By AppleInsider Staff

Published: 12:40 PM EST (09:40 AM PST)

Apple again used a Friday to provide its developer community with new pre-release software for testing during the weekend, including new builds of Mac OS X 10.5.5 client, Mac OS X 10.5.5 server, and Safari 4.0.

Mac OS X 10.5.5 build 9F23

People familiar with the beta releases say a fourth external build of the company's Mac OS X 10.5.5 update landed as build 9F23, which addressed three minor issues, one of which pertained to Mail.app and home directory search.

Unlike the two previous builds, 9F23 is said to contain one known issue that hampers general searching of email messages in Mail.

Mac OS X Leopard Server 10.5.5 build 9F22

Arriving alongside its client cousin was build 9F22 of Mac OS X Leopard Server, those same people say. The release bundled five fixes, bringing the total number of code corrections expected as part of Mac OS X 10.5.5 Server to nearly four dozen.

Developers testing the new version of Server were reportedly asked to focus their testing efforts on seven core areas of the operating system, including Chat Server, WebObjects, Wiki Server, and Server Admin.

Mac OS X 10.5.5 Server is on track for a release alongside Mac OS X 10.5.5 Client in coming weeks.

Safari 4.0 Developer Preview

Separately, Apple is also reported to have equipped developers with new developer previews of Safari 4.0 for Leopard (build 40A12), Tiger (build 40A8), and Windows (build 40A12).

The new version of the popular web browser is said to bake in a slew of new features for developers, including a new "develop" menu, a redesigned Web Inspector, an integrated JavaScript debugger, and a JavaScript profiler.

Those familiar with the new builds of Safari 4 say the release also includes many of the enhancements bundled into the latest versions of WebKit, which is rich in support for HTML 5.

Specifically, Safari 4.0's implementation of Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) includes support for masks, gradients, reflections, and specifying a named canvas.

Also being carried over from the latest WebKit builds is rudimentary support for the WAI-ARIA (Rich Internet Application) and cross-site XMLHttpRequest specifications.

Among the technologies supported from HTML 5 are the ability to send messages between documents, storage of data either locally or just for the user's session, the option of running web applications outside of a browser or when disconnected from the network, and canvas pixel manipulation.