QuickTime 7.1.5 Special Report: Files modified by this update

QuickTime 7.1.5 is a broad-reaching update, affecting several critical components of the QuickTime architecture and other Mac OS X elements. Files modified (overwritten with new versions) by the update include (an asterisk [*] indicates modification of multiple files in the given directory):

• /Applications/QuickTime Player.app (the QuickTime playback application)
• /Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/HAL/iSightAudio.plugin (used for audio capabilities of the Apple iSight; "HAL" stands for "hardware abstraction layer," and allows various applications to use the same device)
• /Library/Internet Plug-Ins/QuickTime Plugin.plugin (for embedded [Web page] media playback)
• /Library/Internet Plug-Ins/QuickTime Plugin.webplugin (for embedded [Web page] media playback)
• /private/etc/mach_init.d (critical component that stores settings for establishing several system services at startup)
• /System/Library/Automator/* (various QuickTime-related Automator actions, e.g. Play Movies.action)
• /System/Library/Components/AudioCodecs.component (for playback of audio encoded with certain codecs)
• /System/Library/Components/CoreAudio.component (for QuickTime's interaction with Mac OS X's CoreAudio system, a crucial part of interaction with audio devices)
• /System/Library/Components/Frameworks/* (Various QuickTime related frameworks, e.g. QuickTime.framework, which provide critical QuickTime-related functions for use by the system and applications)
• /System/Library/Java/QTJava.zip (for using QuickTime in Java applications)
• /System/Library/Java/QTJava.zip (for using QuickTime in Java applications)
• /System/Library/PreferencePanes/QuickTime.prefPane (the QuickTime pane in System Preferences)
• /System/Library/QuickTime/* (various QuickTime-related components primarily for playback of specific file formats, e.g. QuickTimeMPEG4.component)
• /System/Library/QuickTime/QuickTimeJava.bundle (for using QuickTime in Java applications)
• /System/Library/Spotlight/QuickTime.mdimporter (for allowing Spotlight to better index QuickTime files)

As with all significant updates, it is important to take note of which files are modified by QuickTime 7.1.5 so that if a problem occurs after its installation, you can reasonably surmise whether or not there is a potential that the update was culpable. For instance, QuickTime 7.1.5 has caused issues with playback of embedded media (in Web pages) for a number of users -- a problem that can potentially (albeit not necessarily) be linked to the update's modification of two files critical to embedded media playback: QuickTime Plugin.plugin and QuickTime Plugin.webplugin, both located in /Library/Internet Plug-Ins.

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