NVIDIA Graphics Update 2009 Improves Cursor Movement, HD Playback

[MacRumors]

http://www.macrumors.com/images/macrumorsthreadlogo.gif (http://www.macrumors.com/2009/01/26/nvidia-graphics-update-2009-improves-cursor-movement-hd-playback/)

Apple released (http://support.apple.com/downloads/NVIDIA_Graphics_Update_2009) an update for owners of NVIDIA (unibody) MacBooks, MacBook Pros and MacBook Airs.This update improves cursor movement when using the Apple Mini DisplayPort to Dual-Link DVI adapter with the Mini DisplayPort enabled MacBook Air, MacBook and MacBook Pro.

It also improves playback of HD video running on systems with NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT or GeForce 9600M graphics.The update should be available in your Mac OS X software update.


Article Link: NVIDIA Graphics Update 2009 Improves Cursor Movement, HD Playback (http://www.macrumors.com/2009/01/26/nvidia-graphics-update-2009-improves-cursor-movement-hd-playback/)

[Kilamite]

Hurray.

Maybe 1080p content will playback much better on the 9600GT.

[J the Ninja]

Okkkayy......now SystemUIServer is segfault'ing and crashing roughly every 2 minutes, and iStat Menu's doesn't work.....at all.

Anybody do this one successfully?

Nvm, fix'd.

[flyinmac]

Okkkayy......now SystemUIServer is segfault'ing and crashing roughly every 2 minutes, and iStat Menu's doesn't work.....at all.

Anybody do this one successfully?

No problems on mine yet (system specs in my signature)

[uni]

Let's hope it fixes my screen tearing issue with flash content and hd content, something that I have seen all macbook pros exhibit in the local apple store..

[Kilamite]

Okkkayy......now SystemUIServer is segfault'ing and crashing roughly every 2 minutes, and iStat Menu's doesn't work.....at all.

Anybody do this one successfully?

Updated fine for me too.

Need to see if HD stuff plays back smoother. Interesting to see if this boosts performance in any games.

[SimonTheSoundMa]

Nothing for the 8600M GT then.

We are still lacking major features such as MPEG4/.h264 hardware decoding, decent performance and glitchy graphics.

[lftrghtparadigm]

Hmm, wasn't even aware the new products had such issues.

My iMac with ATI craphics plays HD content just fine, wonder what was up with the NVIDIA chips. Glad I didn't jump on one of these early, sounds fishy to me

[Thiol]

Does anyone know if this solved the 30 inch monitor image quality problem?

http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=636416

[Nermal]

Hurray.

Maybe 1080p content will playback much better on the 9600GT.

I hope so. I have a 1080p HD DVD (from DVD Studio Pro) and it drops frames all over the place on my 9600. I'm looking forward to trying this update once I get home.

Edit: Problem not solved.

[The Samurai]

Hope this irons out some of the external display flickering issues.

[Eidorian]

Nothing for the 8600M GT then.

We are still lacking major features such as MPEG4/.h264 hardware decoding, decent performance and glitchy graphics.No mention of the 7600GT either...

[akbc]

Working fine on Unibody MBPro.

[voyagerd]

The new drivers won't even load on an 8600, oh well, no new drivers until 10.6 .

[rmwebs]

Also working fine on base/stock MBP 15" Unibody

[J the Ninja]

Heh-heh, figured it out. Nothing to do with the update, everything to do with the first time I'd rebooted since screwing around with some menu extras. Carry on!

[bella92108]

Does anyone know if this solved the 30 inch monitor image quality problem?

http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=636416

I can confirm it does NOTHING for this issue. I updated, rebooted, power cycled the adaptor, and the issues still exist on both a Dell 3007WFP and a 30" Apple Cinema Display. This update does not see to do anything in response to all of the issues surrounding the Dual Link DVI adaptors.

Bummer, I got excited, thought I'd actually be able to turn my monitor off then on and not have garbled screen snow :-(

[zorinlynx]

Installed. No problems noticed yet, but no apparent improvements either.

My Mac Pro has an ATI Radeon X1900XT and also an Nvidia 7300GT in it, the Nvidia card feeding my HDTV via a really long DVI to HDMI cable; I use it to watch movies.

Is the performance improvement only with Quicktime, though? I haven't noticed lower CPU usage or any difference when playing .mkv files with VLC, which is mainly what I do. I know VLC uses some hardware acceleration for colorspace conversion, but I don't know to what extent this could possibly help.

[Thiol]

I can confirm it does NOTHING for this issue. I updated, rebooted, power cycled the adaptor, and the issues still exist on both a Dell 3007WFP and a 30" Apple Cinema Display. This update does not see to do anything in response to all of the issues surrounding the Dual Link DVI adaptors.

Bummer, I got excited, thought I'd actually be able to turn my monitor off then on and not have garbled screen snow :-(

Darn. I guess the jumpy mouse and the distortion issues are not related. Unfortunate.

[Niiro13]

Unfortunately, they decided not to release the screenshot fix in this one :|.

[Drumjim85]

sorry arn, the white plastic macbook now also has NVIDIA graphics (NVIDIA GeForce 9400M). Not just the unibody.

[peepboon]

I have juse installed the update and now my external monitor keeps on flicking. It seems to have trouble finding/locating the signals from the MacBook...

Anyone else with the same problems?

[Stridder44]

Nothing for the 8600M GT then.

We are still lacking major features such as MPEG4/.h264 hardware decoding, decent performance and glitchy graphics.

Yay Apple! :mad:

[katarchaea]

I installed, and for the first time, my unibody 15" MBP will occasionally recognize my 19" Samsung external LCD display over VGA (and nearly always over DVI) using the 9400M. It's always recognized it using the 9600M GT. Sigh. Maybe the next update - if there is one - will allow it to recognize the display *ALL* the time. I feel for everyone here trying to make the dual-link adapter work...

[andreab35]

Wirelessly posted (iPhone: Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 2_2 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/525.18.1 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/3.1.1 Mobile/5G77 Safari/525.20)

Awwww darn I just shut down my MacBook Air!
I'll be doing an update tomorrow and I hope things will be running a bit smoother. :)

[darwinian]

Unfortunately, the HD trailer of Tales of Despereaux appears just as choppy or choppier with the update on my MBP. Oh well. It could well be the trailer itself, since other 1080 trailers play back fine. Who knows?

[twoodcc]

glad to see this update. i have a friend who just bought his first mac - a new uni-body macbook. i'm sure he will like to see this update. i'll be sure to tell him to install it

[smacsteve]

I went to run the iLife Media update and iDVD update and I also had the Software Updater pull the nVidia 30" update. I have a ATI 1900 and a 30" Cinema Display. I ran it and so far no issues? Anyone else see this?

[SchneiderMan]

sorry arn, the white plastic macbook now also has NVIDIA graphics (NVIDIA GeForce 9400M). Not just the unibody.

But is doesnt have the 9600gt

[iMouse]

sorry arn, the white plastic macbook now also has NVIDIA graphics (NVIDIA GeForce 9400M). Not just the unibody.

When was this announced?! Last I saw they were shipping 2.1GHz/Intel GMA X3100. Now I see the new 2.0GHz/NVIDIA GeForce 9400M in place of it.

Did Apple sneak this one under the radar or did I completely fail to notice?

[Eidorian]

When was this announced?! Last I saw they were shipping 2.1GHz/Intel GMA X3100. Now I see the new 2.0GHz/NVIDIA GeForce 9400M in place of it.

Did Apple sneak this one under the radar or did I completely fail to notice?It was Page 1 (http://www.macrumors.com/2009/01/21/apple-quietly-updates-entry-level-white-macbook/) news. It's hard to miss that.

[SydneyDev]

This update can also be made to work on the 2008 Mac Pro with 8800GT. It refuses to install, but if you open up the installer package and copy the extensions yourself they work.

Before:
com.apple.NVDAResman (5.3.6) <81 80 18 6 5 4 2>
com.apple.nvidia.nv50hal (5.3.6) <82 5 4>

After:
com.apple.NVDAResman (5.3.8) <66 65 17 6 5 4 2>
com.apple.nvidia.nv50hal (5.3.8) <67 5 4>

[Eidorian]

This update can also be made to work on the 2008 Mac Pro with 8800GT. It refuses to install, but if you open up the installer package and copy the extensions yourself they work.

Before:
com.apple.NVDAResman (5.3.6) <81 80 18 6 5 4 2>
com.apple.nvidia.nv50hal (5.3.6) <82 5 4>

After:
com.apple.NVDAResman (5.3.8) <66 65 17 6 5 4 2>
com.apple.nvidia.nv50hal (5.3.8) <67 5 4>Moving extensions like that is kinda scary when you're booted off of that volume. Then again the package installer does it too.

[Drumjim85]

But is doesnt have the 9600gt

and?? whats your point?

[SimonTheSoundMa]

A mobile GPU and desktop GPU are not the same. For a start they are normally up to twice as fast. It is like the Core 2 compared to a Xeon, both are similar but one is a lot faster.


This update can also be made to work on the 2008 Mac Pro with 8800GT. It refuses to install, but if you open up the installer package and copy the extensions yourself they work.

Before:
com.apple.NVDAResman (5.3.6) <81 80 18 6 5 4 2>
com.apple.nvidia.nv50hal (5.3.6) <82 5 4>

After:
com.apple.NVDAResman (5.3.8) <66 65 17 6 5 4 2>
com.apple.nvidia.nv50hal (5.3.8) <67 5 4>

[crazyxzer0]

installed the update. it is kinda useless to me since i dont use either..but i guess i hate having non up to date software if it doesnt hurt. :cool:

system works fine so far..

[lefse]

NVIDIA Graphics Update 2009 1.0

About NVIDIA Graphics Update 2009
This update improves cursor movement when using the Apple Mini DisplayPort to Dual-Link DVI adapter with the Mini DisplayPort enabled MacBook Air, MacBook and MacBook Pro. It also improves playback of HD video running on systems with NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT or GeForce 9600M graphics.

http://www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/apple/firmware_hardware/nvidiagraphicsupdate2009.html

...or in Software Update.

[lordthistle]

Frankly, I am getting very sick of Apple targeting movie watchers and music listeners only and no one else (may be movie editors too). Are people buying Apple hw only for watching movies? Why bothering about quad cores, OpenCL, 64bit kernels for these people?

The performance with this update has not improved: it is as lousy as it was 20 minutes ago. The bugs, like the screenshots on battery power with the 9600 on unibody MBP, are still there. Bad 2D system animations are still bad.

What's happening?

thistle

[lefse]

Frankly, I am getting very sick of Apple targeting movie watchers and music listeners only and no one else (may be movie editors too). Are people buying Apple hw only for watching movies? Why bothering about quad cores, OpenCL, 64bit kernels for these people?

thistle

I guess it is because Apple makes money on selling/renting out HD-movies and music... After all, money's what it's all about for them.
But the Dual-Link adapter is extremely expensive, and a fix to what many report as a "dead product" should be good for none-movie-watchers too..

[clyde2801]

My cursor quit jumping when using a mighty mouse on an external monitor like it was before.

Oh, almost forgot....and Safari feels snappier!

[clayandthat]

I have juse installed the update and now my external monitor keeps on flicking. It seems to have trouble finding/locating the signals from the MacBook...

Anyone else with the same problems?

I have the same problem, with a 20" Samsung and a 2.0Ghz MacBook. The external monitor will come on for a few seconds, before going blank for a couple of minutes, and flashing on again.
As you say, it's as if the MacBook's signal isn't being picked up, or isn't sending it out properly.
Are you using the VGA adaptor? The screen was flashing off every half an hour or so, but now I'm starting to wish I hadn't updated...

[lordthistle]

I guess it is because Apple makes money on selling/renting out HD-movies and music... After all, money's what it's all about for them.
But the Dual-Link adapter is extremely expensive, and a fix to what many report as a "dead product" should be good for none-movie-watchers too..

Unfortunately, I know you're right, in fact in some places apple is defined as the "entertainment gear producer".

I included movie editors in the list of targeted users (in the previous post) because of the dual-link DVI.

- thistle

[SydneyDev]

A mobile GPU and desktop GPU are not the same. For a start they are normally up to twice as fast. It is like the Core 2 compared to a Xeon, both are similar but one is a lot faster.

You think I have incorrectly replaced a desktop driver with a mobile driver? That's not how it works with Nvidia. They have a unified driver model where there is a single driver that behaves differently depending on the id string on the card.

[peepboon]

I have the same problem, with a 20" Samsung and a 2.0Ghz MacBook. The external monitor will come on for a few seconds, before going blank for a couple of minutes, and flashing on again.
As you say, it's as if the MacBook's signal isn't being picked up, or isn't sending it out properly.
Are you using the VGA adaptor? The screen was flashing off every half an hour or so, but now I'm starting to wish I hadn't updated...

I am using the VGA cable. It blanks for a good few times before it shows the desktop for like a split second. I can tell its having a hard time finding the signal because my Samsung monitor is trying to find the signal in analogue and digital source. It searches for it automatically.

What a pain... how long do you reckon we have to wait for a fix? A bit silly of them to release a driver which has this problem...

[boer]

I have an iMac with NVIDIA 7300 GT and this update refuses to install. Weird. Also the update does not appear on Software Update.

Edit: I just remembered they made MBPs with 7300 GT. This update is probably not meant for iMacs.

[mbpnewbie]

The performance with this update has not improved: it is as lousy as it was 20 minutes ago. The bugs, like the screenshots on battery power with the 9600 on unibody MBP, are still there. Bad 2D system animations are still bad.

What's happening?

thistle
Very true. 20 minutes wasted. I still have the screenshot bug

[Roy Hobbs]

Frankly, I am getting very sick of Apple targeting movie watchers and music listeners only and no one else (may be movie editors too). Are people buying Apple hw only for watching movies? Why bothering about quad cores, OpenCL, 64bit kernels for these people?

The performance with this update has not improved: it is as lousy as it was 20 minutes ago. The bugs, like the screenshots on battery power with the 9600 on unibody MBP, are still there. Bad 2D system animations are still bad.

What's happening?

thistle

Can you explain the issues you are seeing??? I seem to have no issues with screentshots or 2d animaitons, stacks, minimizing, etc...

[Data]

I sure hope they will update the drivers for the NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT 512MB , it still not able to do full hd playback on a 30 inch cinema display without choppieness and trouble like that, come on Apple/NVIDIA.

[Kilamite]

and?? whats your point?

This graphics update doesn't apply to the integrated NVIDIA graphics...

[Eidorian]

I have an iMac with NVIDIA 7300 GT and this update refuses to install. Weird. Also the update does not appear on Software Update.

Edit: I just remembered they made MBPs with 7300 GT. This update is probably not meant for iMacs.The Mac Pro and iMac shipped with a 7300 GT.

[Data]

The Mac Pro and iMac shipped with a 7300 GT.

Uhh mine ( Mac Pro ) came with a NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT 512MB.

[Eidorian]

Uhh mine ( Mac Pro ) came with a NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT 512MB.Your point being?

The Mac Pro nonetheless did ship with the 7300GT as its default card at one point. The 8800GT isn't the default either.

[darwinian]

Your point being?

The Mac Pro nonetheless did ship with the 7300GT as its default card at one point. The 8800GT isn't the default either.

For instance, my MP 1,1 (Aug 2006) has a 7300GT in it.

[Data]

Your point being?

The Mac Pro nonetheless did ship with the 7300GT as its default card at one point. The 8800GT isn't the default either.

My point is that i hope they'll fix the drivers for the other cards from NVIDIA too, thats all, default card or not.

[max-bear]

I went to run the iLife Media update and iDVD update and I also had the Software Updater pull the nVidia 30" update. I have a ATI 1900 and a 30" Cinema Display. I ran it and so far no issues? Anyone else see this?

I also have a Mac Pro with an ATI card so not sure why this is showing up in software update for me. Haven't installed the update though!

[max-bear]

I also have a Mac Pro with an ATI card so not sure why this is showing up in software update for me. Haven't installed the update though!

Hang on... I think this update is showing up on Mac Pro's is for anybody who wants / wanted / needs to put back in and use their stock 7300 GT card. Sorry if you guys have already worked this out! :rolleyes:

[wuzelwazel]

I hope so. I have a 1080p HD DVD (from DVD Studio Pro) and it drops frames all over the place on my 9600. I'm looking forward to trying this update once I get home.

Edit: Problem not solved.

This seems like a stupid question with an obvious answer, but you have an external HD DVD drive?

Edit: The reason I ask is because while you can play HD DVDs through a standard DVD drive, they aren't capable of handling the higher streaming data rate well, hence stuttering.

[goMac]

This seems like a stupid question with an obvious answer, but you have an external HD DVD drive?

Probably not. HD-DVD supported burning content onto standard DVD's.

[Kilamite]

Edit: The reason I ask is because while you can play HD DVDs through a standard DVD drive, they aren't capable of handling the higher streaming data rate well, hence stuttering.

Think Nermal is saying that on the 9400M, the playback is fine, yet on the 9600GT it isn't.

And it is down to the graphics drivers, which we were hoping this update would fix. But obviously not..

[tabsaid]

I think more people need to start using PLEX for 1080p content. It has a muti-threaded h264 decoder which VLC and quicktime lack. The issue isn't our video drivers, its the single threaded decoders in these media players. Watch activity monitor and you'll see. PLEX and the XBMC team are a godsend for us mac users.

[Nermal]

This seems like a stupid question with an obvious answer, but you have an external HD DVD drive?

Edit: The reason I ask is because while you can play HD DVDs through a standard DVD drive, they aren't capable of handling the higher streaming data rate well, hence stuttering.

The drive isn't the issue; I'm using a tower with a third-party HD DVD drive and 9600 GT.

Think Nermal is saying that on the 9400M, the playback is fine, yet on the 9600GT it isn't.

And it is down to the graphics drivers, which we were hoping this update would fix. But obviously not..

No 9400 in my system so I can't compare it. I suspect that DVD Player is no good, although I find it strange that Apple would advertise HD DVD support if it can't actually handle it!

[asphyxiafeeling]

it would seem that this driver update has some effect on games. since the update my frames in WoW have gone up by like, 5-10 FPS!!!

[lordthistle]

Can you explain the issues you are seeing??? I seem to have no issues with screentshots or 2d animaitons, stacks, minimizing, etc...

Lucky you. These are all well-known issues:
- battery power, geforce 9600: take a screenshot. The system freezes for about a minute. During this minute, if you plug the power cord the system becomes responsive. Major issue for me: I take screenshots of values, settings, etc. during my photography course (when I am on battery).

- on 2D system animations, the 9400 and the 9600 performances are bad on my unibody mbp, with the 9400 being slightly better. Their performance is worse than my previous 8600GT MBP, my office mate MB intel 950GM where all the animations are fluid. MBPs with ATI cards are very fluid on any animation.

I do not game and I do not watch movies, so I can't really compare performance on other tasks. But, for example, on Google Earth the animations are not smooth at all: they are similar to the ones I see on my notebook pc with nVidia4 with 32MB of vram.

So I start feeling a little bit worried: after strange design choice, even apple software is moving forward game players and video watchers. All the others must wait even for basic fixes.

thistle

[djellison]

2.4 Ghz Unibody MB - 4gb Ram.

Google Earth is as smooth as it was on my 2.2Ghz 8600GT MBP.

[Chew88]

I just got a Macbook Pro Late 2008 (unibody), if this update does not show up in automatic update should i still download/ install it?

sorry if this is a dumb question

[Will : Hi !]

I just got a Macbook Pro Late 2008 (unibody), if this update does not show up in automatic update should i still download/ install it?

Can you find it on Apple's website? It looks like it may have been pulled for some reason…

Edit: I can still find the update here (http://www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/apple/firmware_hardware/nvidiagraphicsupdate2009.html), but the Apple Support link provided in the original post doesn't work…

[Will : Hi !]

Unfortunately, the HD trailer of Tales of Despereaux appears just as choppy or choppier with the update on my MBP. Oh well. It could well be the trailer itself, since other 1080 trailers play back fine. Who knows?

If all other trailers work fine, it's more likely to be an issue with the trailer itself than a GFX card issue which would only occur with that specific trailer.

Edit: I have terrible problems with that trailer too (on an iMac with ATI graphics). There seems to be something really wrong about it…

[Riemann Zeta]

This graphics update does work on the Penryn (Early 2008) Macbook Pro, you just have to manually install the kernel-level drivers.

Extract the extensions from the package, then drop into the terminal and replace the NVDANV50Hal.kext and NVDAResman.kext files in your /System/Library/Extensions folder with the ones from the update (look up how to properly do this if you are not familiar with unix). Remember to reset the permissions on the newly copied extensions with:

sudo chmod 755 NVDANV50Hal.kext
sudo chown root:wheel NVDANV50Hal.kext
sudo chmod 755 NVDAResman.kext
sudo chown root:wheel NVDAResman.kext
sudo touch /System/Library/Extensions

Reboot and enjoy. When playing 1080p AVC video in QuickTime with the new drivers, my CPU use hovers around 40% and the framerate is a continuous 24fps with no choppiness whatsoever.

[darwinian]

If all other trailers work fine, it's more likely to be an issue with the trailer itself than a GFX card issue which would only occur with that specific trailer.

Edit: I have terrible problems with that trailer too (on an iMac with ATI graphics). There seems to be something really wrong about it…

I think you're likely right that it's a trailer problem. There is at least one other trailer that exhibited the same problems, but those two were in the minority.

[madmaxmedia]

Thanks for the info. Is that performance better than before? I'm a bit worried about installing them.

This graphics update does work on the Penryn (Early 2008) Macbook Pro, you just have to manually install the kernel-level drivers.

Extract the extensions from the package, then drop into the terminal and replace the NVDANV50Hal.kext and NVDAResman.kext files in your /System/Library/Extensions folder with the ones from the update (look up how to properly do this if you are not familiar with unix). Remember to reset the permissions on the newly copied extensions with:

sudo chmod 755 NVDANV50Hal.kext
sudo chown root:wheel NVDANV50Hal.kext
sudo chmod 755 NVDAResman.kext
sudo chown root:wheel NVDAResman.kext
sudo touch /System/Library/Extensions

Reboot and enjoy. When playing 1080p AVC video in QuickTime with the new drivers, my CPU use hovers around 40% and the framerate is a continuous 24fps with no choppiness whatsoever.

[Chew88]

I just got a Macbook Pro Late 2008 (unibody), if this update does not show up in automatic update should i still download/ install it?

I just called apple and they said to wait till it comes up in software update. What do you guys think? Any suggestions?

[NATO]

The Update isn't showing for me either, I'll see if it appears in a few days...

[MatthewStorm]

The update appeared for me. Then after I restarted, before I downloaded it, it vanished from SWU. Anyone clued in?

[Peace]

The update appeared for me. Then after I restarted, before I downloaded it, it vanished from SWU. Anyone clued in?

Looks like Apple screwed up.;)

[Will : Hi !]

Looks like Apple screwed up.;)

Assuming it's the case, it is starting to become a trend (Apple pulling updates and releasing v1.1s).

Fortunately, Apple doesn't have any "patch Tuesday", otherwise they'd need a "patch Thursday" to update their updates ;) :(

[akbc]

I don't know if it's just me, but after getting this update, both Safari and FireFox crashes with flash contents...

It crashes when I either pause the flash or the flash content finished itself...

Weird enough, it does not happen on YouTube.. But did happen for CineMassacre videos and stuff along those lines....

ugh =_=

[Lixivial]

Odd that it still shows up here: http://www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/apple/firmware_hardware/nvidiagraphicsupdate2009.html and http://supportdownload.apple.com/download.info.apple.com/Apple_Support_Area/Apple_Software_Updates/Mac_OS_X/downloads/061-5914.20090126.4lw4r/GraphicsUpdate2009001.dmg. Yet all knowledgebase articles are removed, along with the download URL present in the original news post.

I still have yet to understand why standard operating procedure at Apple seems to be "conceal, bury, destroy" when it comes to updating software, and changes related to that software. I suppose if user complaints can be "concealed, buried and destroyed" why shouldn't modifications to faulty updates?

EDIT: Well, at least they were consistent in removing that page.

[Riemann Zeta]

How strange that they have completely "disappeared" this update. At least I got it while it was out there. It seems to work perfectly fine on my 8600M GT after I manually installed the proper .kext files. Since I don't have the infamous "DisplayPort" connection, I guess I am not affected by the bug that prompted Apple to bury the truth and deny everything faster than Karl Rove at a congressional hearing.

[Stridder44]

Surprise! Apple isn't perfect.

[Eidorian]

Looks like we're getting a new revision on this update.

[ZMacintosh]

hmmm am i suppose to see this update in Software Update at all? as im not receiving the notification...and i havent updated these systems since i applied 10.5.6 combo a few weeks back.

Im running a MacPro w/ 8800GT (early 2008)

and a Mid-2007 MacBookPro Santa Rosa 2.2 w/ 8600GT

[garyd9]

new unibody MBP...

Applied the update the day it came out, and since then I've had horrible graphics performance playing Spore (under MacOS - I don't use bootcamp.) In some cases, I'm getting an estimated 2 frames per second using the 9600 chip with all graphics settings at "medium." Before the update, I had graphical settings all at "high", and while I did hit areas that slowed down, never did they get quite this bad.

I called apple to complain... and ask if there was any way to revert the machine back to what it was before the update. The short answer was: We know there's a problem, but you personally are screwed as we aren't giving you a way to go back.

I used to hear such wonderful things about Apple... the machines "just work" and raves about their customer service. My experience so far has been that the machines are no more reliable (and sometimes less reliable) than higher end Windoze machines, and the customer service is actually worse than many PC companies... (in particular, IBM/Lenovo)

[flyinmac]

and the customer service is actually worse than many PC companies... (in particular, IBM/Lenovo)

I have been getting stellar service out of HP for the last year or so with our HP machines. Even replaced stuff I've damaged without any complaint at all.

On the other hand, I've gotten zero support from Apple over the last 5 years. Even stuff that arrived damaged was declined repair because they said it was "cosmetic" and they don't cover cosmetic issues.

With HP, my only complaint is that it's hard to understand the foreign accents. But, at least they go out of their way to help me and are patient with me when I ask them to repeat until I understand them.

With Apple, I can usually understand them. But, it doesn't do me any good if they either will not or cannot resolve the problem.

With HP, absolutely no call I've made has gone unresolved. With Apple, every issue I've called them about has been left unresolved no matter how persistent I've been.

Fortunately, I've managed to find ways (via the Internet) to resolve my technical issues. And, the local independent dealers have helped to resolve my machine's physical defects (even though Apple had already declined the repair).

Good thing the local shops can just do it and send Apple the bill themselves (I sure am glad that my local Apple dealers are not owned by Apple).

With HP, I've called them having damaged an $80 part myself (well actually my kid did it). And, they sent out a replacement without any question or charge.

And, anytime I've had a software issue with HP's machines, they've sent me anything I needed (at their expense) to correct it (like CD's with what I needed on them).

I don't know how it is that Apple gets these high ratings for customer service, quality, and support. I've found them to be absolutely useless when you need something. I find that the user needs more technical ability to survive with a Mac because Apple's techs either cannot or will not help me.

At least with PC's, I've never had a question go unresolved. HP automatically escalates issues up the line while I'm on the phone. And, I get an answer to any situation before I hang up.

Apple has constantly put me through the waiting game, waiting for call backs, waiting for them to figure things out, waiting for authorizations, and so on. And, they've always left it unresolved.

On one call, I even got a fight when I asked to be escalated to a person with more authority to resolve the issue. They actually told me that they don't have any supervisors at Apple. I told them someone surely must sign their checks and be able to fire them. So, surely there's a supervisor somewhere.

[LinMac]

I've dealt with HP, Dell, Toshiba, Fujitsu, IBM (Thinkpads and server equipment including blades), Lenovo (Thinkpads), Acer, and of course Apple. The service at each of these companies will vary depending on who you talk to and what product you've purchased from them.

HP is one of the best in terms of outsourced support. Their people tend to try to help, but you can tell the people you're talking to aren't in the USA. The biggest problem I've had with HP is bad design when it comes to server equipment. We just can't have servers go down that often.

Dell is just.. bad. We've purchased off-lease hardware such as notebooks only to be told the warranty wasn't valid because the hardware was registered to someone else. Our solicitor quickly cleared that up with a letter to Dell, but it shouldn't even be necessary in the first place.

Apple has been the best and the most responsive. The repairs aren't always completed properly and technical support can be bothersome sometimes to mention some of the problems. The real golden rule with Apple is that you can get it resolved with escalation and a couple of additional phone calls. ;)

[garyd9]

Apple has been the best and the most responsive. The repairs aren't always completed properly and technical support can be bothersome sometimes to mention some of the problems. The real golden rule with Apple is that you can get it resolved with escalation and a couple of additional phone calls. ;)
Reading over what I posted, I should apologize - I didn't mean to come off bashing Apple support. My expectations where high to begin with, but the reality has been mediocre. If Dell or Acer were to give me the same level as Apple has, I'd probably be happy.

However, I paid a hefty premium for Apple notebooks, and I think I have a right to expect top tier support as part of that premium.

I downloaded and installed something from Apple's own "Software Update." Instead of fixing a problem for me, it has created additional problems. Apple has even seen *something* is wrong with the update as they pulled it. Them pulling the update, however, doesn't do anything to fix the new problems it causes. In effect, their update has rendered my MBP a functional equivalent to a machine costing $500 less (unibody MB - as the 9600 chip now is a worse graphics performer than the integrated 9400.)

I'm SURE Apple is working on a fix... though its anybodies guess when that fix will come out. It might be Monday morning. It might be sometime in March. Apple isn't exactly forthcoming with information. What Apple (or any company that prides itself on customer satisfaction) should have done was to post a KB article of some kind on their website with a link to a disk image that people like myself could install that undoes the change the bad update put in.

Apparently, this was (in addition to drivers) a firmware update - meaning I can't reinstall the OS to make the problem go away... There's no way to "undo" a firmware update short of updating it again.

In the past, I had a similar situation with a firmware update on my Thinkpad T60. In that case, Lenovo/IBM also pulled the bad firmware. However, unlike Apple, they had available the previous version of the firmware that any customer could download and install. Apple is acting as if they didn't even post the bad update... they just pulled it, shoved their fingers in their ears, and starting chanting "la-la-la" Talking to Apple's tech support about this issue is like trying to convince my 3 year old son to eat his string beans....

[flyinmac]

pulled it, shoved their fingers in their ears, and starting chanting "la-la-la" Talking to Apple's tech support about this issue is like trying to convince my 3 year old son to eat his string beans....

Except you can always open their mouth and shove it in. Haven't yet found a way to get satisfaction out of Apple (other than sitting and waiting and hoping that some future update might fix the issue - assuming it's software).

Unfortunately, while I can out-wait a 3-year old (have lots of experience there), Apple usually out-waits me. On my last several hardware issues, Apple has only admitted fault, agreed to fix the issues, and taken responsibility 1 to 3 years after I gave up on the machine and dumped it (for hardware issues that they refused to fix previously).

My most recent issue with them was with movies I purchased not playing (iTunes couldn't authorize them - thanks to DRM protection).

I paid good money for those movies. I went through every article on the Internet trying to find a solution. I contacted Apple, and all they did was direct me to the same articles. To humor them, I tried all the same things over again (hoping that it would just work that time). Still wouldn't work.

So, there I sit with a few hundred dollars of videos that iTunes will not authorize to play. And, no solution from Apple (who is responsible for the DRM being in the videos to start with).

But, no matter what, the iTunes store wouldn't authorize my machine to play the movies.

In the end, they had no solution that worked. But, they invited me to call their support team on the phone and pay the per call fee.

I gave up. I'm not paying them to still tell me they don't know. I went through all the levels of free support. But, no resolution from Apple. Well, there was one resolution... My wife's Windows PC would authenticate :D

What I believe happened, is that one of the recent software updates made something go "wonky" (yes a technical term). Because I had recently had updates to my system from Apple, and after a few weeks of fighting the computer, and Apple, and getting nowhere, Software update found a new batch of updates. I went ahead and ran it, and then suddenly my machine would authenticate and play my movies again.

To this point, the only reason I've stayed with OS X and Mac's has been the video features in iLife. But, I suppose that's coming to an end. I haven't been pleased with iLife '08 at all. And, don't plan to upgrade to iLife '09. I'm still using iMovie HD 6 (since it actually does what I want).

So, most likely I'll be keeping a machine set up with whatever will run iMovie 6 and iDVD. Probably lost most incentive to buy new (Apple) machines now since I won't feel compelled to keep up with the system requirements for iLife's future updates.

Aside from iLife, a Windows PC can meet all my needs. So, Macs might get relegated to a corner and single purpose if Apple doesn't bring back the style and workflow style of iMovie HD 6.

I've been using Macs primarily just because it made sense to just use my video machine as my main machine (consolidation). But, with my many Apple issues of late, and the software going a different (and not so great) direction, I'm feeling less compelled. So, this may be the last Mac I buy. I'll keep using it, but when it's day comes, I may not be as stuck on Apple as I once was.

iMovie pretty much had me locked into Macs through version 6. It made a Mac an absolute must have for me. But, since iLife '08, I'm not so excited about iLife. I just keep using the old software, and for that, and older machine is just fine.

[orsfan21]

I'm wondering how threads always tend to steer towards conversations about the support. http://n08q1114fvte161.imageshacknow.info/img/2460/v08w1128rhlb/smile.gif
I never noticed anything about the cursor that needed improvement either.:confused:

[imblownaway]

About time! My Mac pro uses windows on boot camp & i get to see whatever was on the screen last as a start up screen... (Never mind this link: it's a google crawl test) http://prettymansllc.com

[garyd9]

Got a call back from Apple... they claimed that the graphics update that was sent out did NOT include a firmware update after all, and that I should be able to revert by re-installing the OS.

Being that I don't WANT to reinstall the OS (again) (and that I intend to reinstall the OS again Thursday when my new 500GB 7200rpm 7200.4 is delivered), I'm taking a slightly different course of action:

I have a hard drive that I had plugged into this machine a week ago and done a completely clean install of 10.5.5 (from this machine's install disc) and updated to 10.5.6. That drive has no other updates (or software) on it. So....

Using one of the links found in this thread, I downloaded the .dmg file that contained the update. Using pkgutil and lsbom utils, I discovered all the files that this update installed on the machine. Then I plugged that "clean install" HDD into a USB reader (I have one of those USB things that you can drop any SATA drive into with ease) and replaced every directory from /System/Library/Extensions that the pkg installed (replaced from the clean install hdd.)

For those interested, the pkg installs/overwrites the following extensions from the above mentioned directory:

AppleGraphicsPowerManagement.kext
NVDANV10Hal.kext
NVDANV20Hal.kext
NVDANV30Hal.kext
NVDANV40Hal.kext
NVDANV50Hal.kext
NVDAResman.kext


I haven't yet rebooted with the extensions reverted... I figured I'd post this before rebooting. If you don't see a reply from me saying everything worked, then don't try this at home. ;)

[flyinmac]

Got a call back from Apple... they claimed that the graphics update that was sent out did NOT include a firmware update after all, and that I should be able to revert by re-installing the OS.

Being that I don't WANT to reinstall the OS (again) (and that I intend to reinstall the OS again Thursday when my new 500GB 7200rpm 7200.4 is delivered), I'm taking a slightly different course of action:

I have a hard drive that I had plugged into this machine a week ago and done a completely clean install of 10.5.5 (from this machine's install disc) and updated to 10.5.6. That drive has no other updates (or software) on it. So....

Using one of the links found in this thread, I downloaded the .dmg file that contained the update. Using pkgutil and lsbom utils, I discovered all the files that this update installed on the machine. Then I plugged that "clean install" HDD into a USB reader (I have one of those USB things that you can drop any SATA drive into with ease) and replaced every directory from /System/Library/Extensions that the pkg installed (replaced from the clean install hdd.)

For those interested, the pkg installs/overwrites the following extensions from the above mentioned directory:

AppleGraphicsPowerManagement.kext
NVDANV10Hal.kext
NVDANV20Hal.kext
NVDANV30Hal.kext
NVDANV40Hal.kext
NVDANV50Hal.kext
NVDAResman.kext


I haven't yet rebooted with the extensions reverted... I figured I'd post this before rebooting. If you don't see a reply from me saying everything worked, then don't try this at home. ;)

Yeah, I hate reinstalling. Been through it a lot this last 6 months with my Mac. I've currently got 3 backups going since I haven't yet made it through a completely finalized re-install before having to re-install again.

So, when I finally get my system fully re-installed with all my various programs (and hopefully without having to re-install again), I'll pull through those last 3 backups and try and pull all my various video projects back in to my final install.

Been a bit of a pain.

To this point, I've just been using the machine in a functional state with my daily stuff on it. When I get time, I'll go through and put everything that I use (even the less frequent stuff) back on.

I wish Apple had a simple method of just stepping back one step. Windows does this really easily. My wife's machine didn't like an update we installed. So, we just went into the Windows restore feature. Picked the line that was made before the update, and clicked restore. Within about 5 minutes, we were completely back up and running like nothing happened.

Windows logs all the changes you make to your system. And, it puts a date and time entry next to all of them. So, if you have stuff that starts acting weird, you just pick the date and time before you installed that update. And, to make it easy, right next to the date and time, Windows tells you what changes were made for that entry. Nice and simple.

I'm tired of re-installing OS X all the time just because one update makes everything go weird.

Fortunately, this last time around, I procrastinated enough that Apple eventually released an update that fixed everything I had issues with at that moment.

Since applying the new video update, I have noticed one weird system behavior. I have dual monitors on my Mac Pro. And, when the system is in sleep mode, the monitors go into a sleep mode and conserve energy (nearly off).

Well, since the new graphics update, my monitors now take turns waking up flashing, and then going back to sleep. One monitor does it, then goes to sleep again, then the other monitor does it and goes to sleep again.

So, when everything is off at night, it looks like a strobe going in the living room.

I'm not concerned enough about this one to re-install. I can always just turn the monitors off. But, we'll see if Apple's repaired update fixes this new behavior. Hopefully they'll get around to a stable update sometime soon.

[garyd9]

Reverting the kernel extensions mentioned in my previous post worked perfectly. Not only did the machine reboot properly, but I was able to switch back and forth between "performance" and "energy saver" with no problem, and when using the 9600 chip, Spore once again performs like a champ.

Also, it seems Safari is somehow faster as well. (j/k)

So... what would have been the big deal for apple to throw together an update that put these kext directories back the way they were?

[celtikmind]

So... what would have been the big deal for apple to throw together an update that put these kext directories back the way they were?

That would be admittance I guess... :p

Haven't heard Apple admitting they've done something wrong... yet! (nVidia themselves admitted there were problems with the 8600GT chips. Apple just relayed the info, sorta.)

/Cm.

[garyd9]

I notice that apple STILL hasn't posted any type of fix for the "spoiled" machines, nor anything else video related since they pulled that first update.

[Riemann Zeta]

This one is certainly a puzzler. The kernel extensions from the now-clandestine update still work perfectly on my penryn/8600M MBP, I just had to manually install them. Aside from that, everything is fine: Quartz Extreme, QuartzGL/2D and a more consistent 1080p video frame-rate (always at 24fps after the update) with slightly lower CPU use.

[lars666]

I really hope the update will be back as a fixed version, soon. I have the HD video playback problem with the NVIDIA and really want to fix this. However, as I also use an external monitor and read about all the problems, I kept my hands from the original update. Hopefully, Apple will not let this update disappear completely ...?!?