Last week, Apple released Mac OS X 10.4.1 Update for the just-released Mac OS X 10.4 "Tiger" operating system. (And, of course, Apple did so within minutes of our publishing TidBITS-780. Sigh.) The standalone version of the Mac OS X 10.4.1 Update weighs in at 37 MB, but is somewhat slimmer (19.4 MB) via Software Update.
<http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html? artnum=301517>
<http://www.apple.com/support/downloads/ macosxupdate1041.html>
Mac OS X 10.4.1 Update includes significant enhancements and fixes, although users contemplating the update are strongly encouraged to read Apple's release notes and back up their systems before installing.
Fixes problems moving between access points on the same wireless network (a truly annoying problem recently noted in TidBITS Talk).
<http://emperor.tidbits.com/TidBITS/Talk/454>
Fixes a problem with computers with a long computer name from obtaining a DHCP address via AirPort.
No longer permits files, applications, or Web pages to be opened at the password prompt which appears when a Mac wakes from sleep or stops running a screen saver.
Corrects several editing issues within Apple's Mail application, as well as syncing improvements and potential conflicts with third-party plug-ins for Mail.
<http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html? artnum=301584>
iDVD no longer crashes if it is hidden while saving a disk image or burning a DVD; instead, the option to hide the application is disabled.
iSync more reliably connects to .Mac services, and now defaults to merging data on your Mac and a portable device rather than erasing the device by default.
Safari no longer crashes when Control-clicking some graphics or PDFs.
FileVault's secure erase feature states it is "Deleting old Home Folder" when deleting original files, rather than doing a very good impression of a hard crash. (For the record, we still don't advocate using FileVault; see "How FileVault Should Work," in TidBITS-719).
<http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html? artnum=301416>
<http://db.tidbits.com/article/07566>
iCal no longer crashes receiving some invitations via Mail, and changes made from Tiger to iCal calendars originally published using Mac OS X 10.3 Panther are now visible if the calendars used long names or special characters.
Improves AFP and SMB/CIFS network services, as well as login issues with Active Directory and LDAP servers.
Provides new ATI and NVIDIA graphics drivers.
Dashboard provides a workaround for the so-called "evil Widget" potential vulnerability, where a malicious Widget could compromise one's computer. Widgets are now no longer considered "safe" files to the rest of the system. However, we still encourage users to uncheck the "Open safe files after downloading" option in Safari preferences. Dashboard also responds better to scroll wheels and trackpad scrolling.