New & Noteworthy: OmniWeb; Apple info on updates?
New & Noteworthy: OmniWeb; Apple info on updates?
Margin Notes: Apple info on updates? We have been dismayed by Apple's lack of documentation as to what exactly has been updated in Mac OS X updates 10.0.1 and 10.0.2 (see previous item). Matt Deatherage, writing in the MDJ, forcefully expresses similar concern. Here is an excerpt from the article:
You're expected to download and install [Mac OS X updates] without knowing anything about them, and even if you go to look for information later, you're given only a list of synonyms for "improved." What if some "improvement" to the Mail application is incompatible with your mail server, or your network? You might know that ahead of time from release notes and choose to skip the update - except there are no release notes, so you don't get to make an informed decision...Apple has released two revisions to a major new operating system in a six-week span, and no one really knows what either update does.
Take a look at TechNote 1176, TechNote 1194 and TechNote 2010. They cover Mac OS 9.0, 9.0.4 and 9.1 respectively. In each case, they list virtually every new and/or updated file in the OS and what is new or updated about it. While intended mainly for developers, they typically contain much information that is useful for all users. While Mac OS X 10.0.0 Release Notes provide some similarly useful information, there is still no documentation at all - comparable to the OS 9 TechNotes - for 10.0.1 and 10.0.2. There are not even any Tech Info Library articles that provide significant details about 10.0.2. Apple can - and should - do better.