 special report, a website covered an issue where Entourage 2004 crashes in a
repeatable fashion when attempting to change the font color or background color.
"Several users have now found that the problem can be worked around by using the Entourage menubar item
"Format" to change colors. Apparently, the crash only occurs when attempting to change colors from within
the e-mail message-specific toolbar.
MacFixit reader Peter Grether writes:
"With Quicktime 7.1 installed, it was discovered by another Apple forum member, named Willets, that you can
access the font and background color change from within the Entourage toolbar-Format, and be able to change
colors without the program crashing. So it only crashes if you attempt to change color from within the email
window.
"I reinstalled Quicktime 7.1 again and confirmed this is correct. So now I can use this feature until Apple
comes out with a fix."
2. For transferring music on vinyl disks to computer
Audiophiles might be interested in this device:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/05/24/review_ion_usn_turntable/
or via:
http://www.dv247.com/invt/30728/
3. Superdrive (reads and writes CDs and DVDs) update
Apple has released a SuperDrive 2.0 firmware update for the following Macs:
- PowerBook G4 (12 -inch 1.5GHz)
- PowerBook G4 (15-inch 1.33GHz, 1.5GHz, or 1.67GHz)
- PowerBook G4 (17-inch 1.67GHz)
- iMac G5 (17-inch 1.6GHz or 1.8GHz)
- iMac G5 (20-inch 1.8GHz)
- Mac mini G4
If you have such a machine, look at http://www.apple.com/support/downloads/superdrivefirmwareupdatev20.html
4. Other updates
4.1 Adobe posted Adobe Reader 7.0.8, an update to its PDF viewer that "adds new functionality, fixes a
number of bugs, and is more secure." Go here: http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html
4.2 Apple has just released (last night) the OS X 10.4.7 update.
4.3 Generally, Apple updates are found at: http://www.apple.com/support/downloads/. It would be worth you
looking there to see if there are any updates that you might have missed.
5. Web browser for System 9
The web browsers available under System 9 are, of course, falling behind the browsers in OS X in terms of
what web sites they can reliably show. Here's a recommendation for "WaMCom":
"I'll second Randy's recommendation for WaMCom. It's basically the only browser I've used under OS 9 for a
couple years now. And it's a fairly reliable IMAP and POP client, as well. The only drawback is that it's
based on relatively ancient (1.3) Mozilla code that hasn't been patched for any security vulnerabilities
that have been discovered since 2003."
Meanwhile, MacFixIt reader Charles likes an old version of the Opera browser. He writes:
"I have been using Wamcom for quite a while. Recently, several news sites have updated their appearance, and
it is no longer displayed correctly in Wamcom.
"I have switched (since last Friday) to Opera 6.03, still available on their website. I downloaded the free
serials they gave away a long time ago. Anyway, it is much better at displaying all websites, and is fairly
quick.
Find WaMCom at: http://www.versiontracker.com/dyn/moreinfo/macos/20136
6. Apple offers eMac Repair Extension Program for Video and Power Issues
Apple has announced a new repair program for eMac computers that exhibit a certain video or power-related
issue as a result of a specific component failure.
Apple says:
"These computers were sold between approximately April 2004 and June 2005. If your eMac is exhibiting any of
the symptoms listed below and your computer's serial number is within the noted ranges, your computer may be
eligible for repair, free of charge. If Apple or an Apple Authorized Service Provider (AASP) determines that
your eMac computer is eligible as part of the program, the repair will be covered by Apple for up to three
years from the original date of purchase even if your eMac is out of warranty. This is a worldwide Apple
program.
"Affected systems will exhibit one of the following video- or power-related symptoms:
- Scrambled or distorted video
- No video
- No power
Serial Number ranges of affected units include:
- G8412xxxxxx - G8520xxxxxx
- YM412xxxxxx - YM520xxxxxx
- VM440xxxxxx - VM516xxxxxx
For more information, see http://www.apple.com/support/emac/repairextensionprogram/.
7. My own website work and address.
As I mentioned last time, I have registered the internet domain "themacdoc.co.uk", and use that for my Mac
Doctor work. Please adjust your email address for me to: "hugh@themacdoc.co.uk". The old "orison.org" address
will continue to reach me, but will get filtered somewhere different from the Mac Doctor's emails as I want to
use it for my Simple Websites work. I have created a website for my Mac Doctor work at www.themacdoc.co.uk.
(Newsletters like this one are posted on the website after a month or so.)
On http://www.themacdoc.co.uk/links.html I have placed links to a number of client websites - let me know if
you'd like me to include your website
Updated web-page: As many of you know I sometimes take machines away from you (not because you are mis-treating
them!) but usually because you are upgrading to a more modern machine. Also I buy stock in and sometimes it
doesn't get used - a client changes his/her mind, or I get something that doesn't work in a particular
circumstance. And sometimes you ask for things I can't easily find. On my website at
http://www.themacdoc.co.uk/marketplace.html are a number of items for sale or donation. Some are brand new,
some are second hand, some are free at my garage door!
8. System 9
I'm pleased to report a small trend in clients removing System 9 from their machines as they move wholly to
OS X. This is a good thing, and to be encouraged! Can YOU finish with System 9?
Lastly, I shall be on holiday / away from my office from monday 03 july through until monday 10 july
inclusive.
OK! that's it for today.
Any questions? Let me know! Anything you'd like me to write a note on? Let me know!
Best wishes to you all, and thanks for being Mac users
hugh