Apple has started rolling out pieces of the puzzle that is iOS 5 and iCloud. We will be updating the site as and when these pieces are out for you to download/install.
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In my review of the iPad, I said that the iPad is a blank canvas that can become what you want it to be, to be more precise, what kind of apps you install in there. Air Display by Avatron Software is a good example of this.

Ever wish you had an extra display for your computer? There’s an app for that! With Air Display, you can use your iPad as a wireless display for your Mac OS X computer.
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Quite a fair bit of bug fixes in this new update.

• an issue that might cause your system to logout unexpectedly
• a graphics distortion in Safari Top Sites
• Spotlight search results not showing Exchange contacts
• a problem that prevented authenticating as an administrative user
• issues when using NTFS and WebDAV file servers
• the reliability of menu extras
• an issue with the 4-finger swipe gesture
• an issue that causes Mail to quit unexpectedly when setting up an Exchange server
• Address Book becoming unresponsive when editing
• a problem adding images to contacts in Address Book
• an issue that prevented opening files downloaded from the Internet
• Safari plug-in reliability
• general reliability improvements for iWork, iLife, Aperture, Final Cut Studio, MobileMe, and iDisk
• an issue that caused data to be deleted when using a guest account

For more details on the fixes, read this knowledge based article. Always do a backup before updating to ensure you have something to fall back on.

The update is available via Apple Support page:

• Download 10.6.2 update installer
• Download 10.6.2 combo update installer

You know the saying – learn as you grow – that is what we at iHeartApple subscribes to and everyday, we find something new about your favorite Apple products, operating system OS X and the numerous applications available. Here are some of the most interesting ones that we found over the last week.

For most people, there won’t be a need to ever dig into the core of OS X, nor open files that we were supposed to see. But what if you were given instructions to open or edit certain files that is hidden in Finder – usually a file that has its name prefix with a period. Previously to see these files, you will need to use the Terminal, familiar with Unix commands to view them. But with Snow Leopard, you can see those hidden files by pressing Shift-Command-Period at any Open or Save dialog windows and pressing the same combination to hide them.

For photographers, there are many applications out there to help you import, organise and edit your photos. From Apple’s own iPhoto, Aperture to Adobe’s Lightroom, to name a few. In OS X, when you plug in your digital camera, Image Capture will start and then you can import your photos. With Snow Leopard, there is an improvement in Image Capture that besides importing your photographs, but also let you choose what default application opens when you plugin your camera. This is especially useful when your Mac is being used by the family with each family member having their own software preference.

And if you happen to use Photoshop CS4 to edit your photographs, you can improve its performance on OS X with these technical article from Adobe … but if is too in-depth for you, there is always this tip.

App recommendation of the week — ClickToFlash

What it does is to keep Flash files from playing until you decide to do so – thus you click … to Flash. This also keeps irritating Flash ads from running without your permission. You have the options to choose which sites or applications to white-list so that they will play automatically – choose wisely.

The advantages of ClickToFlash are numerous. Since Flash isn’t loaded until you specifically ask for it, your CPU usage will stay at normal levels when browsing the web. This has tons of benefits: web browsing stays speedy, your Mac laptop won’t get as hot, and your Mac’s fan won’t come on as often. In fact, we guarantee* that ClickToFlash will quintuple your battery life and that it will protect those precious parts of your body on which you rest your laptop! (*note: not actually guaranteed)

Try it out – it’s free

Site of the week — Finer Things in Mac

As we stated in the beginning of this post – that we are learning more of our Macs and OS X as we use them and this site – Finer Things in Mac – digs deeper and find out all the little tidbits of information and bugs that is on our Macs. May it be a life-saver, or an irritating bug, this site is worth bookmarking just to learn more about your favorite Mac and operating system.

URL: http://finerthingsinmac.com

Apple has announced the official shipping date for the new Mac OS X 10.6, code-named “Snow Leopard”. It will start shipping from August 28 and it is available now at the Apple Store for pre-order.

Before you do that, you might want to check which version you should go for. For a start, Snow Leopard is only available for Intel-based Macs. So if you are still using a PowerPC Mac, it is time to upgrade.

If you have the Intel-based Macs, and it is running OS X 10.5 (Leopard), you can upgrade to Snow Leopard by purchasing the Single User license for S$48 (S$78 for Family Pack¹).

If you are running OS X 10.4 (Tiger), you will need to buy the Mac Box Set, which costs S$268 (S$369 for Family Pack¹) and comes with iLife 09, and iWork 09.

To find out more about why you should upgrade – just click here.

The full press release after the jump.

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Apple pushed out one more update to OS X 10.5.7, probably the last before Snow Leopard rear its tail come WDDC in June. Weighing in at 449MB (729MB for Combo Updater), this includes general operating system fixes that enhance the stability, compatibility and security of your Mac.

A detailed list of the updates are covered in this Knowledge Based article but here are some highlights:

• Added additional RAW image support for several third-party cameras – see newly added cameras here
• Improves performance of video playback and cursor movements for recent Macs with NVIDIA graphics
• Improves the reliability and accuracy of Unit Converter, Stocks, Weather and Movies Dashboard widgets (the workaround for the Unit Converter was covered here
• Addresses a situation that may cause issues when logging into Gmail.
• Improves reliability when syncing contacts with Yahoo!.
• Expansion Slot Utility for Mac Pro now reports the correct PCIe slot configuration.
• For iCal – Improves reliability when automatically syncing with MobileMe
• For Mail – Addresses an issue that may cause the BCC field to populate incorrectly when redirecting a message from the Sent mailbox
• Improves consistency with Parental Controls and application restrictions.
• Resolves an issue that may cause certain third-party printers to print to the incorrect paper tray

To download the files directly:

• 10.5.7 Update / 10.5.7 Combo Update
• 10.5.7 Server Update / 10.5.7 Server Combo Update

Take note – do follow these instructions from Apple prior to doing your installation:

• Back up your computer prior to installing any updates.
• Quit any open applications before starting the installation.
• Do not interrupt the installation process.
• You may experience unexpected results if you have third-party system software modiï¬�cations installed, or if you’ve modiï¬�ed the operating system through other means. (This does not apply to normal application software installation.)
• If issues occur during installation–for example, if Software Update quits unexpectedly–please see this article.

Let us know if there are any problems or improvements after the update!