Mac OS X 10.3.7 (#11): Another cause of slow startup, another solution; Combo updater for missing FireWire devices; more

Another cause of slow startup, another solution We continue to cover instances of slow or completely stalled startup that manifest after applying the Mac OS X 10.3.7 update.

Another cause In the case of MacFixIt reader Tim Westen, the presence of Apple Pro speakers was the primary cause of slow-down. He was able to temporarily resolve the issue by removing a specific kernel extension, AppleDallasDriver.kext, from his System/Library/Extensions/ folder.

Westen writes:

"I have experienced a particular start-up delay problem with 10.3.7 and some prior updates. In my case it relates to a long standing problem that I have with my Apple Pro Speakers where the OS insists that I unplug and re-plug the speakers as they 'are not recognized'. Needless to say no amount of unplugging and re-plugging makes any difference. The speakers themselves seem to function perfectly normally; to my ears at least.

"One side effect of this problem is a longer start-up time while the system tries repeatedly to initialize the unrecognized hardware. The fix in my case is to move the AppleDallasDriver.kext out of the Extensions folder. Result: No warning messages and no start-up delays [...] In my case the problem will generally reappear each time Apple releases a new version of the AppleDallasDriver.kext in one of the incremental Mac OS X updates."

Solutions

Launching an application spurs startup? MacFixIt reader Mike reports an odd situation where launching an application after the Dock loads, but before other interface components such as the menubar appear (a point in the startup process where many users experience a stall), spurs the startup process to continue more quickly.

He writes:

"My start-up screen has gone from 3 minutes max to about 15 minutes plus. I found if I open an application from the dock which is accessible despite no menu bar showing at the top of the screen, it seems to have a "kick-start" function."

Combo updater for missing FireWire devices Re-applying the Mac OS X 10.3.7 combo updater has proved successful for a number of issues introduced by the update, including inability to recognize CDs and DVDs and startup problems.

Now a handful of readers have reported that re-appying the combo updater helps restore connectivity to FireWire devices that were made unrecognizable after the first attempt at updating:

MacFixIt reader Hal Stoen writes:

"I installed the Mac OS X 10.3.7 update from the 'Software update' link. Of course, as already mentioned, there was no warning when using this method about disconnecting any firewire drives. Before doing the download I started up off of the OSX install disc and ran permissions repair and disc repair. Did the download and then ran the repairs again off of the install disc. My firewire components, a Que firewire CD burner and an Epson scanner were gone, not even showing up in the "About this Mac" as being on the buss. I downloaded the 'combo updater' from Apple's site (great fun what with the files large size on a dial-up connection). Did the OSX permissions and repair thing before and after the install and now my firewire devices are back. Don't think that I'll ever use the 'Software Update' link again unless Apple starts issuing warnings on the link.

Confirmation for Java Update workaround in Safari Yesterday we reported that -- as with previous incremental Mac OS X updates -- re-applying the Java 1.4.2 Update 2 after installing Mac OS X 10.3.7 helps resolve issues with Java operation in the Safari browser.

We've since received several notes of confirmation for this solution.

MacFixIt reader John Daub writes "I downloaded an installed the Java 1.4.2 Update 2 (which claimed to do a complete reinstall of Java 1.4.2, replacing any previously installed copies), and at least in a few checks on web sites that I know crashed due to the Java problem, I'm no longer experiencing the crashes."

Another reader, Bob, writes: "After updating to 10.3.7 using SW update, I started having printing problems with Safari. I then ran the 10.3.7 combo updater and the printing problems were fixed. But, some of my local Java applications stopped working after the 10.3.7 combo updater. Reinstalling the Java 1.4.2 Update #2 fixed this. Everything seems fine now."

Slow network application activity, another solution For the past several days we've been covering issues with extremely slow startup and operation of networked applications after applying the Mac OS X 10.3.7 update.

For some users, performing not one, but several permissions repair routines, significantly speeds up launch times for network applications ,including Mail.app, Safari, and others.

MacFixIt reader Jerry writes: "I had the same slow startups on Mail and Safari and very slow shut downs on my iMac G5 20" after the initial update to Mac OS X 10.3.7 via software update. What brought it all back to normal was multiple rebuilding of permissions. The first rebuild took about 12 minutes to complete and the problems still existed. Two more rebuilds were much faster."

Audio distortion We've begun to receive scattered reports of distorted audio under Mac OS X 10.3.7. Most reports have indicated the contrary -- improved audio playback and clarity after the update.

One reader, however, writes:

"I have a constant problem with distortion and a significant increase in output volume caused by the 10.3.7 update. The volume is so loud it's deafening at 3/4 output. There is an enormous increase in the bass output as well as significant hissing and general distortion which makes listening to any music unbearable. If you restart in 10.2.8 from the other drive or 9.2.2 from the master drive the sound output is fine again.

"By disconnecting the audio output to the Altec Lansing 621 speakers and then reconnecting the line-out cable after a few seconds the distortion disappears and the output volume returns to normal.[...] I've also found that by running all the maintenance tasks (cache purging, etc.) in Cocktail and then doing a restart, that the distortion and the volume problems are fixed most of the time."

Login issues MacFixIt reader Richard Chiswell reports an issue with login under Mac OS X 10.3.7 for which we are seeking confirmation:

"Since Mac OS X 10.3.7 it seems I (and some others) are unable to use the log out item in the apple menu and then go to a log in as root. If the log in options have been set as 'list of users' there is, on log out, no blank (root) option."

If you are experiencing a similar issue, please drop us a line at late-breakers@macfixit.com

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