Reading Time: 5 minutesHey folks!
Patch Tuesday has come again, including anywhere from four to eight updates for Windows and Office, including an out-of-cycle update released last week to correct an IE stability issue introduced in last months patch cycle. If you haven’t installed these updates already, do so now. Most of these are security updates. A reboot is required.
http://update.microsoft.com/
Please be sure to install all the necessary “optional” updates, which can only be included if you select “Custom” when the page initially loads.
Apple released several security updates to Mac OS X yesterday, as well as a driver update for wireless keyboards. Use the “Apple Updater” to get the most recent versions of all the affected software.
Java 6u17 was released last week. This is a security update. All users should update ASAP:
http://www.java.com/en/download/installed.jsp?detect=jre&try=1
Adobe released a patch to the Shockwave Player to version 11.5.2.602 over the weekend. While they do not provide a changelog, it should be assumed to be a security update. Get it here:
http://get.adobe.com/shockwave
Be sure to uncheck any toolbars, add-ons and other “offers” both during download and during installation.
Internet updates:
One or more of these are likely to be of interest to everyone.
Firefox 3.5.5 was released last week (shortly after the 3.5.4 release). This update includes security and stability fixes, including remote exploits. If you have Firefox installed, you are advised to update ASAP.
Mozilla Firefox: Help > Check for Updates
http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/
Trillian 4.0.0.119 was released over the weekend. The only significant change is better support for the Facebook integration. Soon the update will be available to download directly, or you can queue an installation by closing and re-opening Trillian.
http://www.trillian.im/download/
FileZilla 3.3.0 was released today. This is not a security update. This version corrects several stability and reliability issues. If you’re using FileZilla as your FTP solution, upgrade now:
http://filezilla-project.org/download.php?type=client
Media updates:
These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.
Paint.NET 3.5 was released last week. This release focused on improving performance and reliability, reducing memory usage, upgrading to the latest .NET Framework version, and refreshing the user interface for Aero and glass (Windows 7 / Vista). This is not a security update. If you’re using Paint.NET, you’ll want the new version:
http://www.getpaint.net/
Any Video Converter 2.79 was released yesterday, providing faster and more reliable transcoding from various media formats. This is not a security update. But if you’re using AVC, you’ll want the update:
http://www.any-video-converter.com/products/for_video_free/
FRAPS 3.0.1 was released over the weekend, too, introducing full Windows 7 and DirectX 11 support. FRAPS is a video capture driver for DirectX and OpenGL interfaces. For most people this is less than useless, but for educators wanting to create tutorials for Windows Vista and 7, or gamers creating walk-throughs or “Machinima” (animated movies with their own story-lines based on video-game characters and settings taken directly from a game), this is really an amazing break-through.
http://www.fraps.com/download.php
Utility updates:
These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.
GMail Drive 1.0.15 resolves login issues with the previous version introduced as a result of Google’s new authentication system. I’ve been using GMail Drive recently to share files I need available 24/7 with my iPhone. Sure, iDisk (a part of MobileMe) is supposed to provide similar functionality, but frankly, MobileMe has been a HUGE let-down, and I have to manually upload each file I want available through iDisk through a web-based interface. With GMail Drive I need only drag and drop the file into a drive that shows up under Windows Explorer. Extremely simple!
http://www.viksoe.dk/code/gmail.htm
What I would really like to see in the next version is something closer to an SVN/CVS shell overlay so I can sync files automatically with GMail Drive or iDisk (but preferably GMail Drive) without having to remember to do so manually each time the file is updated.
Avast! Home Edition 4.8.1358 was released last week. This is a security update. This build corrects several security and stability problems in the previous version. If you’re using Avast, upgrade ASAP:
http://www.avast.com/eng/avast_4_home.html
UltraVNC 1.0.8.0 was released last week. This corrects several stability issues, some of which would have resulted in the server machine requiring a reboot to return to full functionality. If you’re using UltraVNC, you’ll want to upgrade:
http://www.uvnc.com/download/index.html
Developer updates:
These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.
MySQL ODBC Connector 5.1.6 came out yesterday. This is a stability and version-compatibility update to work with the newer releases of the MySQL server. If you’re using MySQL, chances are you’re using this on your development and/or production machines and don’t even know it, but should update at your convenience. While no significant changes should be seen directly, the added support for new MySQL language features is enough to make it worthwhile.
http://dev.mysql.com/downloads/connector/odbc/5.1.html
Web Package Updates
These are likely to be of interest only to web developers.
If you haven’t done so yet, please be sure to update your WordPress 2.8.5, WordPress MU 2.8.5.2 and phpMyAdmin 3.2.3 packages to the most recent versions. There are automated exploits being used to attack vulnerabilities in the previous versions.
That’s all for now folks. Keep it clean out there. 😉
Regards,
Shawn K. Hall
https://SaferPC.info/
https://12PointDesign.com/
