I think if Apple renamed version 5.6 as Airport Utility 6 Pro there would be a lot less moaning around here. I think for most people version 6 will be great - easier networking that lives up to Apple's ease of use rhetoric and for everyone else there is 5.6. I think giving them the same number but with a Pro suffix makes it feel more permanent and current. There is a lot of nice tools in 5.6 so i'm happy that I can still use the older version.
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Apple Releases Redesigned iOS-Like Airport Utility 6.0 and an Airport Base Station Bug-Fix
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I totally agree with you, but I also think -as pointed out in an earlier post- that there should be an option to go advanced mode.
Now that is solved by using Airport Utility 5.6, but I assume that is an intermediate solution as Airport Utility was redeveloped from scratch and the advanced stuff is not in there yet.
In software development you nearly always reach a point where something needs to be redeveloped from scratch due to conflicting specifications, changing infrastructure, vision, legacy codebases, etcetera. Airport Utility 6.0 is clearly an application that was taken from iOS (which in itself looks like it was a complete rewrite) and ported to Mac. Its features do grow (as it was fairly limited on iOS) so it's safe to assume that the advanced options will at some point also make their way into that application (possibly through command-click).
In the meantime, the old code branch (Airport Utility 5.x) has been updated to support the latest firmware releases and to provide the advanced options until they make their way into the 6.x branch. However, it would have been nice that it had somehow been pointed out by Apple. Now software update just pushes the 6.0 update, and you need to find out (for example through these forums) that a 5.6 version is also out there.
Anyways, I do like the fact that the 6.0 version shows a graphical representation of you network. I wonder how it will look if you have more than 5 Airport devices on your network. Does it graph that nicely? Does anybody have a screenshot of a more complex setup?
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no offense, but if you were truly an IT/network nerd, you would not ever have considered Apple's own routers REAL hardware in the first place...
That why I have a Linux box as router, and the Airports are just providing WiFi
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Updating the firmware of my Airport Express went ok, but when I enabled Back to my Mac, it has killed my AE. Yellow flashing light. Tried re-booting, tried holding down reset until it flashes fast. Pretty p.... of right about now. Thanks a lot Apple.
Yes, you are all right. We are being hunted down if favor of the dumb user.
This morning I read the Macrumors news and launched the software update. It did show version 6.0 as the new one (not 5.6). One of my devices is an original Airport Express and it cannot be configured with this new version. This device shows in grey, a box tells you that you can't use it with this version and a nice blue link brings you to the MAIN airport support website.
1) A semi skilled user would look for the previous version of the utility and try reinstalling it, only to discover that you can't overwrite it and you are stuck with no downgrade. That same user would then log in as root and delete the new utility so he can reinstall and older version.
2) A smart user would check on this forum and discover that there is a newer version for the "old" 5series: 5.6 and it works like a charm!
3) The regular user woud click the link, get lost in the jungle of apple support (BTW If you try to search for a Airport 5.6 you won't find anything. Therefore many thanks to the members that posted the links) and think "Oh gosh, my device is too old! Do I need to buy a new one?".
A new mac user would simply smile at the familiar iOS look and never even imagine that there once were advanced features. Unfortunatly with iOS driving 70 per cent of their revenues the guys at Apple have a clear strategy that embraces simplicity in exchange for options. And when the product qulity will fall as well, we will have another Microsoft in our hands.
And I believe I'm an Apple fan and have been for a couple of decades!
This morning I read the Macrumors news and launched the software update. It did show version 6.0 as the new one (not 5.6). One of my devices is an original Airport Express and it cannot be configured with this new version. This device shows in grey, a box tells you that you can't use it with this version and a nice blue link brings you to the MAIN airport support website.
1) A semi skilled user would look for the previous version of the utility and try reinstalling it, only to discover that you can't overwrite it and you are stuck with no downgrade. That same user would then log in as root and delete the new utility so he can reinstall and older version.
2) A smart user would check on this forum and discover that there is a newer version for the "old" 5series: 5.6 and it works like a charm!
3) The regular user woud click the link, get lost in the jungle of apple support (BTW If you try to search for a Airport 5.6 you won't find anything. Therefore many thanks to the members that posted the links) and think "Oh gosh, my device is too old! Do I need to buy a new one?".
A new mac user would simply smile at the familiar iOS look and never even imagine that there once were advanced features. Unfortunatly with iOS driving 70 per cent of their revenues the guys at Apple have a clear strategy that embraces simplicity in exchange for options. And when the product qulity will fall as well, we will have another Microsoft in our hands.
And I believe I'm an Apple fan and have been for a couple of decades!
Atomic bombs explode. If they imploded they would become black holes which are some kind of *s. So you would go Black to my Mac.
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Managed to access the hard drive in my Time Capsule from work with no hassle at all! The steps I took were:
1. Add my iCloud Apple ID to the Back to My Mac section in Airport Utility (whilst connected to my home network)
2. Went to work
3. Checked my "Shared" networks in Finder and there it was!
Hope this helps.
1. Add my iCloud Apple ID to the Back to My Mac section in Airport Utility (whilst connected to my home network)
2. Went to work
3. Checked my "Shared" networks in Finder and there it was!
Hope this helps.
Another thing which is nice for the dummy user, but which I find a security flaw is the fact that you can see all passwords for your airport device. In previous versions (and throughout Mac OS X) I used my keychain for storing and viewing my passwords whenever I forget them, but now everybody who has access to your Mac and knows how to start (or install) the Airport utility is able to view all the passwords of your Airport devices. So you'd better make sure any passwords in there are not the same as any of your other password(s) you use elsewhere...
(in Airport Utility 6.0, select an airport device --> click 'edit' --> click in the menu bar on 'Base Station' --> 'Show passwords')
The only new security issue is that Airport Utility displays the base station and disk passwords in that dialog. You need to know the base station password (or have it in your keychain) in order to get access to the Show Passwords list, so it seems pointless to display the base station password there.
It is a clear security risk for the base station and disk password to be shown easily by Airport Utility, e.g. if someone was looking over your shoulder and you weren't expecting those passwords to be shown.
Apart from that, the risks are no worse than before. Earlier versions of Airport Utility had an "Equivalent Network Password" command in the Base Station menu, which displayed the wireless network password.
If you had stored the base station password in your keychain and your keychain is unlocked, then anyone with access to your account on your computer already had the ability to run Airport Utility to find out the wireless network password and/or reconfigure your base station, including changing its other passwords to ones that they know.
If you are concerned about the possibility of someone doing this, don't store the base station password in your keychain, or make sure access to your account is secured while leaving your computer unattended.
Losing* the filesystem is not necessarily a bad thing. True, you need to watch out for the security faux pas that bit Microsoft (Win95) and other mishaps. On the other hand, making things like save --- as opposed to save as --- invisible to the user is more rational. Making users search over organise is difficult to grasp but brilliant non the less, where documents are accumulated at a exponential rate with a large variety of possible location based categories.
I do agree that removing the power user's options will bite the crippler in the long run.
* more along the idea of abstracting filesystems rather than losing them.
New Airport Utility 6
Wow, people are hard to please!
I am delighted with it, looks good and far easier to configure. I had to change my VPN to 192.168.1.xxx addresses, thought it was going to take ages but as I had identified all my devices in the DHCP with their respective mac address, it took minutes when I expected an hour at least...
I like it - thanks Apple
Wow, people are hard to please!
I am delighted with it, looks good and far easier to configure. I had to change my VPN to 192.168.1.xxx addresses, thought it was going to take ages but as I had identified all my devices in the DHCP with their respective mac address, it took minutes when I expected an hour at least...
I like it - thanks Apple
On closer inspection, I have to agree....Where are all my advanced options gone? If it were notf or my TC I'd put my Draytek back into service...At least I can configure it the way I want to.
Dumbing down is fine, but when things DONT work as Apple thinks they should...And it will happen, how do we get at what we need?
Dumbing down is fine, but when things DONT work as Apple thinks they should...And it will happen, how do we get at what we need?
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My goodness. What a thread. Seems all the really intelligent people have lost some features for the sake of us Dumb people.
I'd like to apologise on behalf of us all. Herp Derp.
I'd like to apologise on behalf of us all. Herp Derp.
Where on earth are you getting this nonsense? I personally own one AirPort Extreme, one Time Capsule and one AirPort Express. None of them are state of the art when it comes down to wireless speeds, configuration flexibility or reception quality. However, they are very easy to configure and maintain. The 6.0 version didn't bring any enhancements but took away features. What is the point of making easy interface for product that has one of the easiest interfaces in the market already if it means you have to take away features. This is what I call a epic fail. I'm all for making it easy but if it means taking away features then it means the developer needs to find another way to make it more approachable. I honestly don't know why apple just didn't introduce "show advanced options" feature.
I don't think there is a single review that has said Apple has best wireless routing equipment on the market. They are probably one of the easiest to use but far from most robust and reliable. Your comments about making it easier to use has some merit but making it more reliable is nonsense. Airport Utility has nothing to do with reliability of AirPort base station. It's down to the FW or HW solutions used.
Your comparisons between cars and crankshafts are without a point. Hell, while we're at it you can call the new Airport Utility a car without steering wheel, just add tracks and you got a train. Unfortunately it seems Apple heading towards just that, cars without steering wheels strapped to railway tracks so user can do very little effect where she / he is going.
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Anybody else getting popup notifications that they can't coonnect to their airport extreme? I had it happen like 4 or 5 times since upgrading.
Also I got slower performance a few times and had to turn the wifi off and then back on to get internet back on my Mac.
Also I got slower performance a few times and had to turn the wifi off and then back on to get internet back on my Mac.
there are TONS these days... i can ramble off a half dozen if you'd like. but yes, most good dual band/gigE routers these days are $139-199.
i personally use 2 AirPort Expresses, but only to stream music throughout my house.
i use a Linksys router otherwise.
I have this strange problem where I can't install Airport Utility 6.0. It just gives me "an error occurred ..." while attempting to update. Same thing for the 5.6-update.
I'm thinking it could be something about it not detecting my Airport card, since it doesn't work anymore. It doesn't tell me so, it's just a feeling.
Running the latest version of Lion on a MBP 2009
Any suggestions?
I'm thinking it could be something about it not detecting my Airport card, since it doesn't work anymore. It doesn't tell me so, it's just a feeling.
Running the latest version of Lion on a MBP 2009
Any suggestions?
As long as you can still download, just download Airport Utility 6 from Apple and install it manually... That does sound like some sort of corruption though. You may way to try running a permissions repair on your HDD from Disk Utility.
And I've been wondering that... Given Jobs' history for picking people close to him, I wonder how long the luster is going to shine at Apple. Not that I have any reason to doubt Tim Cook, and Jobs' shoes would be very hard for any mortal human being to fill, I have to think 'what's next'...
Although Apple isn't that fragile that they are going anywhere overnight (baring an earthquake/tsunami/asteroid) I am wondering about the apparent direction they are taking.
Mini stores in Target, making OS X into 'iOS-Deluxe', shunning Snow Leopard support, quality missteps, releasing embarrassing supplier problems (as if Apple can change China's human rights record themselves)... Tim sounds like a 'nice guy'. Steve wasn't... Just wondering...
But love the Airport Utility. I found the iOS version rather odd at first but got used to it quickly. It's nice and uncluttered, until you decide which AP to edit. One question: I have a dotted line between two of our Extreme AP's. I wasn't able to find out what that signified...
The Airport utility looks simpler. Simpler doesn't mean bad. The old version looked like a 'utility', this one looks like a program; if you catch what I'm saying...
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Did/do you need/have a UPNP router? Does the 'Back to My Mac' use IPSEC?
Not a good step...
To all those who are trying to defend this update or attack those who criticize it. I COMPLETELY back those who are genuinely concerned at Apples approach in the last couple of years regarding power users, server users and professionals.
Im afraid the Pirate Flag is truly gone, and Apple are quite alarmingly become a consumer electronics company for the masses.
Now do not get me wrong, but i LOVE the iPhone and the consumer products that Apple do. I live and swear by them, and will recommend them to anyone.
The point people make here, is Apple is forgetting and dumbing down and in certain cases disregarding professionals completely. iOSification of Mac OSX is so obvious and this "Dumbing" down is not some tale, its reality.
The sad part is, i rely on Mac Server, Final Cut, Quicktime, Logic etc, all the professional services and software Apple do.
Airport Utility has been plainly **** on. Having to download a extra 5.6 version which isn't at all advertised is mental. They clearly have no intent to continue supporting that in the future.
I have been watching over the past couple of years, this odd and dangerous route Apple have taken, and its very alarming. Certainly i will not switch to Windows, because its plainly a pile of goblin ******. I just can't stand to use it.
APPLE WAKE UP AND LISTEN TO YOUR PRO USERS!
THEY LOVE YOU, AND YOU NEED TO RESPECT AND LOVE THEM BACK.
Because believe me Apple, this continued trend and stabbing in the back is losing you professional customers who in the end create a sizable market share of content and more importantly push Apples Reputation in enterprise and companies.
Anyone else who is worried. please feel free to email me at robertmizen@me.com or pm me. I am going to write a open letter to Tim Cook, and i would like signatures or support. I plan to do this over the week. To let him know the concerns of us. Because they really should heed our concerns.
Regards
Robert Mizen
CEO & Producer
NRD Studios AB
To all those who are trying to defend this update or attack those who criticize it. I COMPLETELY back those who are genuinely concerned at Apples approach in the last couple of years regarding power users, server users and professionals.
Im afraid the Pirate Flag is truly gone, and Apple are quite alarmingly become a consumer electronics company for the masses.
Now do not get me wrong, but i LOVE the iPhone and the consumer products that Apple do. I live and swear by them, and will recommend them to anyone.
The point people make here, is Apple is forgetting and dumbing down and in certain cases disregarding professionals completely. iOSification of Mac OSX is so obvious and this "Dumbing" down is not some tale, its reality.
The sad part is, i rely on Mac Server, Final Cut, Quicktime, Logic etc, all the professional services and software Apple do.
Airport Utility has been plainly **** on. Having to download a extra 5.6 version which isn't at all advertised is mental. They clearly have no intent to continue supporting that in the future.
I have been watching over the past couple of years, this odd and dangerous route Apple have taken, and its very alarming. Certainly i will not switch to Windows, because its plainly a pile of goblin ******. I just can't stand to use it.
APPLE WAKE UP AND LISTEN TO YOUR PRO USERS!
THEY LOVE YOU, AND YOU NEED TO RESPECT AND LOVE THEM BACK.
Because believe me Apple, this continued trend and stabbing in the back is losing you professional customers who in the end create a sizable market share of content and more importantly push Apples Reputation in enterprise and companies.
Anyone else who is worried. please feel free to email me at robertmizen@me.com or pm me. I am going to write a open letter to Tim Cook, and i would like signatures or support. I plan to do this over the week. To let him know the concerns of us. Because they really should heed our concerns.
Regards
Robert Mizen
CEO & Producer
NRD Studios AB