You could be forgiven for thinking that your computer is one an all out assault with software updates now available for a number of major pieces of software.
First up is iTunes 10 which supersedes the prior version and offers some questionably useful functionality with its built in “ping” social networking abilities. One thing to bear in mind is that the current version of iTunes 10 is incompatible with media sharing software such as Firefly so you might want to hang back until that is fixed up.
Also, iOS 4.1 for Apple’s various iPod Touch and iPhone models is available. This update correct issues some people were having with the proximity sensor locking up the phone. Also, the new GameCentre functionality provides a centralised framework for in-game social networking and setting up games between remotely located individuals. Finally, for the iPhone 4 and the latest iPod Touch, the introduction of “high dynamic range” photography to improve detail captured in photos by taking three photos (one normal, one highly exposed and one under exposed) and interpolate them to give you the best choice of two photos.
The Firefox 4 Beta also got an update to Beta 5 bringing with it a stackf of bugfixes including the pesky issue of using a browser theme and having your window controls (i.e. minimise, maximise/restore and close) disappear from the top right of the window. Direct2D acceleration is now enabled by default to help with faster page rendering and page tabs are now on the top of the window by default (but you can change this back if you want). Also thrown into the mix is an improved JavaScript engine for faster script processing.
Finally, a newer version of the Skype Beta is available allowing video conferencing with up to ten people. For most, five was probably overkill but if you have a hankering to chat online with a stack of your best buddies then you might find this useful too.
So, it’s quite a busy time – don’t get left behind.
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