Mac OS X 10.3.9 (#3): Fixes for Safari crashes, slow performance; Multiple user account issues, solutions; more

Safari 1.3

Re-applying Security Update 2005-002 for launch problems, crashes Two workarounds have been most consistently able to solve major problems (for some users) introduced with Safari 1.3 -- including an inability to launch the application, persistent crashes when accessing Java content, and more.

The first involves extracting files from the Java 1.4.2 Update 2 package and using them to replace. Instructions for this tedious procedure can be found in Saturday's coverage of Mac OS X 10.3.9.

The far simpler, and equally effective (in most cases) workaround involves re-applying Security Update 2005-002, which made several significant changes to critical Mac OS X Java components.

This workaround can also resolve issues with some third-party Java applications, particularly some popular file sharing applications.

Other crashes on launch -- removing SIMBL plug-ins, clearing caches. As noted on Saturday, another cause for Safari is an apparent flaw in the new version's ability to handle additions to the Library/Application Support/SIMBL/Plugins folder.

These include popular shareware utilities like AcidSearch (note that a Mac OS X 10.3.9-compliant version of Acid Search, 1.4, is now available) and Pith Helmet.

Removing these items from the above folder (e.g. acidsearch.bundle) will resolve the on-launch crashes in most cases.

Also, as previously noted, several readers have noted that clearing system caches with a tool like OnyX or Panther Cache Cleaner can resolve crash-on-launch issues. Select "Delete all caches" or a "deep" cache clean, dependent on which tool is being used. After deleting caches, use Apple's Disk Utility (Applications/Utilities) to repair permissions.

Slow performance, launches solved by deleting icons folder For most users, Safari 1.3 (included with Mac OS X 10.3.9) provides a noticeable page rendering speed boost.

Some users, however, are experiencing slower performance after applying the update.

In some cases, performance problems can be solved by deleting Icons folder located at ~/Library/Safari/Icons. Note that this procedure will eliminate any favicons (the small logos that appear in Safari's URL entry field for some Web sites) stored in cache.

MacFixIt reader Rick Zerman writes:

"Safari would take 30 or so bounces to load (about 45 seconds) and then run exceedingly slow. Running top -u in a terminal window showed that that Safari process would be using up to 135% of the CPU (dual processor Mac) even to load simple web pages.

"The solution was to go to /[username]/Library/Safari folder and delete the Icons folder."

Using an older version of Safari If no conventional workarounds prove successful for resolving Safari issues introduced with Mac OS X 10.3.9, using an older version of Safari (1.2.4, the most recent release before 1.3) can restore normal operation.

Fortunately, Apple is still stocking the 1.2.4 release of Safari on its standard download page. Log in with your Apple ID and password to download the older release.

Apple bookmarks put back A minor annoyance associated with the upgrade to Safari 1.3 is the replacement of Apple's default bookmarks that have been deleted by the user.

MacFixIt reader TJ Ronningen writes:

"The Safari update included an 'update' to my bookmarks. Apple decided I once again needed to have all the bookmarks that they like. This feels like a Microsoft thing to do in the worst sense of the word. Very annoying to weed out the garbage they left behind."

Problems with multiple user accounts, potential solutions A number of readers have reported an issue where non-admin users are unable to log in to their accounts after the Mac OS X 10.3.9 update.

Matt Zehner writes:

"My wife tried to log into her account for the first time since the update, using the login screen direct from a reboot - and the system hung up right after she entered her password. Just showed the blue spiraling progress bar and the words 'logging in...' forever.

"I forced a restart, and tried logging into my (administrator) account first (which went fine), then tried switching to her account via Fast User Switching (actually, using WinSwitch). This time, after entering her password and hitting Return, I got the rotating cube effect as normal, but her 'side' of the cube never progressed beyond a completely blue screen. Disk was still being accessed, as if the login process was occurring. Cursor was visible and movable, but clicking/double clicking in random places didn't seem to activate anything. I tried uninstalling WinSwitch and retrying each method for logging in as her, but each gets the same result."

MacFixIt reader Mark adds:

"After upgrading to Mac OS X 10.3.9 through Software Update, I am unable to log into any other user accounts, if those accounts are managed. With 'standard' or 'admin' accounts, everything works fine. But if any limitations are applied to other accounts, we are unable to log in."

Potential solutions for this issue include:

• Use a utility like Panther Cache Cleaner or OnyX to delete system caches. Deleting system caches can also be an effective workaround for an issue where Mac OS X freezes when a user attempts to log out.
• Delete the following files from the /Library/Preferences folder:
  com.apple.loginwindow.plist
  com.apple.windowserver.plist
• Remove any restrictions for each problematic account (in the Accounts pane of System Preferences), reverting them back to standard form
• Delete the user account and re-create it. The user's personal data will be saved in the "Deleted Users" folder.

iTunes

Library switched back to default location For some users, installing Mac OS X 10.3.9 caused iTunes to switch the desired Library location back to the default ~/Music folder.

MacFixIt reader Scott Rose writes:

"After the Mac OS X 10.3.9 update, my iTunes changed back the preference of my Music Library location to the default Library Location again. I had my Library location originally set to an external volume, but after the update, iTunes changed it back to ~/Music/iTunes/iTunes Music/"

If you are experiencing a similar issue, please let us know.

Norton AntiVirus A number of users have reported issues with various aspects of Norton AntiVirus -- including automatic updates and virus scanning -- after updating to Mac OS X 10.3.9.

MacFixIt reader Jim Allison writes:

"Since applying the above update to my G4 iMac 1.25GHz, Norton Live Update will not update the Virus Defs, displays Microdefs error. Repairing permissions, running OnyX and Macaroni and Tech Tool Pro don't help."

CheckPoint Secure Client Several readers report that CheckPoint's Secure Client (a VPN tool) is broken after installing Mac OS X 10.3.9.

Carl van Denzen writes:

"A few minutes after trying to start VPN (this happens automatically when I log in), it comes with a message box with title 'VPN-1 SecureClient Error' saying 'SecureClient services are down. Please reboot your machine to start them.'

Azereus, Acquisition Users experiencing issues with the Azureus Bit-Torrent client, or the Acquisition peer-to-peer program should try re-applying Security Update 2005-002, as noted above.

Palm synchronization For users experiencing problems synchronizing their Palm devices after the update to Mac OS X 10.3.9, re-installing the latest version of Palm Desktop may resolve the issue.

Unconfirmed Issues The following issues have not been confirmed through reader corroboration or independent testing. If you are experiencing any of them, please let us know.

Problems launching classic MacFixIt reader Jennifer L. Davis reports problems launching Class under Mac OS X 10.3.9:

"I installed the 10.3.9 update and now cannot launch Classic. I have a 1.25 GHz PowerBook G4 and have installed the updates as they came out without incident. "

Reverting to Mac OS X 10.3.8 If Mac OS X 10.3.9 is causing serious issues that cannot be resolved via any currently published workarounds, you may want to revert to Mac OS X 10.3.8. Instructions for doing so can be found in our tutorial "Reverting to an earlier version of Mac OS X."

Positive reports

Improved Safari page rendering speed As mentioned above, Safari 1.3 provides a noticeable decrease in page rendering time for most users.

MacFixIt reader Wayne Allen, for instance, writes:

"I have been struggling with Safari performance issues for some time; when loading links to tabs while browsing a large blog (for example,) there are huge hang-times and hesitations trying to scroll through the foreground document, especially with large numbers of images. I'd been considering switching to Firefox because of these problems.

"However, after installing the 10.3.9 update, Safari performance is dramatically improved! I thought I was just imagining things, so I tried my daughter's iBook at 10.3.8. Slow! Back to my iBook. Fast!"

Michael Kaufmann adds

"Safari really seems to be working much better than it ever has. My homepage, excite.com, which always took some time to load now virtually loads immediately."

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