Apple Releases first Mac OS X 10.5 (Leopard) Update

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Just three weeks after releasing Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard, Apple on Thursday released the first update for the new operating system.

According to Apple, Mac OS X 10.5.1 addresses issues with Airport, Back to My Mac, Disk utilities, iCal, Mail, Networking, Printing, Security and Firewall, System and Finder, and Time Machine.

The System and Finder received several updates including addressing a potential data loss issue when moving files across partitions in the Finder; resolving an issue with login after turning off FileVault for a specific user account; improving compatibility with Adobe Flash-based uploaders used by .Mac Web Gallery and certain other websites and applications; and resolving a potential text drawing issue with certain Adobe Flash-based websites and applications.

Apple’s Mail application also received a hefty amount of updates in 10.5.1. Mail includes improvements to stability when resizing columns in the message viewer or switching between Stationery templates in email messages; addresses an issue in which attachments enclosed inside an HTML link may not be clickable in email messages; fixing an issue with email accounts added using the “Simple Setup” feature in which messages cannot be sent due to an SMTP connection failure; improves Smart Mailboxes compatibility with .Mac Sync, and addresses an issue with To Do’s disappearing when using Smart Mailboxes; and resolves an issue with syncing Mail accounts with .Mac in which multiple On My Mac folders appear in the Mailbox pane.

Time Machine, Apple’s new file backup introduced in Leopard, was updated to address formatting issues with certain drives used with Time Machine (specifically, single-partition MBR drives greater than 512GB in size as well as NTFS drives of any size and partition scheme). The update also resolves an issue in which files restored in Time Machine may be restored to the backup hierarchy rather than the folders to which they belong.

Mac OS X’s Firewall update addresses a code signing issue; third-party applications can now run when included in the Application Firewall or when whitelisted in Parental Controls.

Changes to Airport include the ability for password-protected accounts on AirPort Disks to show up on in the Finder’s Shared Sidebar and the update resolves an issue with saved passwords for wireless networks. Back to My Mac has been updated to allow Back to My Mac-enabled Macs appearing in the Finder’s Shared Sidebar. The update also improves compatibility with D-Link NAT gateways.

iCal has been updated to resolve an issue when inviting attendees via a CalDAV account and to more reliably deliver alarms via email. A networking issue in which Microsoft Windows shared folders may be read-only when connected via SMB has also been fixed.

There are several small changes to Disk utilities including restoring the functionality of the progress bar while repairing permissions. Finally a printing issues in which user-selected values on Paper Feed PDE are reset to default while saving a custom preset.

Mac OS X 10.5.1 can be downloaded from Apple’s Web site or via the Software Update mechanism in Mac OS X.