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TidBITS Watchlist: Notable Software Updates for 21 August 2017

CleanMyMac 3.8.6 — MacPaw has released CleanMyMac 3.8.6, improving compatibility with 1Password and LaunchBar and ensuring that Dropbox’s cache is correctly ignored when added to the ignore list. The all-purpose cleaning and maintenance app now correctly updates free space in the CleanMyMac 3 menu, makes sure to recalculate the cleaned size on cleanup completion screens, fixes a bug that changed the application size to zero within the Uninstaller if selected via the context menu, and resolves an issue where SIP (System Integrity Protection) locations were not ignored by the macOS Localizations cleanup. ($39.95 new or included
in the $9.99-per-month Setapp subscription service, free update, 10.9+)

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Alfred 3.4.1 — Running with Crayons has issued Alfred 3.4.1, which prevents incompatible workflows (those that contain an older version of a third-party Alfred Workflow library) from loading in macOS 10.12.4 Sierra and later. The keyboard-driven launcher also updates the JSON output script format with new features, updates the snippet database cache correctly when snippet triggers are duplicated, enables the Snippet Trigger feature to be connected to input objects, and fixes the Screen Saver system command in 10.13 High Sierra. (Free for basic functionality, £17 for Powerpack, 2.7
MB, release notes, 10.9+)

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Mactracker 7.6.6 — Ian Page has released Mactracker 7.6.6 with detailed information about major Apple hardware updates from the past couple of months, including the iMac and all MacBook flavors (see”Apple Beefs Up iMac and MacBook Lines, Teases the iMac Pro,” 6 June 2017), as well as the iPad Pro (see “Apple’s 10.5-inch iPad Pro Aims for the Sweet Spot,” 10 August 2017). It also covers the most recent updates to Apple operating systems (see “Apple Releases macOS 10.12.6, iOS 10.3.3,
watchOS 3.2.3, and tvOS 10.2.2
,” 19 July 2017). (Free from the Mactracker Web site or the Mac App Store, 91.8 MB, release notes, 10.7+)

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Bookends 12.8.3 — Sonny Software has issued Bookends 12.8.3, updating the reference management tool to work with the upcoming release of Mellel 4. The release also displays a warning if you try to batch-import too many PDFs from the JSTOR digital library (to prevent you from seeming like a Web robot), improves URL detection in references retrieved from Google Scholar, fixes a bug in Autofill From Internet that could result in an SQL error, resolves an issue that could cause an extra square annotation to
be added to a PDF when adding a note, and fixes a bug that prevented you from retrieving file names in the attachments field via Apple events. ($59.99 new with a 25 percent discount for TidBITS members, free update, 37.4 MB, release notes, 10.7+)

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Microsoft Office 2016 15.37 — Microsoft has issued version 15.37 of its Office 2016 application suite, adding the Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) feature to Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. When you click a Web link in these apps, the ATP safe links service inspects it to see if it’s malicious and then either allows access to the link or redirects you to a warning page instead of the original target URL. (This is much like the Google Safe Browsing technology that Google Chrome, Safari, Firefox, and Opera all use to check pages for potential threats.) Word also adds the new Researcher feature (find it on the Reference tab), which helps you find topics and incorporate reliable sources and content for research papers. ($149.99 for one-time purchase, free update through Microsoft AutoUpdate, release notes, 10.10+)

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