Mac OS X: The Missing Manual, Second Edition

Software Update

Few operating-system ideas are simpler or better than this one: Whenever Apple improves or fixes one of the innumerable software pieces that make up Mac OS X, the Software Update program can notify you, download the update, and install it into your System automatically.

Software Update doesn’t run rampant through your system software, however; it’s quietly respectful. For example, in the beginning, you must manually click the Update Now button when you want the program to dial the Internet for updates. Furthermore, Software Update doesn’t actually download the new software without asking your permission first and explicitly telling you what it plans to install, as shown in Figure 8-12.

Update Software Tab

For maximum effortlessness, turn on the Automatically checkbox and then select a frequency from the pop-up menu—daily, weekly, or monthly.

Install Updates Tab

By popular demand, the 10.2 version of Software Update also keeps a meticulous log of everything it drops into your system. On this tab, you see them listed, for your reference pleasure.

Note

In your hard drive→Library→Receipts folder, you’ll find a liberal handful of .pkg files that have been downloaded by Software Update. In previous versions of Mac OS X, you could reinstall one simply by double-clicking.

In 10.2, most of these are just what they say: receipts that help Mac OS X understand which updaters you’ve already downloaded and installed. They make intriguing reading, but their primary practical use is finding ...