14 DAY TRIAL // The fifth Mavericks 10.9.3 beta is now available for download to registered Apple developers, featuring the same set of focus areas as before, no known issues, and no new features at first glance.
The Cupertino giant has added five build numbers to the incremental OS X 10.9.3 “13D43” update, which supersedes last week’s beta (labeled “13D38”). Apple again asks testers to focus their attention on Graphics Drivers, Audio, the built-in Safari web browser, the Mail application, as well as Contacts & Calendar syncing over USB in iTunes.
The computer company urges developers to note that they will not be able to revert to their previous system after updating, and that anyone testing OS X betas should install these builds on a system they are prepared to erase if necessary.
As usual, the seed notes add, “This build is being provided to you for testing and development purposes. Should you encounter any problems, please submit a bug report using the online Bug Reporter at bugreporter.apple.com.”
“Please make sure to include ‘10.9.3 (13D43)’ in the bug title and description. This information will ensure that your bug is processed quickly,” Apple says, according to a person with access to the documentation.
Developers downloading a Mavericks beta for the first time must get the OS X Software Update Seed Configuration utility from the Mac Dev Center, on Apple’s developer portal.
Participants to the annual developer program must log into their Apple Developer account and download the “OS X Software Update Seed Configuration Utility” from the Mac Dev Center, install it, and allow the Mac App Store to launch automatically.
“Click on the Updates panel and the latest version of OS X Mavericks 10.9.3 seed will now be available for download,” Apple says. “When a newer seed build is available, you will receive a notification to update from the Mac App Store. Click the notification to begin the installation. New seed notes will be posted in the Mac Dev Center,” reads the documentation obtained by this person.
OS X 10.9.3 is not expected to launch as a feature update, in that it likely won’t pack any new functionality or major changes. Aside from offering (rumored) support for 4K resolutions and 60Hz output from Retina MacBook Pros, the update will likely include only minor fixes and tweaks, as well as the usual round of security patches for the latest vulnerabilities reported by security researchers.
In less than two months from now, Apple is expected to announce OS X 10.10, the next-generation Mac OS.