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NewsPoster · 06:05 AM

[Updated with news of new iOS 9.1 beta] Ahead of the release of OS X 10.11 El Capitan, Apple has released its latest major Safari for Mac update, boosting the browser to version 9.0, for both Yosemite (OS X 10.10) and El Capitan (10.11) users. Safari's earlier supported versions for Mavericks and Mountain Lion are also likely to see minor updates released later for compatibility reasons. In addition, Apple on Wednesday released another minor update for iOS 9, bringing it to v9.0.2, and unveiled a third developer and public beta of iOS 9.1.

The Safari update brings a number of new features to Safari, including the ability to identify in which tab or window some audio is playing a mute it. It also offers additional options for the Safari Reader view, and improves Autofill website compatibility. Not mentioned in the update -- suggesting the feature is limited to El Capitan -- is the ability to "pin" frequently-visited websites to the bookmarks bar, saving space over traditional tabs.

The iOS 9 update resolves an issue that prevented iMessage activation for some users, and an issue where an iCloud backup could be interrupted after starting a manual backup. It fixes an issue with the setting to turn on or off app cellular data usage, and a problem where the screen could incorrectly rotate when receiving notifications. In addition, the update improves the stability of the Podcasts app.

On the security front, the update resolves a previously-reported issue where it was possible for an attacker with physical access to the device to partially bypass the lock screen, gaining access to photos and contacts by simultaneously invoking Siri while putting in the last of five passcode attempts. This hack, while unlikely to affect users whose iPhone has not been stolen, has now been closed.

The update is available for the iPhone 4s or later, iPod touch (fifth generation or later), or the iPad 2 or later. The Safari 9.0 update will be available through the Software Update section of the Mac App Store for OS X 10.10 and later users.

Update: In addition, the company has made a new, third developer and beta of iOS 9.1 available, now at build 13B5130b. No new release notes yet accompany the update, so what has been changed or improved is not yet clear -- the iOS 9.1 betas thus far have focused solely on optimizing and improving iOS 9, with the known exception of adding support for Unicode 8, and some additional emoji symbols.

daqman · Sep 30, 2015, 01:55 PM

Although I like to see bugs fixed it is disturbing that there have already been two updates to iOS 9. In my mind it is indicative of a general trend at Apple towards releasing products that are unpolished or lacking adequate testing.

I'm also personally a bit ticked because I only updated to 9.0.1 yesterday...

Charles Martin · Sep 30, 2015, 05:40 PM

daqman: there's no empirical evidence that this method is any worse than before. Some bugs only emerge from widespread user testing, that has always been the case, and it could be argued (though I'm not saying this is a fact) that Apple is just getting faster at closing bugs found that way (and the bugs fixed in .1 and now .2 do seem to be more minor than bugs closed in .1 or .2 of, say, Lion or Yosemite). The public beta process appears, at least to me, to have helped catch BIG bugs before public release, but there will never be a .0 release that isn't followed by a .1 shortly thereafter, on that you can rely.

Stuke · Sep 30, 2015, 07:30 PM

daqman, couldn't have said it any better. I agree, the lack of polish is classically NOT Steve Job's Apple. This rush to let the public discover the bugs is disturbing when this company can certainly afford the army of programmers and testers to keeps is previous reputation.

Charles Martin, good points but I for one don't enjoy the update process, the occasional resetting of preferences, the undiscovered feature of "Wi-Fi assist," etc. that leaves me feeling like I have to be MORE on the defensive when managing a family full of iPhones than I was 2-4 years ago.

DiabloConQueso · Oct 1, 2015, 12:00 AM

Which specific bugs in iOS 9.0 and iOS 9.0.1 are you guys referring to that obviously impacted you directly and created a less-than-acceptable user experience on your iOS devices?

Spheric Harlot · Oct 1, 2015, 05:38 AM

Originally Posted by Stuke

daqman, couldn't have said it any better. I agree, the lack of polish is classically NOT Steve Job's Apple.

This stupid idea that everything was perfect (or even so much better) under Jobs' reign really, really needs to die. It's just complete bullshit. .0 updates have been bricking phones for eight years, iTunes has been a mess for a decade (not even counting the one upgrade that would irrecoverably erase all external volumes with a "space" in the name), and boy, were major system updates fraught with bugs until .x.2 or .x.3.

Seriously: complain about bugs, but shut up about Jobs already.

bobolicious · Oct 1, 2015, 08:53 AM

Safari 9 seems to have lost the ability to universally turn off extensions such as Facebook Disconnect, AdBlock, etc...

It still seems to open linked new windows without privacy even when set to such, potentially leaving users unaware of the switched mode.

Does Safari 9 design make user privacy more difficult as a result ?

DiabloConQueso · Oct 1, 2015, 11:28 AM

Spheric: you hit the nail on the head.

People that complain about the "long lost days of Jobs" probably don't realize that Jobs wasn't even driving the boat for a half decade or more before his death. Tim Cook has been running The Apple Show for a lot longer than people realize, all the way back to the glory days that people mistakenly attribute to Jobs.