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How do I keep my Mac running smoothly?

iHeartTheApple

iHeartTheApple

macrumors 6502
Original poster
So, even though I've been working with pc's for a long time, this (the PB in my sig) is my first Apple (which I absolutely LOVE!) and I want to do it correct the first time around.

I've been looking at how to keep my lappy running in overall, tip-top condition (perhaps by keeping the hd clean and free of unused files, apps, etc. among other things) and I've found such software as AppZapper (I like this one, a lot), MacJanitor, OnyX, and Mac Pilot...to name a few. The first two I'm completely comfortable using, as it seems (at least to me) that they're not doing anything mysterious, but...OnyX and MacPilot are just, plain overwhelming and intimidating. I apple-Q'd my way out of both of those as soon as they loaded, for fear of destroying my computer.

Sorry for the wordy description of my experience so far. 😱 So, down to business...

I'm basically looking to hear from you guys/gals regarding your secrets/hints/methods for keeping your systems running smoothly. How anal do I need to be? Any special apps that seem to do the trick better than others? Thanks ahead of time for the help!

EDIT: I just realized this may have been more appropriate as a thread in the software section...oops!
 
What i have done is partitioned the HDD in to two.

15gb for the OS, and the rest for all Applicatations/Media. This way if the OS gets currupted, your data is still safe, even after a new OS install

I also repair permissions and fix the disk once a week and after a huge install/backup (you need to boot of the osx DVD to get better results)

I remove all the junk applications/documents and all the files associated with it. e.g if i get an application from macupdate to evaluate, i remove it once ive finised evalutating it.
 
I don't do anything except keep a backup of things. I've never had a problem. Well, I do one thing, I don't install too much unnecessary software.

(And that last remark was more about not installing hacks to theme the look of OS X, mods and stuff like that. It wasn't ment as a mockery of maintenance software.)
 
MacSA said:
Perhaps we sould just ban people from posting messages on the message board so as not to annoy people like you. 🙄 X10
Click to expand...
That's a terrible idea. Pointing them in a direction where they can get the desired information was a much better idea.
 
Thanks all for the help...I realize that this question has probably been asked a ton of times before, but I was posting early in the morning and I didn't think to look for previous threads. Thanks for the tips though...

BTW, what does "repairing permissions" do? Sorry for the (probably) stupid question...
 
Grapes, sorry, but you seriously need to lighten up on the noobies, do you really think they know how to search.. or even begin to start to search?? No.

grapes911 said:
That's a terrible idea. Pointing them in a direction where they can get the desired information was a much better idea.
Click to expand...
OK, um, well this doesn't sound so nice:
grapes911 said:
This has been covered over and over...
Click to expand...
Be nice to the noobies! Don't scare 'em away.

Jesus!

🙄 😉
 
lilstewart92 said:
Grapes, sorry, but you seriously need to lighten up on the noobies, do you really think they know how to search.. or even begin to start to search?? No.


OK, um, well this doesn't sound so nice:

Be nice to the noobies! Don't scare 'em away.

Jesus!

🙄 😉
Click to expand...

LOL, no worries. I know how frustrating it can be dealing with us noobs. Everytime I join a new forum, I tell myself I'm not gonna act noobish and then a thread like this comes up...😱

Bare with me, I'll work out the kinks...and thanks for the info!
 
lilstewart92 said:
Grapes, sorry, but you seriously need to lighten up on the noobies, do you really think they know how to search.. or even begin to start to search?? No.


OK, um, well this doesn't sound so nice:

Be nice to the noobies! Don't scare 'em away.
Click to expand...

I'm not trying to be mean or rude. I think people try to add a certain connotation to words or phrases when speaking/typing over the net. I just stated the truth. Don't try to read in between the lines, because there is nothing in between the lines.

If I were trying to be tought on a newbie, I'd type:
"What the hell is your problem, you stupid NOOOOOOOB!!!? Haven't you ever heard of a search button? Duh. Dummy."
Hmmmm . . . I wonder what people would have said if I had posted this? 🙄
 
I like to use the features of Mainmenu once a month or so. Don't ever use norton anything, it's poison, no doubt about it. Diskwarior and other Alsoft stuff is good for keeping the disk physically in check, I do FW boots from my other mac for this. Like any machine, keep dust out with a can of compressed air (don't blow, humidity is bad). Keep files organized so you don't confuse urself and skrew up. Deleted old preference files (unused), keep some extra space on the disk.

If your mac displays the wrong icons and weird things like that, their are a pair of invisible 'ls' files in the preferences folder that you can delete. Another reccomendation is to keep partitions for different work environements, to keep this running fast (this also helps if your catalog structure gets pinged), and to install 'Apple Jack' for use in single user mode.
 
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