iPhone firmware 1.0.2 released and analyzed, hopes for new features dashed

Tags: 1.0.2, analysis, beephone, firmware, iphone

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Alright, here's the skinny on what's changed in the new iPhone firmware (1.0.2):

- /private/var/db/localtime has been changed from a file to a symlink, looks like a fix related to time zones.

- The kernel caches in /System/Library/Caches/com.apple.kernelcaches/ have been changed. So a few changes in the kernel. The new kernels are actually smaller by about 6 kilobytes.

- The Info.plist for the Multitouch driver in /System/Library/Extensions/AppleMultitouchSPI.kext has been changed. This corresponds with what appears to be reprogrammed multitouch firmware, possibly fixing some multitouch issues for some.

- A few files have been rearranged, for the IOKit, MultitouchSupport, OfficeImport, and System frameworks (/System/Library/Frameworks). Looks like they've replaced some static folders with symlinks into the Versions folder of each framework. Possibly a backward compatibility move? I'm just thinking out loud here. Might just be a "prettiness" upgrade for the iPhone devs at Apple.

- dtmf-#.aif and dtmf-*.aif in the TelephonyUI framework have both been changed. I have no idea why; the sound files that play when you hit * and # on the phone keypad are in /System/Library/Audio/UISounds, not with the TelephonyUI framework. New files are about 4kb smaller.

- /usr/libexec/lockdownd has been changed, now it's 8 bytes longer. I'll infer that there was only one bug fixed in the Lockdown daemon, possibly addressing some synchronization or activation issues.

What does all this mean?

- No new application features, and no new applications.
- A few bug fixes but nothing major.

All in all a disappointing update. Let's hope the next one brings us some more finger candy to chew on.

Lastly, I have updated iBrickr to work with the new firmware. Check it out if you have Windows and want an easy way to install ringtones and apps.

For those interested, here's the raw output from my comparison program:
43 -> 1067 ./private/etc/resolv.conf
1017 -> 1067 ./private/var/db/localtime
-> 128 ./sizes.pl
3262608 -> 3261992 ./System/Library/Caches/com.apple.kernelcaches/kernelcache.release.s5l8900xrb
3262608 -> 3261992 ./System/Library/Caches/com.apple.kernelcaches/kernelcache.s5l8900xrb
67707 -> 67315 ./System/Library/Extensions/AppleMultitouchSPI.kext/Info.plist
0 -> 1067 ./System/Library/Frameworks/IOKit.framework/Resources
0 -> 1067 ./System/Library/Frameworks/IOKit.framework/Versions/Current
0 -> 1067 ./System/Library/Frameworks/MultitouchSupport.framework/Resources
0 -> 1067 ./System/Library/Frameworks/MultitouchSupport.framework/Versions/Current
0 -> 1067 ./System/Library/Frameworks/OfficeImport.framework/Resources
0 -> 1067 ./System/Library/Frameworks/OfficeImport.framework/Versions/Current
0 -> 1067 ./System/Library/Frameworks/System.framework/Resources
1407008 -> 1067 ./System/Library/Frameworks/System.framework/System
1407008 -> 1067 ./System/Library/Frameworks/System.framework/Versions/B/System
0 -> 1067 ./System/Library/Frameworks/System.framework/Versions/Current
12238 -> 8772 ./System/Library/Frameworks/TelephonyUI.framework/dtmf-#.aif
751480 -> 751488 ./usr/libexec/lockdownd

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