Mountain Lion 10.8.3 Update

Apple released their third update this week for OS X Mountain Lion (10.8.3). This version brings along a few bug fixes that some users have been experiencing with 10.8.2, as well as some new features (which is mostly what we get excited about).

The first new feature allows you to redeem your iTunes gift cards using an iSight camera. Now, you can just take a photo of the card in the Mac App Store, and the system will then identify the number and redeem it!

In the past, you would need to redeem the card by typing in the number. Pretty interesting, since a lot of things these days seem to be moving toward submitting information visually. (Did you know you can now deposit checks via your phone through your bank’s app by simply taking a photo of the check? Crazy!)

Boot Camp will now support Windows 8 and drives that are over 3TB, which was a previous limitation.

If you were having issues with the File:/// URL bug, which causes applications to crash, that has now been fixed. The stuttering audio issue for many 2011 Macs has now been resolved as well.

For all you gamers out there with one of those fancy MacBook Pros with a Retina Display, Apple has updated the SMC firmware, which fixed a problem where users were experiencing slow frame rates when playing graphic-heavy games.

If you have Mountain Lion and would like to update your software to the latest version simply click the apple in the upper left hand corner of your screen and select “Software Update” from the menu. This will open the Mac App Store and give you the option to update the software there. Enjoy!

Similar Posts

  • iPhoto '11 New Features Overview

    iPhoto ’11 was released today at Apple’s Back to Mac press conference as part of the new iLife ’11. Some of the standout new features include:

    New Full-Screen Modes iOS-like full-screen mode for editing and viewing photos Use every inch of your display to browse and edit your photos. This is much more advanced than the full-screen editing available in previous versions of iPhoto. More screen real estate means a bigger workspace for perfecting each shot or creating nifty iPhoto projects.

    Facebook Enhancements – Share your photos and view comments without ever leaving iPhoto. iPhoto and Facebook are now even better friends. iPhoto even shows you all of your Facebook photo albums, including the ones you published using another application. You’ll always know which photos you shared (or didn’t share) on Facebook, because iPhoto keeps track of that for you.

    Emailing Photos – iPhoto now includes eight Apple-designed themes that you customize with your own images and words. Rearrange photos with a simple drag and drop, adjust the image mask, or change the size and style of your text. Plus, iPhoto optimizes your message so it’s never too big to send. iPhoto also works with popular email services like MobileMe, Gmail, Yahoo! Mail, Windows Live Hotmail, and AOL. And since iPhoto keeps track of all your email messages with photos, you’re free to open a sent message, make changes, and share it with someone new, anytime you want.

    New Slideshows – New animated themes — like Holiday Mobile, Places, and Reflections — give your photos movement and help you avoid typical, photo-by-photo, fade-in, fade-out slideshows. Each shot is centered and framed perfectly, thanks to face detection. And the animated themes include their own soundtracks, so your photos and music play together flawlessly.

    Big Leap in Books iPhoto ’11 makes it even easier to create professional-quality books using your own photos. Building your book starts with a new dynamic Theme browser. Pick a theme, and an even smarter Autoflow instantly goes to work, placing your images for you. Higher-rated images are featured more prominently. Photos taken on the same day appear together. And all the while, face detection ensures that photos of people are cropped and framed properly. Change the background color, font, layout, and more. Add eye-popping full-bleed, two-page spreads.

    Letterpress Cards – For the first time, traditional printing techniques join modern digital photography on a large scale. With iPhoto ’11, you can create custom letterpress cards personalized with your photos and text. Each iPhoto letterpress card is made from premium paper and produced using a centuries-old printing method. Then it’s digitally processed with your photos and text. iPhoto letterpress cards are available in 15 beautifully crafted themes complete with matching envelope. There’s just something about the elegant look and feel of a letterpress card.

    As John Gruber from Daring Fireball tweeted: “Can you imagine any other computer company offering letterpress as a mass-market printing technology?”

    iLife is a $49 upgrade for existing Mac users, and comes free with every new Mac. It’ll be listed on our site for sale and shipment shortly.

  • iPad: My First Impressions

    I picked up an iPad Saturday at our Waitsfield store, and eagerly ripped open the box to start exploring. At first glance the…

  • Skype on the iPhone

    With the introduction of the iTunes App Store some time ago, the iPhone and iPod Touch became even more useful devices. Anyone could…