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So, the reveal date is officially announced. We all get to find out what all the hype is about next Wednesday beginning at 1pm EST/10am PST. From Engadget:

We’re not ones for wild speculation, but the inclusion of splatter paint and the use of the word “creation” could suggest that if we do see the long-rumored Tablet at this event, the focus could be slanted towards art, music, and movie-making. Maybe we’ll finally figure out what the point of an Apple tablet is! On the other hand, that might just be a bit of wild speculation. Feel free to generate your own kooky concepts in comments — we promise not to judge you.

If you want to get a good recap of all the rumours that have been circulating: Apple Tablet Rumours

Should be very fun and interesting. I suspect this will be Steve Jobs’ coming out presentation – they wouldn’t dare give this to Phil Schiller would they?

THIS JUST IN: Fox News reporter Clayton Morris is reporting that the event may also introduce a new version of the iPhone OS 4.0 as well as iLife 2010:

I spoke to a source at Apple this morning, before the invite hit my inbox, who said the event would likely focus on three projects: The tablet device, iPhone 4, and a new round of iLife 2010 software. While we won’t see new iPhone hardware just yet, we will see the next-generationsoftware.

Whoopie!!!

It’s been about a month-and-a-half since Snow Leopard (10.6/10.6.1) has been in the wild. As I’ve written and suggested about every major upgrade (or even update) – BACKUP is CRITICAL. Apple tests it’s software in controlled conditions and it’s impossible to anticipate every scenario. That being said a particularly nasty bug (not a virus or anything like that, but a software glitch) has made it’s appearance. It seems that for users who upgrade from an existing 10.5 system i.e. you had 10.5 on your system and you upgraded to 10.6 as opposed to wiping your drive out and starting from scratch or buying a new machine with 10.6 pre-installed AND have utilized the GUEST account system it is possible to LOSE ALL OF YOUR DATA if you log into the Guest account and then log out:

Reports have been cropping up on the Apple Support forums that users have been losing all their data due to a nasty bug in Snow Leopard, Apple’s latest Operating System. Many users are reporting that all settings are being reset and most data is gone, according to iTWire.

The problem, can easily be reproduced when a user logs into the ‘guest’ account, either on purpose or by accident, and when they log back out of the account and back into their normal one, they find that their account has been fully reset with all data wiped and lost – the account is like a brand new one. The home directory still exists under “/Users/username” but is completely empty.

Users are reporting that the data is unrecoverable and cannot be found anywhere on the hard drive, and the only way to restore it is if the user has been performing backups on a separate hard-drive. Apparently the problem has been present since a few days after launch, as the forum post dates back to 12th September

Apple has acknowledged the issue:

“We are aware of the issue, which occurs only in extremely rare cases, and we are working on a fix,” an Apple representative said in a prepared statement Monday.

The notion of the issue as ‘rare’ is being challenged since it seems to be easily reproducible. More from the Neowin site that’s reporting it:

It seems the only work around at this stage is to disable the Guest account, or at least disable it and then re-enabling it so that it’s a native Snow Leopard account. Another suggestion is to create a new account and enforce parental controls, if you really need a temporary account.

It’s not clear how many users are affected, but it seems like any user who had Leopard before the upgrade, and had the guest account enabled are affected and are at risk.

Update: CNet has published a method to restore the files from a Time Machine backup to a new, identical user profile. If you have lost files due to this problem, and have an intact backup please follow the steps found here – the restore process may take over two hours to complete.

Update #2: For those who are concerned that they could be affected, our recommendation is to disable the guest account fully. If you require it though, make sure you make a complete backup of your hard disk before you try the account again if you upgraded from Leopard to Snow Leopard, just to be safe.

Again – the importance of Backup can never be overstated. It is a critical aspect of computing today. Data loss can strike at any moment from a random hardware failure to lurking software bugs. If you buy a new machine you have to buy a companion hard drive to go with it for back up or use an online service to back up your critical files. Email services like Google or Google Premier or any IMAP-based system ensure your mail is backed up as well. Apple’s Operating System since 10.5 basically begs users to back up their information using Time Machine when an external device is attached. Please heed the warning.

Again, to reiterate about this current issue:

To avoid the bug, while Apple continues to work on fixing it, it is suggested to disable any accounts without passwords (e.g. “guest” account) and do not log in and out of any such accounts.

Apple posted Mac OS X 10.5.8, a collection of security and bug patches that’s available in 10.5.8 Combo and Server Comboversions, as well as incremental updates for Macs running 10.5.7. Apple’s advice:

You should back up your system before installation; you can use Time Machine.
Do not interrupt the installation process once you have started to update your system. You may experience unexpected results if you have third-party system software modifications installed, or if you’ve modified the operating system through other means.

What’s included in this update:
*Upgrades Safari to version 4.0.2.
*Improves the accuracy of full history search in Safari 4.
*Resolves an issue in which certain resolutions might not appear in the Display pane in System Preferences.
*Dragging an Aperture image into Automator now invokes an Aperture action instead of incorrectly invoking an iPhoto action.
*Resolves an issue that could prevent importing of large photo and movie files from digital cameras.
*Improves overall Bluetooth reliability with external devices, USB webcams and printers.
*Addresses an issue that could cause extended startup times.
*Improves iCal reliability with MobileMe Sync and CalDav.
*Addresses data reliability issues with iDisk and MobileMe.
*Improves overall reliability with AFP.
*Improves overall reliability with Managed Client.
*Improves compatibility and reliability for joining AirPort networks.
*Improves Sync Service reliability.
*Includes additional RAW image support for several third-party cameras.
*Improves compatibility with some external USB hard drives.
*Includes latest security fixes.

Please heed the warning!

A couple of programmers revealed at the Black Hat cybersecurity conference in Las Vegas this week (actually earlier than that – they felt Apple wasn’t listening and they were going to reveal the vulnerability publicly) the following security flaw in the iPhone’s new 3.0 software:

The flaw reportedly affects not only the iPhone but also other phones running Windows Mobile and Google’s Android operating system, although the iPhone has gained the most significant publicity regarding the issue due to its high-profile status.

As disclosed by Charlie Miller and Collin Mulliner, the vulnerability lies in the modification of data that accompanies text messages and is not seen by the user. Because most operating systems use similar mechanisms to handle SMS data, the vulnerability affects a range of operating systems and devices.

Apple has released a patch to this security issue. If you plug in your iPhone iTunes will detect the 3.0.1 update (beware those of you with unlocked and jailbroken iPhones – you may find your phone unusable after the update – if you don’t know what that means then you probably won’t be affected).

They walk the parks at night with flashlights on their heads and buckets at hand. They’re trolling for worms!

But they won’t find Conficker in the ground. Perhaps you’ve heard of it or have been hearing about it. 60 minutes just ran a scare piece on it on Sunday – I’ve provided the segment in it’s entirety:



Supposedly one of the nastiest worms to hit computers since, well, the last nastiest worm to hit computers. It has infected some 500, 000 computers already! Microsoft has offered a $250,000 bounty for the creators of the worm. Come April 1st this dormant worm is set to receive some kind of instruction to do…nobody knows. Maybe something nasty like steal all the world’s credit card information – or maybe nothing.

Well, not all computers. Not Macs! Yes folks, for those of us who use the best operating system and application suites on the planet – you’re safe! Even with all the new shiny Mac laptops and Mac desktops out there, the increased share of the market hasn’t yet attracted an infection by this little bugger. The Mac remains the safest operating system to use. However…

…Mac users who run Windows on their Macs are at the same risk as those running Windows on PCs.

In other words, if you run Windows on your Mac via Boot Camp, Parallels Desktop or VM Ware Fusion your Windows partition is vulnerable. Now, if your Windows section does become infected it won’t infiltrate the Mac side – you may have to wipe your Windows operating system and start again (at the very least disinfect it), but the Mac remains safe. It is highly recommended that you run all the Windows security updates as well as update or install the latest anti-virus and anti-spyware software for Windows. If you’re really scared, just unplug your computer from the internet the night of March 31st or shut off your wireless connection and wait it out.

Click on the link for a great FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) on Conficker from CNET. They provide a background on this beast and best practices to deal with this new potential threat. For example, for Windows users Panda Security has released a free “vaccine” tool for blocking viruses that spread through USB drives. Microsoft has a Conficker removal tool. Again, the Mac OS itself is NOT under threat.

 

There is a MobileMe phishing scam roaming the net in an attempt to get users to part with their credit card information. Basically, a user receives an email telling them their MobileMe account is about to expire or their credit information needs to be updated:

In another attempt to con MobileMe users into providing their credit card information, a scammer has sent out spam spoofed to appear to come from Apple, which directs users to a fake site designed to look like Apple’s. Users who follow the email link and enter their information on the poorly formatted, fake Apple web page will be sorry.

Please check out Apple Insiders expanded story on this: NEW PHISHING SCAM TARGETS MOBILE ME USERS

Some people have been reporting iTunes quitting when trying to sync their iPhone to their computer following the application of the latest 2.2.1 firmware. If you happen to be affected by this issue check out the following note from Apple:

Dear Customer,

Recently, we uncovered an issue which was causing iTunes to unexpectedly quit when synced with an iPod or an iPhone. This issue impacted a small number of users, and we have identified your account as potentially being affected.

If you have experienced this issue, please follow these steps in order to sync your iPod or iPhone with iTunes:
1. Launch iTunes
2. Select “Deauthorize Computer” from the Store menu 
3. Enter your iTunes Store Account ID and Password, then click the Deauthorize button 
4. Next, choose “Authorize Computer” from the Store menu 
5. Enter your iTunes Store Account ID and Password, then click the Authorize button

Once you have successfully deauthorized and reauthorized your computer, you should be able to sync your iPod or iPhone to iTunes.

I sincerely apologize for any inconvenience that you may have experienced as a result of this issue.

 

Thank you for being an iTunes Store customer.
iTunes Store Team

Another tip to ensure the issue is remedied is to purchase a free app from the App store via the iTunes application before syncing your iPhone/iPod Touch. This should be done after the above actions been taken.

see the tears roll down the street… – Elmore James

So, after a tumultuous flurry of concern and then reassurance, Steve Jobs has announced he is taking a leave of absence from Apple until June:

Team,

I am sure all of you saw my letter last week sharing something very personal with the Apple community. Unfortunately, the curiosity over my personal health continues to be a distraction not only for me and my family, but everyone else at Apple as well. In addition, during the past week I have learned that my health-related issues are more complex than I originally thought.

In order to take myself out of the limelight and focus on my health, and to allow everyone at Apple to focus on delivering extraordinary products, I have decided to take a medical leave of absence until the end of June.

I have asked Tim Cook to be responsible for Apple’s day to day operations, and I know he and the rest of the executive management team will do a great job. As CEO, I plan to remain involved in major strategic decisions while I am out. Our board of directors fully supports this plan.
I look forward to seeing all of you this summer.

Steve

I only wish him well. Tim Cook, Apple’s Chief Operating Officer, has been overseeing the day to day operations for some time so not much will change there. At least Steve will still be involved and the fact that there will be no more keynotes means we don’t have to listen to another one by Phil Schiller. I was there, I felt for him, but on a charisma scale of 1-10, Phil was a 2. You do not want him introducing new products.

I’m sure many are concerned and will comment endlessly on what this will mean, but regardless of the final outcome – will Steve actually return – Apple is in good shape with products that have been in the planning stages for years. The sky isn’t falling, it’s crying and I hope Mr. Jobs actually gets better and returns to form.  For more links to the news see the following:

The NY Times on the announcement
Appleinsider

There is an interesting article in the recent print version of Time Magazine as well and some links on their site too.

 

Late Additions from the chattering class:

——————————————————-

The fact that Steve Jobs is not giving this year’s keynote at MacWorld was a shock to all concerned with things Apple. The official position of Apple – that the company doesn’t see the relevance of MacWorld etc… – just doesn’t seem right. Steve Jobs’s absence from the keynote – the first he has missed since 1997 – is of real concern and it is truly strange that he has not made any public statements for quite a while or commented at all about the latest developments. Gizmodo reluctantly reports that Mr. Jobs’s health situation may be much more dire than the Apple Core is letting on. I truly hope this is not the case, but the signs do not look good. In any event I’m sure we all hope that if he is deteriorating that he gets well soon or doesn’t suffer greatly. Apple will carry on. I believe it is in a great position and that there are cutting edge products in the pipeline for years to come. However, there is no doubt that if Steve is gone from the scene – in whatever manner – it will be a blow to us all. Hopefully these are just macabre rumours. If they turn out to be true I wish this visionary only the best.

Here’s a classic case of Catch 22. Apple has documented an issue with their software update feature in 10.5 – found under the Apple Menu and usually scheduled to prompt a user with newly available updates:

 

Symptoms 
  When attempting to update software using Software Update in Mac OS X 10.5, the update process may stop responding while “Configuring installation” is visible in the update window. This can occur if Software Update attempts to install an update that was only partially downloaded.

They claim the latest 10.5.6 update fixes this problem. Their solution is to use the problematic Software Update to download the update!

Resolution 
  1. Quit (or if necessary, Force Quit) Software Update. Note: If the issue occurs while installing an update after log out (such as an update that requires a restart), shut down your Mac by holding down the power button, then power it back on. 
  2. Click the Finder icon in the Dock. 
  3. From the Go menu choose “Go to Folder”. 
  4. Type: /Library/Updates 
  5. Click Go. The /Library/Updates folder opens. 
  6. Select all contents of this folder and move them to the Trash. 
  Once the above steps are complete, use Software Update again to re-download and install the update. 

To avoid this issue, download and install the Mac OS X 10.5.6 Update or later. Note that this update must first be installed to avoid the issue; the issue may occur while downloading the Mac OS X 10.5.6 Update or later.

So – keep reading the Leopard reader reports if you’re concerned about the latest update and if you’re having difficulty follow the instructions above. I also suggest downloading the 10.5.6 Combo Update as a stand-alone installation which Apple always provides to avoid the whole software update issue altogether. This is a standard and recommended practice. Here are links to Apple’s stand-alone updates (note: it’s a rather large download):

10.5.6 Combo Updater

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