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Apple releases Mac OS X 10.6.8 with Mac App Store enhancements for Lion

Apple on Thursday released Mac OS X 10.6.8, the latest update for its Snow Leopard operating system, with enhancements to the Mac App Store that will prepare users for the impending launch of Mac OS X 10.7 Lion.

The update is available via Software Update or direct from Apple It is a 1.09GB file that requires users be running any version of Snow Leopard from Mac OS X 10.6 to Mac OS X 10.6.7.

Apple said the update is recommended for all users running Mac OS X Snow Leopard, and that it includes general operating system fixes that enhance the stability, compatibility, and security of the Mac. The fixes included in 10.6.8 include:

  • Enhancements to the Mac App Store to get prepare to upgrade to Mac OS X Lion
  • Resolves an issue that may cause Preview to unexpectedly quit
  • Improved support for IPv6
  • Improved VPN reliability
  • Identifies and removes known variants of Mac Defender

With this week's release of Final Cut Pro X, Apple even recommended that users be running Mac OS X 10.6.8, even though it had not yet been released. The last beta of the operating system update was supplied to developers earlier this month with no known issues.

The "MAC Defender" malware was previously addressed by Apple in a separate security update, 2011-003, released at the end of May. Hackers and Apple have been engaged in a back-and-forth battle as the software has spread through search engines like Google through a method known as "SEO poisoning."

69 Comments

irnchriz 18 Years · 1595 comments

Running Lion already. Still a lot of bugs so not expecting a release till the end of July.Of course, DP4 was the first build that was stable enough to use as an every day OS so it is getting there. Bugs now are mostly minor and down kill the system (although losing network after sleeping the system is a bit of a bugger.

libertyforall 17 Years · 1417 comments

Would it have killed Apple to add an AirPlay button to QuickTime Player like iOS has?!

marbiol 19 Years · 14 comments

Could someone please check the build of the public release? I'm running the last dev build release (I do have a dev account) and just want to know whether I should move to the release version if it's a newer build...

pooch 17 Years · 768 comments

Quote:
Originally Posted by irnchriz

Running Lion already. Still a lot of bugs so not expecting a release till the end of July.

what a coincidence ... apple has released some beta lion software and has announced general availability for july.

bertp 16 Years · 273 comments

Quote:
Originally Posted by marbiol

Could someone please check the build of the public release? I'm running the last dev build release (I do have a dev account) and just want to know whether I should move to the release version if it's a newer build...

Mac OS X 10.6.8 (10K540)