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TidBITS Watchlist: Notable Software Updates for 29-Jun-09

Tinderbox 4.7.0 from Eastgate Systems is a significant update to the personal content assistant. Maps and charts receive a slew of new features including added shapes, fill materials, and support for Dashboard. Also, new smart adornments help manage and organize your maps by automatically gathering, sorting, and arranging notes and then extracting pertinent information, setting or removing tags, or even posting messages on Twitter. Finally, the update brings a new Chart view, improved handling of link labels, and a speed bump for agents, actions, and rules. ($229 new, free updates for purchases within the last year or $90 otherwise, 28.7 MB)

Airfoil 3.3.1 from Rogue Amoeba is a minor maintenance update to the audio distribution tool. The update provides compatibility with AirPort Express 7.4.2 firmware and Apple TV 2.4 firmware; the auto-transmit checkbox under Preferences now works correctly with speakers that disappear; and Airfoil no longer sends initial fake timing packets to work around firewalls. Also, several issues have been addressed including multiple Video Player problems related to dragging in a new movie and one with deadlocked speaker threads. ($25 new, free upgrade, 11.3 MB)

Apple TV 2.4 is an update to Apple’s home media center. Most notably, the latest version includes support for the iPhone/iPod touch Remote app, enabling users to control an Apple TV with finger gestures. The update also adds Flickr search capabilities, new View categories, and enhanced transport and chapter modes. The update is available via Apple TV’s Software Update menu.

The Missing Sync for iPhone 2.0.2 from Mark/Space updates the Mac-to-smartphone syncing software to add voicemail and voice memo archiving and transfer capabilities, and provides full support for iPhone OS 3.0. A bug that could prevent syncing in Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger has been fixed, as has one that could cause a crash when syncing Notes with Entourage. Note that encrypting backup files in iTunes 8.2 (set on the Summary tab for the iPhone in iTunes) prevents The Missing Sync from being able to read data from the iPhone. This update is downloaded automatically by The Missing Sync. ($39.95, $29.95 crossgrade, free update)

Time Capsule and AirPort Base Station Firmware Update 7.4.2 from Apple is a maintenance update that fixes a handful of minor bugs. Issues addressed include unspecified problems with connecting to extended networks, connectivity issues with third-party devices, an unspecified issue that occurs when the base station is configured for PPPoE, and Back to My Mac support for third-party routers. Apple suggests that AirPort Utility 5.4.2 or later be installed before upgrading to firmware version 7.4.2. The update can be downloaded via AirPort Utility > Check for Updates. (Free)

Final Cut Pro 6.0.6 from Apple is a minor maintenance and compatibility update to the professional video editing software. The update fixes issues with real-time playback for users working with early 2009 Mac Pro and Xserve models. (Free, 19.15 MB)

Camino 1.6.8 from The Camino Project is a security and stability update to the Mac-focused, Gecko-based Web browser. Improvements include an upgrade to the Mozilla Gecko rendering engine version 1.8.1.22, which contains a handful of security fixes, and enhanced ad blocking. Also, the stored cookie list now displays despite the presence of invalid cookies, the Downloads window now remains open when the Customize Toolbar dialog is visible, and typing to select an item now works correctly in SELECT controls with OPTGROUP elements. (Free, 15.3 MB for English-only or 19 MB for multilingual)

BBEdit 9.2.1 from Bare Bones Software is a maintenance and stability update to the powerful text editor. Four crashing bugs have been fixed, including one that occurred when dragging items into a project list, one that could happen when opening the Find window from the scripting interface, one that appeared when an SFTP server returned invalid UTF-8 file names, and one that popped up when using the Open with Finder action from project and browser lists. Plus, a bug that prevented users from setting a Sleep key command has been fixed, the Replace commands now properly update the search history, and a progress dialog now appears when upgrading the Application Support folder contents.
($125 new, free update, 15.4 MB)

MacBook Pro EFI Firmware Update 1.7 from Apple addresses an unspecified issue affecting a small number of users using 3 Gbps SATA drives in June 2009 MacBook Pros. Apple clarifies: “While this update allows drives to use transfer rates greater than 1.5 Gbps, Apple has not qualified or offered these drives for Mac notebooks and their use is unsupported.” The download is available via Software Update or via the Apple Support Downloads page. To update your firmware, follow the instructions located in the updater application which launches after the installer closes (/Applications/Utilities/MacBook Pro EFI Firmware Update.app). (Free, 3.35 MB)

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