Apple's latest update for Snow Leopard has broken support for Intel's Atom processor line. Mac OS X 10.6.2 was released Monday afternoon, and was Apple's second major update for Snow Leopard.
OSXDaily reported that various netbook and "hackintosh" forums are "blowing up with problems of 10.6.2 instant rebooting their Atom-based notebooks." Systems using the Atom processor will go into a startup-loop if the 10.6.2 update is installed.
Support for Atom fluctuated over the course of 10.6.2 development, and Apple was mum about the subject.
It is recommended that anyone using OS X on Atom-based systems should not install the update. Many believe that a community-generated fix will be developed soon. Prominent hackintosh blogger StellaRola commented, "Just an FYI, this is OSx86 after all and none of the scenes hackers really let down on support. The latest kernel may not be âofficiallyâ supported but that doesnât mean there wonât be a modded kernel around the corner."
Intel's Atom processor is a low-cost, low-power chip intended for notebooks and ultra-mobile PCs. Although current Apple products do not sport the Atom chips, a dedicated community has formed around the practice of installing Snow Leopard on Atom netbooks.
The 10.6.2 update weighs in at 473MB and fixes a guest account bug which could have potentially deleted a user's account data. It can be accessed direct from Apple or via Software Update.
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Apple haters in 3...2...1...
On a side note, the update was 200 some odd MB for me. Where do they get this 400MB number from?
It’s illogical to think Apple decided to drop support for Atom to dissuade the hackintosh community from building netbooks, which Apple doesn’t even compete with on any level. Nor is it logical to think Apple would purposely do this a couple of point releases in and at the start of a major release when new core foundations and features were added. The lost logical answer is that Apple simply found a way to streamline their code even more and it just happens to be at the expense of Atom-based Hackintoshes.
PS: I don’t think it will take the OSx86 Project long to add the new bug updates with old support for Atom.
Can't wait for the hackintosh screed. This'll be good.
On a side note, the update was 200 some odd MB for me. Where do they get this 400MB number from?
Mine was 157.7 hrm.