Gizmodo: patch

Motorola Droid Experiencing Software-Related Speaker Issues

Jack Loftus — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 13:30:00 EST

Droid sales are blowing up, but so too may be Droid speakers, as reports are starting to pour in from users who've experienced the sound cutting out at inopportune times. Island of Misfit Toys, here we come!

Luckily, the bug appears to be software related. Time for a patch.

Who amongst the swelling Droid ranks has experienced this annoying issue? [Droid Support Forums via Engadget]

Shady Microsoft Plugin Pokes "Critical" Hole In Firefox Security

Sean Fallon — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 13:40:00 EDT

Microsoft has acknowledged that they slipped the .NET Framework Assistant plugin into Firefox via Windows Update this past February, and that it has poked a "critical" hole in the browser's security (effectively bringing Firefox down to IE's level).

Microsoft has deemed the hole to be a "critical" security threat, as it gives webmasters the ability to quietly install software on your PC. Last May, Microsoft released an update that made it possible to uninstall the .NET framework. They also released a patch earlier this week that supposedly fixes the problem. The vulnerability can also be exploited on users running any version of Internet Explorer. Needless to say, Firefox and IE users should employ one of those solutions ASAP. [Computer World Image via rootshell.be]

First Snow Leopard Patch Released To Developers

Sean Fallon — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 13:59:00 EDT

As rumored, less than a week after the release of Snow Leopard, Apple has already dropped the first patch on developers for testing. The 71.5 MB download includes several fixes related to 3G modems, the Dock and Motion 4.

The 10.6.1 Update is recommended for all users running Mac OS X Snow Leopard and includes general operating system fixes that enhance the stability, compatibility, and security of your Mac, including fixes for:

* compatibility with some Sierra Wireless 3G modems
* an issue that might cause DVD playback to stop unexpectedly
* some printer compatibility drivers not appearing properly in the add printer browser
* an issue that might make it difficult to remove an item from the Dock
* instances where automatic account setup in Mail might not work
* an issue where pressing cmd-opt-t in Mail brings up the special characters menu instead of moving a message
* Motion 4 becoming unresponsive

MacRumors Forums have also included some unofficial notes on the update:

- Network Diagnostics now offers to remove manually-entered DNS values for DHCP configurations
- Software Update for printer drivers of Bonjour/USB printers
- HICocoaView double-redraw during live resize
- Bluetooth connection to nearby printers on startup
- libdispatch object use after deallocation
- Sending of messages with Mail where the SMTP server response has no text
- Upgraded email accounts and SMTP servers that require authentication on port 587 but not port 25
- Printer custom keywords added/edited by auto setup tool are now migrated after software update
- Generic drivers are now visible in printer driver list
- WWAN devices that use the AppleWWANSupport2 component
- Updated to Flash 10.0.32.18

[World of Apple and MacRumors Forums]

Palm Pre 1.0.4 Update Kills Homebrew, Patches Security Holes

Jason Chen — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 13:59:00 EDT

The image associated with this post is best viewed using a browser.The 1.0.4 update for the Palm Pre just got released, but along with patching some security holes, kills the homebrew ability that made everyone so excited.

Why, Palm, when your SDK isn't available until late summer, would you go and patch the homebrew? At the very least, developers have the leaked SDK to work off of, even if it's not final. [Palm via Engadget]

iPhone 2.2 Release May Come Tomorrow

Jesus Diaz — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 22:28:24 EST

According to a Fraunhofer Institute for Secure Information press release, the eagerly expected iPhone 2.2 operating system update will arrive tomorrow, November 21. The release is expected to bring new features, but the Institute's note highlights a major security problem that can make your iPhone to place a call when visiting a malicious web site. This date is in line with the previous rumors. Update: here's the video of the security exploit that the iPhone 2.2 release will fix, according to the Fraunhoferians.

The Fraunhofer Institute SIT alerted the producers of the iPhone about this issue a month ago. To close this hole, new firmware will be released on November 21.

According to Collin Mulliner, the exploit only requires three lines of HTML code, which anyone with basic knowledge of this language can add to any web page.

The scenario: The iPhone user receives an e-mail or SMS with an Internet link. Clicking on the link will open a web site. But suddenly, the iPhone will start calling a phone number without any user intervention. The worse thing is that you can't stop the call, as the cellphone will be gray while the number is dialed. (...) Even amateurs could easily develop a criminal exploit.

The Fraunhofer Institute says that a similar vulnerability was discovered last month and patched, "but obviously was not enough." [Fraunhofer SIT via Apple Insider]

Nintendo Kills Wii Homebrew With Update, Again, Again, Again

John Herrman — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 04:20:38 EDT

Nowadays, any self-respecting hardware manufacturer is locked in an interminable battle to lock down their platforms for unclear reasons, because that's how things are, OK? Accordingly, Nintendo has just released a patch to prevent would-be homebrewers from enjoying their Wiis too much. Not that this is unexpected — there have been a few major developments in the homebrew space since June, when Nintendo last attempted to seal up their console. The good news: the update doesn't affect existing Homebrew Channel installs, it just prevents new ones. Oh, and it'll probably be cracked in about two days. [WiiBrew]

QR Code Jacket Patches Take Strangers On the Street to Your Blog, Stat!

John Mahoney — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 09:31:00 EDT

We're sad that after all these years, the only place QR codes are actually useful is still good ol' Japan (where they're everywhere). That said, San Francisco has recently dabbled, and there are readers available for just about every mobile platform (including iPhone)—which you'll have to make sure all of your friends have installed if you're going to wear one of these. The $20 patch points to a proxy server which redirects phone browsers to the URL of your choice when someone takes a photo of your shoulder, back, um, wherever. Which means you can take them to your innocent little blog, or perhaps something a bit more nefarious. You wouldn't do that though, would you? [p8t.ch via Pocket Lint]

Brando's Infrared Thermal Patch is Just a Lousy Heater

Jason Chen — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 14:35:32 EST

We've been lucky enough to not have to deal with carpal tunnel, but those of you who do might be interested in this Brando "Infrared Thermal Patch." We're not sure which part of it is infrared, or which part of it is a patch, but it's just a little plastic plate you place on the affected area that will warm it up to relieve stress at temperatures up to 40~45 Celsius. Or, you can just wipe your ass with a twenty and two ones and be done with it. [Brando]

Time Machine Flux Capacitor Patch Lets You Back Up to Any Drive in Leopard

Jason Chen — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 17:25:00 EST

Apple's limitation on what kind of drives (directly attached drives) can be used as a Leopard Time Machine backup disk can be overcome with a small command line utility.

All it does is make Leopard show unsupported drives as a supported drive for Time Machine, but Apple most likely removed support for these drives for reasons such as data loss or data corruption, so be careful if you're going to try this. Just head on over to 9to5Mac and download their aptly named Flux Capacitor automator script and you'll be on your way to network backups in no time. Or, you can just wait for Apple's official release that's sure to come soon. [9to5Mac via MacRumors]

Xbox 360 Update Patches Exploits, Kills Linux and Pirated Games

Jason Chen — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 06:00:26 EST

Microsoft's finally patching the wicked s'ploits on the Xbox 360, which have been around since November and demoed in December, with a somewhat mandatory patch. They're pushing the update as an update instead of a security fix, and is "pulling a Sony" and including the update in all games that are published after February 20. Sounds just like the PSP to us.

What does this mean? Well, unless you're one of the handful of people who are using the 360 to run Linux or to run burned games, you'll be fine. For the rest, you'll probably need to get a new Xbox 360 to play newer games or else run the risk of not being able to play any of your old pirated games. – Jason Chen

Microsoft patches Xbox 360 [News.com]