Joseph Hinkle at MyITForum.com

This really does have to be some kind of record.  Two .1 releases within three months of launch?

From the link:

Rumor has it that the operating system update, the second on a list of many scheduled for Tiger, could be released within the next 45 days.

So far there is no word on which key enhancements Mac OS X 10.4.2 is expected to deliver, but tipsters said builds of the operating system should begin to surface within a week's time.

Source: AppleInsider | News Flash: Mac OS X 10.4.2 around the corner

From the link:

First, Microsoft will ship Update Rollup 1 (UR1) for Windows 2000--you know, that "thing" that replaces Win2K Service Pack 5 (SP5)--on June 1. On June 6, the company will release Windows Server Update Services (WSUS, formerly Software Update

Source: Bink.nu | Windows 2000 UR1, WSUS Coming in Early June

A very old error message that I ran into today.  I had completely forgotten about it.

From the link:

SYMPTOMS

When you close the Offline Folder Settings dialog box, you may receive the following error message: One or more folders could not be made available offline. Please try again later.

CAUSE

This error is caused when a Favorites public folder in one of your Quick Synchronization groups is removed from the computer. The folder no longer appears in the group, but the message is displayed anyway.

Source: OL2000: (CW) Error Message: One

Situation:
This document outlines compatibility between Symantec products and Mac OS X 10.4 (code named Tiger).

Solution:
The only Symantec product currently compatible with Mac OS X 10.4 is Norton AntiVirus for Macintosh 10.0.

Source: Symantec product compatibility with Mac OS X 10.4 (code named Tiger)

I think Joe is right on.  I'm pretty tired of clicking through wizards to do just about everything.  Sometimes, a single panel can tell the whole story without confusion.  Its even more fun when Microsoft as much as admits it by allowing us to opt out of the wizard for some functions in several MMC snap-ins. 

Wizards were much more useful when the idea first originated.  Things were pretty complex to set up, so breaking it down into small, manageable parts with detailed explanations was a wonderful thing for end users.  It still is in many cases,  like the Home Network Setup wizard in Windows XP.  Users do need that detailed explanation for some things.

In most cases, users don't want to be asked anything.  Every prompt they receive is an "error message".  Simple things make life better for all of us!

From the link:

Windows has so many hidden capabilities that aren't meant to be hidden. Microsoft could better expose the capabilities by designing first for "plug it in and it works for most people." If the company can lock down the browser and server software as the default setting, then surely it could set default settings for more peripherals and product features. It's impossible to satisfy all customers, so don't try. Better approach would be removing the greatest degree of complexity for the most customers.

Source: Microsoft Monitor: Wizards are for Dungeons and Dragons

Some called the arrival of Microsoft's command-line shell and scripting language, code-named Monad, the death of DOS after it was unveiled at the Professional Developers Conference in 2003. Now, the software giant is set to release its first operating system with Monad capabilities. While Monad is expected in Longhorn, the next-generation of the Windows operating system, it will also be incorporated into Windows Server 2003 R2 later this year, said analyst Peter Pawlak, of Directions on Microsoft, in Kirkland, Wash.

Source: MSFN - Monad to make a pre-Longhorn appearance

Microsoft Corp. last week officially confirmed that Office 12, the next version of its desktop productivity suite, will go into beta testing this fall and is expected to ship in the second half of next year.

Source: MSFN - Gates Announces Office 12 Timetable

The one thing I dislike the most is working on an old Installshield installer.  We recently changed our process for installing Illustrator 10 and Photoshop 7, so I'm going back and creating SMS packages to install them.  I've worked on a plethora of Adobe installations, so I didn't think it would be a big deal, but I was wrong.

As most of you know, Adobe used Abcpy.ini to provide information and configure their installers, particularly in the generation of products mentioned above.  Armed with that knowledge, I merrily set off to build my installer script.  I filled in all of the pertinent information, turned off the appropriate screens in Abcpy.ini, and fired up the installer with the /r switch to generate setup.iss for the installation.  Curiously, the installation failed.

I turned the user information screen back on, only to find that it wasn't pulling the serial number from the INI file.  After running backthrough and plugging the serial in, the install ran ok.  Off to testing, I ran the install with the ISS file in silent mode.  Installcode 0 appeared in the log, but, of course, no Illustrator. 

After digging around, it appears that this is a known issue and repackaging is the only solution.  Anyone else run into this and found a different solution?

With one click you’ll be able to subscribe to different feeds and have them automatically delivered to your iPod without using a third-party app like iPodder. You’ll be able to search through a directory of available podcasts (producers will be able to register their podcasts with the iTunes Music Store), but users will have the option of adding whatever feeds they want to iTunes.

Source: iTunes 4.9 adding support for podcasts - Engadget - www.engadget.com.

Edit:  Tim beat me to it by an hour.  I feel so slow.  We really want you to be secure.

From the link:

A day after launching Netscape 8 and touting the browser's security features, Netscape has released an update to fix several serious security flaws. The original Netscape 8, released early Thursday, is based on version 1.0.3 of the open-source Firefox browser. Netscape thought the new browser was immune to security vulnerabilities in the Firefox software that were fixed last week in Firefox 1.0.4. It turns out Netscape 8 is vulnerable.

Source: MSFN - Netscape patches 1-day-old browser

More overheating batteries.  Woo hoo!

From the link:

The recall covers roughly 128,000 units in the U.S. and was prompted by six reports worldwide (two in the U.S.) of the batteries overheating. The recalled lithium ion batteries are used with the following computers: 12-inch iBook G4, 12-inch PowerBook G4 and 15-inch PowerBook G4. The recalled batteries include those with model numbers A1061, A1078 and A1079 and serial numbers that begin with HQ441 through HQ507 or 3X446 through 3X510.

Source: MacNN | Apple announces recall of laptop batteries

Apple released a document detailing the security problems in Tiger that were fixed in the 10.4.1 release.  There are some pretty nasty ones, including the one below.  I'm glad they told us after the fact.  It's like saying "Here's a big security update.  You need it.  Trust us."

(Via  Mac News Network)

From the link:

SecurityAgent

CVE-ID: CAN-2005-1473

Available for: Mac OS X v10.4, Mac OS X Server v10.4

Impact: Users with physical access to a system with a locked screensaver can start background applications

Description: A contextual menu feature in Mac OS X 10.4 allows URLs to be opened from a text input field. This could be used to launch an application behind a locked screensaver window. This update addresses the issue by removing the contextual menu from screensaver text input fields.

Source: About the security content of the Mac OS X 10.4.1 Update

Did I ever mention that I really like Google's products?  I hope this ties together all of the technologies they've been showing off for the last year or so.  It seems to be a good first step.

From the link:

Google is launching a personalized home page tonight, which you can view now by going to the URL below. It's basically a custom portal of your own Google services, like a Gmail preview and Google News highlihgts, as well as Word of the Day, Weather, and Wired News updates (they must be pretty happy about that).

Source: Gizmodo

There's a nice article at MacDevCenter about some of the major features in Tiger.  There were a few things I hadn't heard or seen, so it might be worth a look.

But that's not all there is to Tiger. The major features have nuances that haven't gotten much press, and there are a zillion minor tweaks to discuss. My goal in this article is to explore 20 new Tiger tips that you probably haven't heard about before. Even if you've had the opportunity to play with Tiger yourself, I bet you'll discover some new tricks herein.

Source: MacDevCenter.com: 20 Cool Tiger Features You Might Not Have Heard About