Well there's lots of Tiger users out there. Whether the new update has affected LW, it's a possibility so I see your point now. I notice the offline version for 10.4.4 was made available on January 10th. (I use Panther at present.) It's actually quite common for Mac OSX updates to muck up LW. Generally it's to do with Java. And re-installing Java using the "Offline" version most often fixes it. But the symptoms don't appear to be the same. Normally when OSX updates affect LW, people can't open LW at all. They get the "bouncing in dock" syndrome.

Another possibility is re-installing 10.4.4 using the "Offline" version. 10.4.4 update for 10.4.3 users or the Combo 10.4.4. Also repairing permissions after all updates & installations.

Java 1.4.2 for Tiger (click on link)

But somehow I'm not so sure this is the problem. But I'm all ears to hear if this is an issue.

I just found this thread on the mac forum: 10.4.4 Ruined my computer but I don't know if it applies.