SMU Mac Users

iOS 6.1 Exchange Bug

Ian Aberle — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 15:51:52 +0000

Apple has admitted there is a bug with Exchange in the last release of the iOS. Users have reported that the 6.1 update has been draining their batteries quickly and excessively connecting to Exchange servers. Looks like the cause of the problem steams from when a user would respond to a recurring calendar event with a Microsoft Exchange account.

On the plus side, there is a quick fix while you wait for a official patch from Apple:

Go to Settings > Mail, Contacts, Calendars.
Select the Exchange account from your Accounts list.
Turn the switch for Calendars to OFF.
Wait ten seconds.
Turn the switch for Calendars back to ON.

Hopefully this will help users experiencing the problem and Apple should have a patch soon.

Apple Releases OS X Lion v10.7.5 Update

Ian Aberle — Thu, 20 Sep 2012 16:45:43 +0000

Yesterday, Apple released a new update to Lion. In an effort to not leave those who haven’t migrated to Mountain Lion behind, the OS X Lion v10.7.5 Update provides the new Gatekeeper security feature, improve Wi-Fi reliability for iMacs (models from late 2009 and newer), fixes an issue using Spotlight to search an SMB server, improve compatibility connecting to Active Directory servers (hopefully no more waiting 15 minutes to authenticate to an AD server) and also updating passwords for AD clients, resolve a video issue with some VGA projectors when connected to certain Mac notebooks, plus several other updates and fixes. You can read the entire list of fixes at http://support.apple.com/kb/HT5313?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_US

The 10.7.5 update is recommended by Apple for all OS X Lion users.

Anti-Virus for Mac OS X?

Ian Aberle — Mon, 27 Aug 2012 20:03:38 +0000

Some people would argue that you don’t need anti-virus software for your Mac, but I would disagree. In the past, the Mac OS’s lack of popularity has made it not worth the effort for those writing virus software. As the Mac OS is now more popular than ever on campus, those computers and devices make a much more attractive target.

While there are many good commercial solutions for protecting your Mac, a new freely available anti-virus solution for Mac OS X has been released. ClamXav uses the popular ClamAV open source antivirus engine to assist in it’s virus detection. This allows ClamXav to scan for both Mac and Windows OS based viruses. Even better… It’s FREE.

If you want to try it out, you can download it from the Mac App Store or the developer’s website. Currently the developer is not had any reports of conflicts with current anti-virus software, so if you are currently using another solution, you can try this with minimal risk.

Apple Announces iPad Event

Ian Aberle — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 23:56:17 +0000

Coming March 7, 2012 to Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco will be the new iPad. With the tagline, “We have something you really have to see. And touch.,” Apple sent out notices to this invitation only event.

Will we be seeing the highly anticipated Retina display iPad? Touch Home button? Faster Dual-core A5X or, even better, Quad-core A6 chip? Siri? We will just have to see on Wednesday, March 7th.

Safari 5.1.2 Update Available

Ian Aberle — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 18:14:00 +0000

If you’ve been plagued by memory leaks and stability issues with Safari, this latest update should help. According to the Knowledge Base:

This update contains various improvements, including fixes that:

Improve stability

Address issues that could cause hangs and excessive memory usage

Address issues that could cause webpages to flash white

Allow PDFs to be displayed within web content

The latest update can be downloaded at http://www.apple.com/safari/download/ or through your Software Update. A restart is required.

Steve Jobs (1955–2011)

Ian Aberle — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 02:10:39 +0000

Apple has confirmed Steve Jobs has passed away. He had been battling pancreatic cancer for several years. He was only 56. Apple is encouraged people to share memories of him by emailing to rememberingsteve@apple.com.

Special on-campus demonstration of Mac OS X Lion presented by Apple, Inc.

Ian Aberle — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 15:28:00 +0000

The world’s most advanced desktop operating system advances even further.

Multi-Touch gestures make interacting with your Mac easier and more natural than ever.
Full-screen apps help you focus on your content without any distractions.
Mission Control gives you access to everything running on your Mac from one place.
Auto Save and Versions make working with documents even easier.

See all these features and Many More!

Thursday, Sept. 15th
Hughes-Trigg Forum
10am-12pm & 1pm-3pm

SMMUG Info Session

29942956 — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 01:12:40 +0000

Hey Apple enthusiasts,

SMMUG (Southern Methodist Mac User Group) is back and ready for the new school year!

We’ll be having our first meeting of the semester this coming Friday, September 2nd, in Hughes-Trigg Atrium AB from 3-4pm.

At the meeting, we’ll discuss officer elections and the general direction of the group for the upcoming year. Also, we’ll watch a documentary about the life and career of former Apple CEO, Steve Jobs.

As always, if you have questions about any Apple products, come to the meeting and we can answer them.

Hope to see you there!

Jonathan Landon

SMMUG President 2009-2011

MacDefender in Apple’s sights (Mac Security Update 2011-003)

Ian Aberle — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 15:02:35 +0000

You might have seen Security Update 2011-003 in your Software Update. Don’t hesitate to download and install this update.

Is this app in you Applications folder?

This update helps quarantine that MacDefender malware that has been making news of late. According to the KB article HT4657 KB article HT4657, the update adds the OSX.MacDefender.A definition to the malware check within File Quarantine. Also, the system will now check for malware on a daily basis and “this update will search for and remove known variants of the MacDefender malware. If a known variant was detected and removed, the user will be notified via an alert after the update is installed.”

You can also download the update manually at http://support.apple.com/kb/DL1387

Mac Utilities

29942956 — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 16:17:53 +0000

As mentioned at the meeting, here is the link to a rundown of all the built-in Mac utilities: The Definitive A-X Guide to Your Mac Utilities Folder

Enjoy!