fixed : where can I get OS version 8.4.4 for AppleTV 3 ?

Posted on 17-03-2021 by MacManus.nl

Question :

I was having a problem on my WiFi network so I had to reconfigure my AppleTV 3 from 2012. While doing so, I also wanted to do an update for the AppleTV-version of iOS. When I tried to do so, the AppleTV said I had version 7.6.2 installed and there were no automatic updates available. To be completely sure, I looked up my AppleTV 3 in the MacTracker.app and found that the Maximum OS listed there is version 8.4.4, so I searched online to see what info I could find on a 8.4.4 update.

I found that the 8.4.3 update was released around April 2020, and that it could be installed over USB using a Mac with iTunes on it… but on the Apple website Software update 7.6.2 is still listed as the latest release… https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT202157

What is going on ?

Answer :

There is no problem… at least, there is no problem regarding the updates, the only problem is in the naming…

It’s just that the AppleTVs initially ran on iOS, just like the iPhones and iPads… (correction : the original AppleTV ran MacOSX) …but as the products drifted apart, the versions of iOS needed for various iDevices did too …so Apple finally split the old iOS up in iOS for iPhone, iPadOS for iPad and tvOS for AppleTV.

For the iPads this wasn’t really confusing as iOS 12 was succeeded by iPadOS 13. But for AppleTV the naming became extremely confusing : tvOS 9.0 was introduced almost simultaneously with and only for the 4th generation AppleTV (now called AppleTV HD) in autumn 2015, but the previous versions of AppleTV kept running versions of iOS, just anonymously :

Apple TV 1.0 = “Front Row” release = MacOSX “Tiger” 10.4.7tv (for Intel) = build 8N5722 = 20070321 iTV release
Apple TV 1.1 = “YouTube” release = 20070720 iTV release
Apple TV 2.0 = “Take Two” release = 20080115 iTV release
Apple TV 2.0.1 = “Genre” release = 20080328 iTV release
Apple TV 2.0.2 = “Network” release = 20080414 iTV release
Apple TV 2.1 = “MobileMe” release = 20080709 iTV release
Apple TV 2.2 = “HD” release = 20081002 iTV release
Apple TV 2.3 = “AirTunes” release = 20081119 iTV release
Apple TV 2.3.1 = “No Hax” release = 20090225 iTV release
Apple TV 2.4 = “Gesture” release = 20090624 iTV release
Apple TV 3.0 = “Genius” release = 20091029 iTV release
Apple TV 3.0.1 = “Reprise” release = 20091107 iTV release
Apple TV 3.0.2 = “Finale” release = 20100211 iTV release
TV release 4.0 = Apple TV 4.0 = iOS 4.1tv = build 8M89 = 20100901 aTV release
TV update 4.1 = Apple TV 4.1 = iOS 4.2tv = build 8C150 = 20101122 aTV release
TV update 4.1.1 = Apple TV 4.1.1 = iOS 4.2.1tv = build 8C154 = 20101214 aTV release
TV update 4.2 = Apple TV 4.2 = iOS 4.3tv = build 8F191m = 20110309 aTV release
TV update 4.2.1 = Apple TV 4.2.1 = iOS 4.3tv2 = build 8F202 = 20110322 aTV release
TV update 4.2.2 = Apple TV 4.2.2 = iOS 4.3tv3 = build 8F305 = 20110511 aTV release
TV update 4.3 = Apple TV 4.3 = iOS 4.3tv4 = build 8F455 = 20110801 aTV release
TV update 4.4 = Apple TV 4.4 = iOS 5.0tv = build 9A334v = 20111012 aTV release
TV update 4.4.1 = Apple TV 4.4.1 = iOS 5.0tv2 = build 9A335a = 20111017 aTV release
TV update 4.4.2 = Apple TV 4.4.2 = iOS 5.0tv3 = build 9A336a = 20111024 aTV release
TV update 4.4.3 = Apple TV 4.4.3 = iOS 5.0.1tv = build 9A405l = 20111117 aTV release
TV update 4.4.4 = Apple TV 4.4.4 = iOS 5.0.1tv2 = build 9A406a = 20111215 aTV release
TV update 5.0 = Apple TV 5.0 = iOS 5.1tv = build 9B179b = 20120307 aTV release
TV update 5.0.1 = Apple TV 5.0.1 = iOS 5.1.1tv = build 9B206f = 20120510 aTV release
TV update 5.0.2 = Apple TV 5.0.2 = iOS 5.1.1tv2 = build 9B830 = 20120605 aTV release
TV update 5.1 = Apple TV 5.1 = iOS 6.0tv = build 10A406E = 20120924 aTV release
TV update 5.1.1 = Apple TV 5.1.1 = iOS 6.0.1tv = build 10B831 = 20121129 aTV release
TV update 5.2 = Apple TV 5.2 = iOS 6.1tv = build 10B143 = 20130128 aTV release
TV update 5.2.1 = Apple TV 5.2.1 = iOS 6.1.3tv = build 10B329a = 20130319 aTV release
TV update 5.3 = Apple TV 5.3 = iOS 6.1.4tv = build 10B809 = 20130713 aTV release
TV update 6.0 = Apple TV 6.0 = iOS 7.0.2tv = build 11A502 = 20130723 aTV release
TV update 6.0.1 = Apple TV 6.0.1 = iOS 7.0.39tv = build 11B511d = 20131024 aTV release
TV update 6.0.2a = Apple TV 6.0.2 = iOS 7.0.4tv = build 11B554a = 20131114 aTV release
TV update 6.0.2b = Apple TV 6.0.2 = iOS 7.0.5tv = build 11B601 = 20140130 aTV release
TV update 6.0.2c = Apple TV 6.0.2 = iOS 7.0.6tv = build 11B651 = 20140221 aTV release
TV update 6.1 = Apple TV 6.1 = iOS 7.1tv = build 11D169b = 20140310 aTV release
TV update 6.1.1 = Apple TV 6.1.1 = iOS 7.1.1tv = build 11D201c = 20140422 aTV release
TV update 6.2 = Apple TV 6.2 = iOS 7.1.2tv = build 11D257c = 20140630 aTV release
TV update 6.2.1 = Apple TV 6.2.1 = iOS 7.1.2tv2 = build 11D258 = 20140717a aTV release
TV update 7.0 = Apple TV 7.0 = iOS 8.0tv = build 12A365c = 20140717b aTV release
TV update 7.0.1 = Apple TV 7.0.1 = iOS 8.1tv = build 12B4410a = 20141020 aTV release
TV update 7.0.2 = Apple TV 7.0.2 = iOS 8.1.1tv = build 12B435 = 20141117 aTV release
TV update 7.0.3 = Apple TV 7.0.3 = iOS 8.1.3tv = build 12B466 = 20150127 aTV release
TV update 7.1 = Apple TV 7.1 = iOS 8.2tv = build 12D508 = 20150309 aTV release
TV update 7.2 = Apple TV 7.2 = iOS 8.3tv = build 12F69 = 2015048 aTV release
tvOS 9.0 = build 13T396 = 20151029 ATV4 release
- tvOS 9.0.1 = build 13T402 = 20151109 ATV4 release
- tvOS 9.1 = build 13U85 = 20151208 ATV4 release
tvOS 9.1.1 = build 13U717 = 20160125 ATV4 release
TV update 7.2.1 = Apple TV 7.2.1 = iOS 8.4.1tv = build 12H523 = 20160125 aTV release
tvOS 9.2 = build 13Y234 = 20160321 ATV4 release
- tvOS 9.2.1 = build 13Y772 = 20160516 ATV4 release
- tvOS 9.2.2 = build 13Y825 = 20160718 ATV4 release
tvOS 10.0 = build 14T330 = 20160813 ATV4 release
- tvOS 10.0.1 = build 14U71 = 20161024 ATV4 release
tvOS 10.1 = build 14U593 = 20161212 ATV4 release
TV update 7.2.2 = Apple TV 7.2.2 = iOS 8.4.2tv = build 12H606 = 20161212 aTV release
tvOS 10.2 = build 14W265 = 20170327 ATV4 release
- tvOS 10.2.1 = build 14W585a = 20170515 ATV4 release
- tvOS 10.2.2 = build 14W756 = 20170719 ATV4 release
tvOS 11.0 = build 15J381 = 20170919 ATV4 release
- tvOS 11.1
- tvOS 11.2
- tvOS 11.2.1
- tvOS 11.2.5
- tvOS 11.2.6
- tvOS 11.3
- tvOS 11.4
- tvOS 11.4.1
tvOS 12.0 = build 16J364 = 20180917 ATV4 release
- tvOS 12.0.1
- tvOS 12.1
- tvOS 12.1.1
- tvOS 12.1.2
- tvOS 12.2
- tvOS 12.2.1
tvOS 12.3 = build 16M153 = 20190513 ATV4 release
TV update 7.3 = Apple TV 7.3 = iOS 8.4.2tv = build 12H847 = 20190513 aTV release
tvOS 12.4 = build 16M568 = 20190722 ATV4 release
TV update 7.3.1 = Apple TV 7.3.1 = iOS 8.4.2tv2 = build 12H864 = 20190722 aTV release
- tvOS 12.4.1
tvOS 13.0 = build 17J586 = 20190924 ATV4 release
TV update 7.4 = Apple TV 7.4 = iOS 8.4.3tv = build 12H876 = 20190924 aTV release
- tvOS 13.2
- tvOS 13.3
tvOS 13.4 = build 17L256 = 20200324 ATV4 release
TV update 7.5 = Apple TV 7.5 = iOS 8.4.4tv = build 12H885 = 20200324 aTV release
- tvOS 13.4.5
- tvOS 13.4.6
- tvOS 13.4.8
tvOS 14.0 = build 18J386 = 20200916 ATV4 release
TV update 7.6 = Apple TV 7.6 (8130) = iOS 8.4.5tv = build 12H903 = 20200916 aTV release
- tvOS 14.0.1
- tvOS 14.0.2
- tvOS 14.2 = build 18K57 = 20201105 ATV4 release
tvOS 14.3 = build 18K561 = 20201214 ATV4 release
TV update 7.6.2 = Apple TV 7.6.2 (8144) = iOS 8.4.6tv = build 12H914 = 20201214 aTV release
- tvOS 14.4 = build 18K802 = 20210126 ATV4 release
- tvOS 14.5

As you can see from the list above, there is no TV update 8.x yet… the version you’ve been reading about online is the “based on iOS 8.4.4”-version, which actually is TV update 7.5

So, if your 3rd generation AppleTV lists it’s OS version as 7.6.2 you already have the latest OS-version available (…at the time of writing this post : mid March 2021)

That’s it !

enjoy 😉

FYI : it’s good to know that there’s a slight hardware difference between the 2012 version and the 2013 version of the 3rd generation AppleTV :

A1427 = AppleTV3,1 = 3rd generation AppleTV (2012)
A1469 = AppleTV3,2 = 3rd generation AppleTV (2013)

NOTE : the procedure you are mentioning of upgrading or altering the version of the AppleTV OS by connecting the AppleTV to your Mac by USB-cable is a “jailbrake”, which Apple considers “illegal”…

fixed : quick slideshow of a folder of pictures

Posted on 06-10-2020 by MacManus.nl

Question :
Someone sent me a bunch of photos that I need to review. I have them in a folder, but I don’t want to import them into Photos.app, Keynote or PowerPoint or even Preview.app to have a look at them and select the most important ones.

Is there any option or simple app to do this ?

Answer :

Yes there is, there is an option for this in macOS (and OSX) called Quick Look. In previous versions of OSX and Mac OSX the Quick Look option was visible in any Finder window as a ‘button with an eye icon on it’, in macOS it is slightly hidden in the pulldown menu that opens when you click the ‘button with a sprocket (gear) icon on it’.

There’s even a shortcut for this :

open a Finder window
open the folder with the photos in it
select the photos you want to review (hold the CMD-key while picking photos one-by-one, hold the SHIFT-key to select multiple photos in a row, or press the CMD + A key combo to select all photos)
then press the SPACEBAR to view all selected photos as a slideshow
or press the ALT + SPACE key combo to view all selected photos as a full screen slideshow
note : the file names are shown with each photo, so if you need to review and select photos you will know which photos you have chosen

That’s it.

enjoy 😉

fixed : compress video for WhatsApp (or eMail)

Posted on 03-02-2020 by MacManus.nl

Question :

I would like to send a small piece of a video I just shot at a birthday party to a group of friends on WhatsApp, but it’s too big to upload.

How can I compress it for easy viewing on Whatsapp ?

Answer :

If you have shot the video on your iPhone you can send it right away, and iOS will do the compression for you.

However, if you already have the video on your Mac and you want to compress it before you send it using WhatsApp Desktop (for macOS), do this :

make sure you trim down the length of the video to a clip that only includes the most relevant part of the video
- you can do this in QuickTime Player (included in macOS for FREE)
use Smart Converter (FREE from Mac AppStore) and choose ‘for iPhone or iPod’, then click ‘Convert’ to convert
- this will convert to an .mp4 video with 1280×720 resolution at 30 frames per second and AAC sound (file size ca. 10MB per 10 seconds)
use Handbrake (FREE from handbrake.fr) and choose ‘Presets’ > ‘Gmail Large 3 minutes 720p30’, then click ‘Start’ to convert
- this will convert to an .mp4 video with 1280×720 resolution at 30 frames per second and AAC sound (file size ca. 2MB per 10 seconds)

Note : even though the frame rate and screen size are the same, the ‘Gmail’-ready file will be much smaller than the ‘iPhone’-ready file, even though (or rather ‘because’) this comes with the downside that quick-moving objects will blur in the ‘Gmail’-ready video (compared to the ‘iPhone’-ready video that hardly has any blur and is similar in size and quality to the ‘Fast 720p30’ preset in Handbrake)

That’s it !

enjoy 😉

fixed : quickly rotate a movie file in macOS 10.15 Catalina

Posted on 13-11-2019 by MacManus.nl

Question :

I have a movie-file that was shot on an iPhone in portrait-mode, but I think it will look better when viewed in landscape-mode. It’s a video of you cat playing on the carpet, shot from above, so both portrait-mode and landscape-mode are okay for viewing, but as we prefer to view video’s on out TV it would make more sense to have it in landscape-mode.

How do I do that ?

Answer :

In MacOSX and OSX rotating photos was easily done in iPhoto or Photos.app, but rotating video couldn’t be done in iPhoto or Photos.app – that had to be done in video editing software like iMovie, or a dedicated video-rotation-app.

In macOS 10.15 Catalina, rotating video 90 degrees can be done extremely simple in the Finder :

open the Finder (click out of all apps until you have only the Desktop to look at)
open a New Finder Window by typing CMD and N keys on your keyboard simultaneously (or goto Finder > File > New Finder Window)
locate the video-file (if you know it’s name, typ it in the Search-bar, else browse to the file if you know where it’s located)
then click on the file name to select it
the video preview will now come up on the right side, with various info and some buttons below it
to rotate your video 90 degrees counter-clockwise, click on Rotate Left
to rotate your video 90 degrees clockwise, press the ALT key on your keybord and click on Rotate Right (in the same spot where the Rotate Left button used to be)
then wait for the processing to end…

…and you’re done 😉

That’s it – enjoy !

fixed : quickly wipe old Mac before passing on to family member

Posted on 16-10-2019 by MacManus.nl

Question :

I’ve just got myself a new Mac and transfered all data to it. Now I want to donate the old Mac (a MacBook Pro) to my children, but I would prefer to take my own documents off before I do so…

Isn’t there an easier way to do this than reinstalling macOS ?

Answer :

If you would sell the old Mac or give it to someone you do not trust completely, wiping the harddrive (or SSD) completely and reinstalling macOS would be the best way to go.

If you are giving the old Mac to someone you completely trust (like your partner, parent or child) you can wipe your old data and documents far quicker. Do this :

open System Preferences (to do so, goto Apple-icon top-left onscreen, and choose System Preferences from the pulldown menu)
in the window that opens, select “Users & Groups”
in the next window, click on the padlock (bottom left)
typ your computer-password when asked
now the padlock will open and the +sign (plus-icon) just above it will turn black (it was greyed out, just below “Login Options”)
in the drop-down panel that appears, choose “Administrator” at “New Account:”
then fill out the Full Name, the Account Name, a Password and a Password hint for the person that is going to be the next ‘owner’ of that Mac
then, click the “Create User”-button
then, check in the Users-list on the left if the user you’ve just created is listed at “Other Users”
if you’re sure the new user is properly created, log out the current user (to do so, goto Apple-icon top-left onscreen, and choose “Log Out [username]” from the pulldown menu
in the window that appears, click the “Log Out”-botton
wait for your Mac to return to the login-screen, then login as the new user you have previously created
wait for the macOS-desktop to appear, then open System Preferences (to do so, goto Apple-icon top-left onscreen, and choose System Preferences form the pulldown menu)
in the window that opens, select “Users & Groups”
in the next window, click on the padlock (bottom left)
typ the new user’s computer-password when asked
now the padlock will open and the +sign (plus-icon) just above it will turn black (it was greyed out, just below “Login Options”)
then select your (old) username from the list on the left (listed under “Other Users”)
then click the -sign (minus-icon)
in the window that appears, choose “Delete the Home folder” and click the OK-button
Then wait for the deletion to complete

That’s it – you now have deleted all your personal files from your old Mac.

Note : all applications that you had installed when the Mac was yours, will still be available in the Applications folder, if you want to delete any of them, just move them to the trash and empty the trash (to also delete supporting files, you should use an app like AppCleaner). If you had any applications that had personal licences, make sure these are still working from this new user account by trying to start them up and typing the appication’s licence key when asked 😉

enjoy !

fixed : Login Failed error – new Mojave Mail.app can’t access Gmail hosted account

Posted on 26-04-2019 by MacManus.nl

Question :

Ever since installing macOS 10.14 Mojave I have only gotten my primary Gmail account up and running. My secondary Gmail account that I only want to use for eMail though macOS Mail.app still isn’t setup properly : I keep having a “Login Failed” warning displayed in the upper right corner of my All Mailboxes window and my mails are nog getting through…

How can I fix this ?

Answer :

macOS 10.14 Mojave has a new way of handling your eMail accounts compared to previous versions of macOS, OSX and MacOSX : it is no longer possible to setup any eMail accounts in Mail.app only ; any eMail account that you want to use in Mail.app must be entered as an account that is setup for macOS to be used systemwide.

To get rid of the “Login Failed” error, do this :

open Mail.app
go to Mail –> Accounts
this will open the Internet Accounts pane of System Preferences
there, select the failing eMail account (Gmail address or otherwise Google hosted eMail address) from the list on the left
since you only want to use this eMail account’s eMail services, make sure there is a checkmark at “Mail” and there is no checkmark at “Contacts”, “Calendars” or “Notes”
when done, close the window by clicking on the red button top left
then, back in the Mail.app’s main window (entitled “All Mailboxes” at the top) click on the “Login Failed” error message that is top right (just below the search field)
now Safari will open up a (Private) window entitled “Sign in with Google” as shown in the picture below

now, just allow macOS to access your Google account (exactly as you are asked to do)
then close the Safari window (since it’s a Private window, which is indicated by the URL field that is dark instead of the regular white colour, you should make sure you close the window as continuing in this or any Private window may prevent you from logging in to any of your favourite websites since no cookies are accepted)
back in Mail.app you will now see that the “Login Failed” error message is gone and that your secondary Gmail account is now receiving mail properly
that’s it 😉

enjoy !

fixed : get very old iPhoto Library to open in macOS Mojave Photos.app

Posted on 13-02-2019 by MacManus.nl

Question :

On my old PowerPC G4 (or G5) Mac I found some old photos in iPhoto.

Is it possible to copy the database and open it in the Photos.app on my new Mac that runs macOS 10.14 Mojave ?

Or do I have to import the photos as just photos and lose all additional info and edit that was done in iPhoto long ago ?

Answer :

Of course, the easiest and quickest way to get the original photos into your new Photos.app would be to just import all the old photos into Photo.app. But… as you already mentioned, you will loose all additional info and edits that you added in iPhoto back in the days.

The best way to get as much info and edits into Photos.app as possible is to do the following :

connect an external HD, external SSD or USB-stick with plenty of GBs to your old PowerPC G4 or G5 Mac
go to Users –> [your account name] –> Pictures –> iPhoto Library
copy the iPhoto Library (or even the entire Pictures folder) onto your external HD/SSD or USB-stick
when done, eject the external HD/SSD or USB-stick (by dragging it’s icon to the trash or clicking the eject-icon besides it’s name in the Finder) and disconnect it from your old Mac
then connect the external HD/SSD or USB-stick to your new Mac
download the iPhoto Library Upgrader software from Apple :

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT202358

install the iPhoto Library Upgrader Tool
go to Applications –> Utilities –> iPhoto Library Upgrader Tool
run the iPhoto Library Upgrader Tool
in the window that opens, click on the Choose Library button
then select the iPhoto Library that is now on your external HD/SSD or USB-stick
then click Continue
when done, exit the iPhoto Library Upgrader Tool
then go to Apple-menu (Apple-icon top-left in the Finder) –> System Preferences –> iCloud
make sure you are Signed In into iCloud
then, in the list on the right at “Photos” click on the Options button
then make sure that there is a check mark at “iCloud Photos”
then exit System Preferences
now, double-click the Photos.app while holding down the [ALT]-key on your keyboard
now, while starting up Photos.app will ask you which Photos/ iPhoto Library to open
then choose the iPhoto Library that’s on your external HD/SSD or USB-stick
now, Photos.app will start converting the iPhoto Library to an up-to-date Photos Library
when done, Photos.app will display your old iPhoto photos
then, in Photos.app, goto Preferences, then General-tab and at Library Location click the ‘Use as System Photo Library’-button, to (temporarily) make the old iPhoto/Photos Library the one that syncs with iCloud
then Photo.app will start uploading the old photos to iCloud
now, in iCloud, these photos will be merged with the ones that were already in iCloud and they will be sent out to your iCloud (or rather iCloud Photos) connected devices
when the uploading is complete, you can quit Photos.app
now, double-click the Photos.app while holding down the [ALT]-key on your keyboard
now, while starting up Photos.app will ask you which Photos/ iPhoto Library to open
then choose the iPhoto Library that used to be your main Photos Library previously (usually the one that is in your current user’s Pictures folder)
then, in Photos.app, goto Preferences, then General-tab and at Library Location click the ‘Use as System Photo Library’-button, to make make your main Photos Library the one that syncs with iCloud again and be the one that opens when you startup Photos.app
then wait for the ‘new’ (additional old) photos to sync from iCloud and you will have an integrated Photos Library of old and new Photos and iPhoto’s databases

that’s it !

enjoy 😉

MacManus.nl

helping hundreds of happy Applers each day

Tag Archives: MacOSX

fixed : where can I get OS version 8.4.4 for AppleTV 3 ?

fixed : quick slideshow of a folder of pictures

fixed : quickly rotate a movie file in macOS 10.15 Catalina

fixed : quickly wipe old Mac before passing on to family member

fixed : get very old iPhoto Library to open in macOS Mojave Photos.app

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