Mac Lists

A Second Look at the MacUpdate Bundle

Now that I've had two weeks to use the applications in the special MacUpdate Bundle, I decided to update my original posting for those readers who might be considering ordering the package. I'm not using three of the applications (Little Snitch, MacGourmet Deluxe, KeyCue) so those reviews are not being included. I still like KeyCue and I want to break my "mousing" habits and use my keyboard more, but I keep forgetting that KeyCue is installed. I guess that says that it is a totally non-intrusive application. I wish I could say the same for Little Snitch. I tried using it but it interfered with my ability to access certain websites and the learning curve for setting preferences was greater than I like. I have to admit I'm a bit lazy and I rarely use applications that require reading more than a page or two of documentation. Therefore, I uninstalled Little Snitch and am not using it. The third application that I'm not using is MacGourmet Deluxe, simply because I already own and use the original MacGourmet and I have no use for the extra features in the Deluxe version.

1.  RapidWeaver

Developer: Realmac Software

I probably use RapidWeaver more than I do any other application on my computer. Of course, my occupation involves the constant design and development of websites so my need for good web design applications is decidely greater than that of the average Mac user. Also, since I'm an experienced HTML and CSS user, I appreciate the more powerful features of RapidWeaver that an average user might not ever know exist. For example, RapidWeaver themes can be modified easily by users who have a decent knowledge of CSS. My World Travels website was created with RapidWeaver, yet the theme does not look exactly like any of the standard, included RapidWeaver themes because I changed the background colors, dimensions of the page and the font and link settings.

RapidWeaver is widely used and there is a large, supportive network of helpful, more experienced users for people who want to get started with the application. Online tutorials, including video tutorials, are readily available, all for free from other RapidWeaver users. There are also free templates available, as well as guides and tutorials for designing your own templates so you are not restricted to those included with RapidWeaver. These extra support features make RapidWeaver the perfect web design application for the person who wants to go beyond just creating a quick and easy website, which, of course, can also be done with RapidWeaver.

2.  VirusBarrier

Developer: Intego

For me, the best feature of Virus Barrier is its ease of use. I scanned my drive and turned on Virus Barrier's automatic feature and forgot about it. Unfortunately, Virus Barrier has a weakness - sometimes it can interfere with unmounting USB flash drives, as I recently discovered. However, Virus Barrier can be turned on and off easily using the menu bar option.

Except for the USB flash drive problem (it wouldn't unmount while Virus Barrier was activated), I haven't noticed any slowdowns or problems while Virus Barrier is activated. The initial scanning of a hard drive with Virus Barrier is slow, but subsequent scanning of the same drive uses a "smart" technology that allows Virus Barrier to only scan new and changed files. I found a way, however, to speed up the initial scanning. When you set Virus Barrier to scan your drive, it first calculates the size of the files on the drive and this is where the greatest slowdown occurs. If, instead of having Virus Barrier scan an entire drive at one time, you have it scan one folder at a time, the total scanning time for a drive will be significantly reduced. Of course, this trick will not be useful if you have hundreds of folders on the top level of your hard drive, but it works well if you have a limited number of top-level folders.

3.  Drive Genius

Developer: Prosoft Engineering

Drive Genius is one of those applications that gives you a sense of comfort because it can repair corrupted drives. But Drive Genius has many other features that you may need at some time. For example, it can create new partitions on drives without the need to reformat the drive. Other features of Drive Genius include the ability to (1) defragment a drive, (2) find and delete duplicate files, (3) format and duplicate a drive, and (4) securely delete or "shred" files. I played with Drive Genius when I first bought the bundle, but I don't use it now. Still, I feel better knowing I have it in case I ever need it.

4.  Default Folder

Developer: St. Clair Software

I use Default Folder all the time, but just for one purpose. With Default Folder, you can easily add Spotlight comments to any file in an open or save dialog box and I find this feature very useful. I often save web pages and with Default Folder, I can quickly add Spotlight comments to all of those pages as I save them. There is a checkbox that lets you use the same labels on consecutive files and this makes labeling even easier if you are saving similar files, one after the other. For example, if you are researching a particular topic on the Internet and then saving the web pages you find on the topic, you don't need to enter the keywords more than one time. Default Folder can do much more, but I haven't explored its other features yet.

5.  iVolume

Developer: mani.de

iVolume will adjust the sound volume for a group of songs, so that they will all play at the same volume. However, I find the process of adjusting the volume is very slow, even on my Intel Mac, and the application doesn't work on the sound for video files. I haven't yet tested it for podcasts.

6.  Mac Pilot

Developer: Koingo Software

Mac Pilot is fun but it can be dangerous so use it with caution, especially if you are not an expert Mac user. Although the limited documentation says that you can reverse any actions you select with Mac Pilot, the solution offered is not particularly satisfying. For example, I decided to add separators to my Dock but then decided I didn't like them. Mac Pilot's solution to removing the separators is quite drastic - the help files suggest that you delete the Dock.plist file. Doing that would also delete all settings and changes you've made to your Dock, something most people would not want to do. Fortunately for me, I knew enough to right-click on the separators in the Dock and remove them with the Delete command on the contextual menu.

Some of the features in Mac Pilot are useful and non-destructive, such as adding the Develop or Debug menus to Safari. Overall, I would say that Mac Pilot is a great program for Mac "geeks" but probably should be used very cautiously by new or inexperienced Mac users.

7.  WhatSize

Developer: ID-Design

WhatSize is another useful utility program that you might not use very often. However, when it is used, it can save you huge amounts of disk space. For example, I used it on my boot drive and found huge, unneeded cache files that I was able to delete directly from the WhatSize window. WhatSize is slow when it first measures the size of files on a disk but running it in the background does not seem to slow down other processes, so it's possible to let WhatSize do its measuring while you work on other tasks. WhatSize is great for finding all those huge applications you once downloaded and then forgot about and no longer need to have taking up space on your hard drive.