Utilities OS X

Troubleshooting Utilities: OS X Utilities

Name		Description
ASM		Of all the utilities that bring back features we miss from Mac OS 9, this is our favorite. It almost perfectly recreates the Application menu, including the option to Hide applications. Then it adds several OS X features, via its Preferences settings, such as the ability to adjust icon size or hide the Dock.
BatChmod		This is a utility for manipulating file and folder privileges. As its name implies, it has great batch change functions. It also has useful Force Empty Trash command.
BootCD		This utility allows you to create a customized bootable CD with a Dock that contains the utilities you select! Excellent. For tips on how to use this utility, click here.
BetterConsole		This utility replaces OS X's Console, adding more features.
Boot Config		This lets you control the startup items in /Library and /System/Library, allowing you to disable unused items with the click of the mouse.
BrickHouse		OS X's UNIX layer includes firewall features. Ordinarily, you would need to use Terminal to access them. But with BrickHouse, you can set it all up from a friendly Aqua interface. It even has an assistant to walk you through the steps.
Carbon Copy Cloner		This is a utility that can copy an OS X installation to another volume.
Classic?		Allows you to launch or quit Classic from the Dock. the Dock indicator also shows the current status of Classic and provides a list of Classic control panels.
Classic Menu		Classic Menu displays the icons and names of files and folders in the Classic Menu Items folder and allows up to 5 levels of hierarchical menus for folder contents. It functions like the Apple menu in Mac OS 9.
Comment Synch		This utility allows you to batch synchronize file comments from the OS X to Classic formats. This addresses the fact that OS 9 and OS X store comments in separate databases, so information stored in one OS will not appear in the other.
Default Folder X		Default Folder enhances OS X Open/Save dialog boxes in several ways. The net effect is that it makes it much easier to navigate to files and folders that you have previously visited. This utility is essential for us!
DesInstaller		This removes and archives the files installed by a pkg file. It can generate a reinstaller for the files, even if you have modified them, and it can just list what is installed.
CronniX		This allows you to access UNIX crontab settings, which are used to schedule repeating events.
Dockprefs		Dockprefs is a dockling that gives quick access to all of the System Preferences available to the user, including custom preference panes.
DragThing		DragThing is one of several competing multi-function launchers.
Drop Drawers		Drop Drawers is one of several competing multi-function launchers. We were especially impressed with the OS X implementation of its unobtrusive tabs that pop out of the margin of the screen when requested. Select the contextual menu for any tab and access its "hidden" features.
DropNuke		This can help delete files that otherwise refuse to delete.
escapepod		escapepod lets you terminate the frontmost application by hitting Control-Alt-Delete, or do a force-logout by hitting Command-Control-Alt-Delete. The author writes: "There are times that Mac OS X appears to be hung (especially in some games) when it really isn't - just the frontmost application's GUI is wedged. Additionally, when the entire GUI appears to be hung, it is safer to do a force-logout than to simply reboot your machine (and it is quicker, too)."
Fetch		We use Fetch to upload MacFixIt web pages to our server. We have tried other FTP clients, but keep coming back to Fetch. It is simple yet effective. It does what we want without getting in our way. And the new OS X version works just fine. That's about all we can ask.
File Buddy X		This is as an OS X version of the excellent Classic desktop and file/folder editing and task tool.
FileXaminer (formerly Get Info)		This allows you to change file settings such as UNIX-style permissions, group and owner, type and creator, and more. Has a great batch mode and excellent Type/Creator support.
Firewalk X 2		Firewalk X 2 is a competitor to BrickHouse. It too makes accessing and setting up OS X's network firewall as simple as can be. You won't go wrong with either product. Unlike the original Firewalk, it no longer uses Mac OS X's built-in firewall, but uses instead its own proprietary firewall.
FruitMenu		This allows you to build your own Apple Menu.
HotApp		HotApp lets you assign any hot key to activate/run an OS X application. In addition, it provides a simple way to switch between the last two active applications by pressing Option-Tab.
Impasse		Impasse is a another firewall application for Mac OS X. It runs as a System Preferences and tries to automatically detect the optimal settings for the services you are running. Designed to make firewalls easy for novices.
InVisibles		InVisibles is a small utility that simply makes invisible items visible in the Finder - and vice versa.
IPNetMonitor X		This is a tool to monitor and troubleshoot net connections. An OS X version of a great OS 9 utility.
Key Xing		This utility allows you to launch applications, files, folders, URLs, and AppleScripts from the keyboard.
Keyboard Maestro		This is a Hot Keys, Program Switcher, and Clipboard Switcher utility all in one.
LaunchBar		An almost unbelievable utility. Accessible from your menu bar, it can find files on your drive, even if you don't remember what they are called. Just type any letters that you believe are in the name, and it will list all potential matches. For example, when we typed "aw", AppleWorks was the first program to be listed. No other software would figure that out. The program claims to improve its guesses as it learns from your selections. Of course, it can launch any applications it finds and has an option to list all currently running applications.
Launch Items X		Launch Items X is a set of Mac OS X-compatible contextual menu plug-ins which allow to launch the customized applications, open web pages, open folders, or open Mac OS X documents by control-clicking on the screen.
Locator		If it's on your drive, this will find it...and quickly. It's especially useful to search for the invisible UNX files and files within packages that most other search applications miss.
MacJanitor		This runs the UNIX scripts that clean up log files etc. at night. Especially useful to use if you normally turn off your Mac at night.
MaxMenus		MaxMenus adds menus to simplify using Mac OS X. You can build a menu out of any items you want and put it wherever you want. MaxMenus also offers the power to link any item on your computer to a key combination. The menus also fully support spring loaded drag-and-drop.
MOX Optimize		This allows you to modify several "hidden" options in Mac OS X. It combines features that otherwise might require several utilities (e.g., disable startup files, run update-prebinding, more).
Nicer		This is a GUI tool for the Unix commands that let you set priority values for applications.
OpenUp		This allows you to double-click on compressed and archived files. It supports opening many common and uncommon formats - including ones not supported by Expander.
OrangePref		This lets you modify the graphics format used when saving screen shots...and scrollbar location.
OpenUp		This is useful for opening up some compressed file formats that even StuffIt does not yet open.
OsXigen		This is a fully featured queue-based FTP client for Mac OS X.
Pacifist		This allows you to extract individual files out of .pkg installer packages. Pacifist is also able to optimize your system's performance by updating prebinding information on your hard disk.
Perfboard		This utility provides an extensive readout of system performance data for Mac OS X. Areas monitored include CPU load metrics, memory statistics, network bandwidth, and disk I/O operations.
Print Center Repair		A utility that does just one thing: fixes -108 errors and related problems that may occur when using Print Center. It does this by fixing the permissions of files needed for Print Center to run properly.
PrintMagic X		This lets you select text to print in virtually any program -- anything from a single character to multiple pages.
Pseudo		This utility allows you to open an application as the root user. Similar to Skeleton Key.
ramBunctious		RamBunctious is a RAM disk program for OS X.
RBrowser		A great graphical ftp client with full sftp and ssh support. A Lite version is free but does not have the sftp/ssh support.
Repair Privileges Utility		This Apple utility restores the privileges (or "permissions") of Mac OS X system files and Apple-installed software to their default configuration.
SharePoints		Mac OS X's Sharing feature does not allow you to select individual folders for sharing, as you can do in OS 9. SharePoints taps into OS X's NetInfo database, and gives you an easy way to accomplish this task. Works as an application or a System Preferences pane. This one is half-way between a troubleshooting and an enhancement tool. We placed it in troubleshooting because what it primarily does is provide a solution to a common file sharing problem.
Silk		Silk enables the Quartz text rendering and smoothing introduced in Mac OS X 10.1.5 in all Carbon applications. This means antialiased text in Microsoft Internet Explorer, Mozilla, and many others.
Skeleton Key		This utility allows you to execute programs as root. Similar to Pseudo.
Smart Wrap		If you need to clean up the return characters, ">" characters, and such - that make email text unattractive, SmartWrap is what you need. While there are other programs that offer these features, SmartWrap was one of the first to offer an OS X version. You can access it as a separate application or via OS X's Service menu (for those applications that support Services). It can even cleanup text in the Clipboard.
Snapz Pro		The Mac OS X version of this screen capture utility is essential if you plan to do screen captures in the new OS. Save files in a variety of formats, even making a QuickTime movie. Scale, crop, overlay watermarks and more.
Snard		This is a menu bar and dock based Launcher. It reduces dock and screen clutter by replacing numerous items with a convenient system menu or dockling.
SNAX		SNAX is an alternative to the Finder. It mimics both the List and Column views - but with more features. It even includes its own Show Infor window, that allows you to change permissions and type/creator settings, as do the file attribute editors listed above. SNAX even lets you delete resource or data forks from a file.
Speed Download		Speed Download ensures that you always get the fastest download speed from your internet connection every single time you download a file.
Swap Cop		This utility helps you move the OS X swap file (used by virtual memory) to different volumes.
SwitchPic		SwitchPic can rotate the desktop picture at specified intervals. You can even use it to set the desktop picture(s) to your choice of the Mac OS X screensaver images.
Synk X		A synchronization back-up utility for OS X.
TinkerTool		A combination troubleshooting and enhancement tool. It allows you to make normally invisible items visible (critical when wanting to access UNIX files), to change the system fonts, to have more control over font smoothing, and more.
Tri-BACK-UP		This is the first OS X backup utility that claims to be able to "create and restore a bootable Mac OS X volume." It features automatic and periodic Mirror and Incremental backups, as well as synchronization capabilities. It doesn't have the network or tape backup features that Retrospect has, but is otherwise comparable.
Visage		Visage lets you modify (hack) the display and text of the Boot Panel, Login Panel and more
Watson		This is an alternative to traditional web browsers for accessing web content. No need to remember URLs or even go to web pages. Look up movies, TV listings, ZIP codes, and much more.
WindowShade X		This is another utility that brings back an OS 9 feature: the window rolling up when you double-click on its titlebar. When you want to hide the contents of a window just briefly, this is more convenient than minimizing the window to the Dock. With programs like ASM and WindowShade X, you can really have you OS cake and eat it too!
X Font Info		A great utility for quickly view the contents of font files. You can even use the Open With Application option in the Show Info window to make it so that font files open with this when you double-click them.
Xoptimize		This runs the UNIX optimize function, the same thing that you see when installing software and the "Optimizing..." text appears. It can help improve performance.
XRay		This allows you to change file settings such as UNIX-style permissions, group and owner, type and creator, and more. Has the most complete permissions settings options and a great extensible interface.
Zingg!		This is a Contextual Menu item that lists all applications that claim to open a given file. You can also configure Zingg! to always include or exclude certain applications.

Last Updated Wednesday, March 26 2003 @ 11:56 AM PST