Operating Systems

An operating system (OS) is the software that handles all of the other application programs in a computer after being loaded into the machine by a boot program. The application programs interact with the operating system by requesting services through a predefined application program interface (API).

Microsoft Windows, Apple macOS, Linux, Android, and Apple’s iOS are the five most popular operating systems.

Operating systems use a graphical user interface, or GUI (pronounced gooey), which allows your mouse to click buttons, icons, and menus while also clearly displaying visuals and text on your screen.

Scopri di più sull'articolo The iOS 16.4.1 and macOS 13.3.1 updates address numerous issues beyond Apple’s official statement

The iOS 16.4.1 and macOS 13.3.1 updates address numerous issues beyond Apple’s official statement

Macworld

When it comes to OS updates, we here at Macworld encourage users to install them as soon as possible. Updates sometimes have nice new features, but it's the bug fixes and security updates that are the most important. But with iOS 16.4, iPadOS 16.4, and macOS 13.3, the update to the update was the one worth waiting for—and they could be the most important ones of the year, depending on the issues you've had with your devices.

On Friday, Apple released small updates to iOS 16.4 and macOS 13.3, and if you look at the release notes, they're extremely small updates. Just three insignificant issues are mentioned—fixes to Siri, Auto Unlock your Mac with Apple Watch, and an emoji—but they are much bigger than that. For one, they include two major security patches for vulnerabilities that “may have been actively exploited.” And for another, they appear to fix most if not all of the bugs introduced in iOS 16.4 and macOS 13.3:

iOS 16.4 and iPadOS 16.4

  • Weather app: The Weather app that many of us come to rely upon to set the tone for the day has problems displaying the forecast. Earlier this week, the Weather app had a complete data outage, and while service is restored (according to Apple's System Status website), the app still acts wonky. We don't know for sure if the Weather app is fixed, but we haven't experienced any issues since Friday.
  • Battery drain: There always seems to be a vocal number of users who experience shortened battery life when an update is released. But the number of anecdotal accounts, such as those on Apple's Support Community, seems to be more frequent with iOS 16.4. YouTuber iAppleBytes has a video demonstration of a Geekbench battery test with iOS 16.4 that supports the shortened battery life claim. Battery drain is always difficult to quantify, but we haven't noticed any unusual drain in iOS 16.4.1.
  • Home app: The Home app, used to control smart home devices, got an update to its architecture, but Apple stumbled during its rollout. It was initially offered in iOS 16.2 but it was pulled back and then released with iOS 16.4. Now, there are a number of complaints about the reworked app, reports iMore. We didn't experience issues in iOS 16.4, but our Home app is working well in iOS 16.4.1.

macOS Ventura 13.3

  • Home directory: macOS 13.3 introduces a problem with user Home directories saved to external drives. A workaround to this problem involves turning off System Integrity Protection, but that's not ideal. We've confirmed that this problem is fixed in the macOS Ventura 13.3.1 update.
  • Quick Look: Though I've not had this problem, many users on Apple's Support Community can't get Quick Look to work in macOS 13.3. Responses to the original post confirm that macOS 13.3.1 fix the issue.
  • Universal Control and Handoff: These features, which rely on iCloud connectivity, have stopped working for some users after installing 13.3. The workaround involves logging off of iCloud and then logging back on, but that can cause a whole bunch of headaches, especially if you use iCloud to sync your Photo library. We need to test to see if this bug persists.
iOS, MacOS
Continua a leggereThe iOS 16.4.1 and macOS 13.3.1 updates address numerous issues beyond Apple’s official statement
Scopri di più sull'articolo Mac Home Directory Bug Resolved with macOS Ventura 13.3.1 Update

Mac Home Directory Bug Resolved with macOS Ventura 13.3.1 Update

Macworld

Editor's note: Macworld has tested the macOS Ventura 13.3.1 update released on Friday, and it appears that the update fixes this problem. This article has been updated to reflect these results.

If you're a macOS Ventura user and you've set up your user account with the Home directory saved to an external storage device, you should wait before updating to version 13.3. A number of users who set up their Macs this way have found that they cannot access their accounts after installing the update. [Hat tip to Macworld reader Lee.]

The problem, which is addressed on Reddit, is that after updating to 13.3, the Mac restarts, and then when the user tries to log in, a message appears that says the log-in “failed because an error occurred.” No explanation of the error is offered, and clicking the OK button simply sends the user back to the login screen.

Update April 7, noon PT: Apple released macOS Ventura 13.3.1 and our testing indicates that the update fixes this problem. Update to 13.3.1 if you have this issue.

If you cannot install the 13.3.1 update, a workaround explained by Neat_Release_2683 on Reddit, offers a way to get your Mac working. It involves turning off System Integrity Protection while in Recovery Mode. I was able to replicate the problem on a 14-inch M1 Pro MacBook Pro with Ventura 13.3 and an account Home folder saved to a USB-C flash drive.

I used the steps below to fix it.

Workaround to macOS Ventura 13.3 external Home folder bug

If your user account's Home folder is saved to an external drive, and it is the only account with admin rights, you can try using the workaround below. If your Mac has another admin account on it with the Home folder saved to the Mac's internal drive, there is another workaround you can use.

At a glance
  • Time to complete: 5 minutes
  • Tools required: macos Ventura 13.3
1.

Boot into Recovery Mode

macOS Recovery screen

Foundry

On M-series Macs, hold down the power button and continue to hold until the screen says, “Loading startup options.”

On Intel Macs, hold down the Command and R keys.

Select the Option icon when it appears and click Continue.

The macOS Recovery screen should appear with user login icons. Select an account that has admin rights, then click Next. Enter the password for the account.

2.

Go to the Terminal

macOS Recovery Mode Terminal

Foundry

You're now in Recovery Mode. Ignore the main window and click the Utilities menu. Select Terminal. If you're not familiar with using the Terminal, it's okay. The Terminal is the command-line interface for the Mac, and you'll enter an easy command.

3.

Turn off SIP

macos terminal disable SIP

Foundry

A Terminal window appears, with a prompt that says something like, -bash-3.2# and then a cursor.

Type csrutil disable and then press the Return key.

That command turns off System Integrity Protection, and if you've never turned it off before, a warning will appear. Type y to continue.

Enter your username and then your password, It may look like your Mac is doing nothing but wait a bit. A message telling you to restart your Mac will appear when the changes are implemented.

4.

Restart, login, check iCloud, re-enable SIP

Ventura desktop Home external

Foundry

Now restart your Mac ( > Restart). You should be able to log into your account.

Go to System Settings and check your iCloud settings to make sure everything is enabled.

Now you can re-enable SIP by repeating steps 1 through 4, but at the Terminal in step 2, enter the command csrutil enable instead. However, Macworld reader Andy in the U.K. wrote to us to say that SIP had to stay disabled for them in order to get iCloud to work properly across “all relevant apps.” So you may want to keep it off until Apple issues a fix

Workaround if you have multiple admin accounts

You can try the following workaround for the user account with the Home folder on an external drive. But you need to have another account with admin rights on the Mac that also has its Home folder on the internal Mac storage. Also, Macworld reader Scott informed us that the method below may work only with MacBooks; it wasn't available to him on his M1 Mac mini. Apple's support document about this SIP feature addresses only “Mac laptop[s] with Apple silicon.”

  1. Log into the admin account that has its Home folder saved to internal storage.
  2. Go to System Settings > Privacy & Security.
  3. In the main section of the window, scroll down to the “Allow accessories to connect” section. Click the pop-up to the right and select Always.
Ventura accessory permission

Foundry

  1. MacOS requires a username and password to modify this setting. Enter the info and click Modify Settings.
  2. Log out, and you should be able to log into the account that has its Home folder on external storage.

What is causing the problem?

Based on my hands-on experience (and not a deep tech dive into working code), the problem seems to be related to a feature within macOS's System Integrity Protection, referred to as SIP. One of the features of SIP is that it can alert you whenever an accessory (such as an external storage device) is connected to your Mac.

With Ventura 13.3, this alert seems to hinder the ability to log in, creating a Catch-22 situation. Because the external drive has yet to be approved by the user, the Mac won't access the drive and log in can't be accomplished. But if you can't log in, you can't approve the drive. If SIP is turned off, then the alerts won't appear and the external drive can connect.

Why would anyone save a Home folder to an external drive in the first place? Mostly it's because the Mac's internal storage is running out. The Home folder saves a lot of user info, such as app libraries and your files. It is possible to save individual components of the Home folder to an external drive instead of the whole Home folder–for example, on a 2013 Mac Pro with a 512GB SSD that I use at home, I save my iMovie, Photos, and Music libraries to a 5TB external drive. But some people may not want to hassle with individual components and simply place the whole Home folder on an external drive.

Apple has been contacted about this issue but has not yet responded to our inquiry. It's unclear if this issue is addressed in the macOS Ventura 13.4 beta that is currently in the works. We'll update this article with any further developments.

MacOS
Continua a leggereMac Home Directory Bug Resolved with macOS Ventura 13.3.1 Update

How to Discover the Bitcoin Whitepaper Concealed in macOS (Before It’s Too Late)

Macworld

Ever notice that macOS takes up a whole lot of storage space? There's a lot of code in macOS, and apparently, some of it is not what you'd expect, as Andy Baio found out earlier this week. On Baio's blog, Waxy.com, he wrote about his discovery of Satoshi Nakamoto's Bitcoin whitepaper that is stashed within macOS.

The paper, titled “Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System,” explains the Bitcoin electronic cash system and was originally published in 2008. The paper has apparently shipped with every copy of macOS since Mojave in 2018. Why? No one really knows. Baio theorizes that it was used as a test document.

Baio notes that “a little bird” told him that the paper could be removed in a future version of macOS. So if you want to see it, here's how.

See the hidden Bitcoin whitepaper via the Terminal

Open the Terminal app (it's in Applications > Utilities) and enter the following:

open /System/Library/Image Capture/Devices/VirtualScanner.app/Contents/Resources/simpledoc.pdf

See the hidden Bitcoin whitepaper via the Finder

Don't want to use the Terminal? Do the following:

  1. In the Finder, open the Go menu and select Go to Folder.
  2. In the Go to Folder that appears enter the following: /System/Library/Image Capture/Devices
  3. Press the Return key. The Finder window should appear with a VirtualScanner app icon.
  4. Control-click (or right click) VirtualScanner and select Show Package Contents.
  5. The Finder window should show a Contents folder. Open it.
  6. Open the Resources folder.
  7. Open (or use Quick Look) the file named simpledoc.pdf.

The gif below shows how to navigate to the whitepaper the long way, by opening the nested folders.

macos bitcoin whitepaper

Foundry

Long-held secret

While Baio and others have recently discovered this, Joshua Dickens tweeted about it in 2020. Dickens also points out that there's an image that resembles a Thomas Hawk photo in the same folder as the Bitcoin whitepaper.

The VirtualScanner stuff is just one of the hidden mysteries of macOS. Now if only we can figure out the mysteries of macOS Ventura 13.3…

MacOS
Continua a leggereHow to Discover the Bitcoin Whitepaper Concealed in macOS (Before It’s Too Late)
Scopri di più sull'articolo The Apple Watch SE with S8 Chip and Crash Detection is Now More Affordable Than Ever Before

The Apple Watch SE with S8 Chip and Crash Detection is Now More Affordable Than Ever Before

Macworld

If you're an iPhone user looking for a simple smartwatch to track steps and notifications, the 2nd-generation Apple Watch SE is a fantastic option. And today it's cheaper than ever: Amazon is selling the Apple Watch SE for $219 (40mm) and $249 (44mm), a savings of $30 and the lowest price we've seen for the latest model.

The Apple Watch SE has a slightly older design than the Series 8, but it still looks great and is packed with features, including a heart-rate sensor, OLED display, and S8 processor. It's missing an always-on display and some of the higher-end sensors such as temperature and blood-oxygen, but it has Apple's newest Crash Detection feature that will notify emergency services if you're wearing it while in a car accident.

Even without high-end features, the Apple Watch SE is a perfect entry-level watch for any iPhone user looking to get their first smartwatch. So go grab one at a great price before it goes back up.

Apple Watch
Continua a leggereThe Apple Watch SE with S8 Chip and Crash Detection is Now More Affordable Than Ever Before