Troubleshooting Mac OS X 10.2.5: Unplugging USB hubs, IOUSB Family.kext file; Spinning beach ball in Mail.app; more

Unplugging USB hubs On Friday, we noted a rash of kernel panic reports stemming from the installation of Mac OS X 10.2.5. These panics generally occur either during startup, or a few minutes thereafter. One consistent solution that has emerged so far is to disconnect any USB hubs that are attached to your system.

Some users are choosing to downgrade their IOUSB.kext kernel extension (which controls access to USB devices), at least partially resolving the issue.

This procedure, which was originally published to resolve some issues with Palm synchronization, involves using an older version of the USB input/output kernel extension that resides in the system Library folder.

Version 1.9.2 of IOUSB Family.kext can be downloaded from: ftp://ftp.apple.com/developer/Development_Kits/Mac_OS_USB/IOUSB Family-1.9.2DDK.dmg.bin.

Spinning beach ball in Mail.app After installing OS 10.2.5, some users have found that Mail.app reports being unable to find its built-in spell checker. When users experiencing this problem begin typing a message with default settings intact, the spinning ball appears immediately and the stays there for several seconds.

In order to enable composition of e-mail messages, you must turn off "Check Spelling as I type" in Mail.app's preferences.

UPDATE: Workaround For some users, the Mail.app spinning beach ball/spell checker problem can be resolved by starting the spell checker manually from the Terminal, which will apparently work until the machine is restarted, or you log out. Below is the path to the spell checker. Type the text below with an & at the end. The ampersand means 'run in background and return a command prompt again': /System/Library/Services/AppleSpell.service/Contents/MacOS/AppleSpell

Dial-up issues not fixed Contrary to other reports, dial-up issues present in Mac OS X 10.2.4 have not been resolved for all users with the 10.2.5 release. Jim Bell writes:

"I was disappointed to note no change, as advertised in this update for a fix concerning the growing common complaint of dial-up/modem ISP connectivity from 10.2.4... As is/was apparent with all these prior OS X versions back to, and including 10.2."

"The modem will dial, connect, and then immediately disconnect as confirmed with a window, and in verbose call outs with nothing peculiar noted."

Feedback? Late-breakers@macfixit.com.

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