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Etresoft Tips for a Healthy Mac
#48011 02/19/18 09:10 AM
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In the spirit of a fine-tuned Mac, I have checked on my Mac irregularly, and also when suspecting something, with report generating EtreCheck.
The new version 4 isn’t free-forever anymore, unlike v3 and earlier, but it does allow a few (5) full checks as trial. The new interface is a bit more polished; no longer one long list, although the share/printout will resemble the old formatting in that regard.
One of the minor issues it found on my Mac, was the Unsigned installed software. These are checked against a whitelist for probable legitimacy. They can be removed in-app, one by one, if you think they need to go, and if you have no uninstaller or other application-specific uninstall instructions available.

What I really appreciated on their site, is the ‘Tips for a Healthy Mac’ page. Most regulars on this forum will know these tips, but it is a nice compilation of good ones: How to avoid scams, practice good computer security, avoid adware, no need to buy “clean-up” software, be realistic about malware/trojans/viruses, keep the Mac updated, think about upgrading, make backups, know what you install, know how to remove.

I expect not all will agree with everything said to the fullest extend, but we all know that there is a lot of snake oil or worse, that use scare tactics for their marketing, instead of empowering the user with insight, knowledge and good tips.

[No affiliation, just a happy customer.]

Re: Etresoft Tips for a Healthy Mac
Urquhart #48012 02/19/18 11:02 AM
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Originally Posted By: Urquhart
EtreChecks new interface is a bit more polished; no longer one long list, although the share/printout will resemble the old formatting in that regard.

Hah! And I found EtreCheck's new interface so user-UNfriendly that I trashed v 4 and will stick with v 3 (64 bit).

As a matter of fact, my feeling was that the changes in v 4 add up to little, if anything, substantive and are no more than eye-candy intended to attempt to justify the $20 price.

I admit, however, that I was so put off by what I saw that I didn't go through it thoroughly, so if there's any new functionality that justifies v4's being US$20 shareware as opposed to v3's having been Can$10 (minimum) donationware (roughly triple the price), I'll be happy to reconsider.


The new Great Equalizer is the SEND button.

In Memory of Harv: Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. ~Voltaire
Re: Etresoft Tips for a Healthy Mac
artie505 #48014 02/19/18 01:23 PM
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Originally Posted By: artie505
v4's US$20 shareware as opposed to v3's Can$10 (minimum) donationware

To be fair, the pricing is more complicated than that; it is region-specific. USD 20 / CAD 20 / € 20, so some countries are better off than others.
And anything is expensive after getting used to ‘free’.

As the developer said: ‘I never anticipated so many people just want to keep running EtreCheck after fixing a problem. That is a completely different kind of use and user.’ The previous versions were intended to generate a report for one-time-use, to post to the Apple Support Communities. And that is still possible for free, up to five times.

Not sure what will happen after the five times (cease operation or reduced functionality).
The old one still works. The upgrade isn’t forced.
Plus there still might come a free updated 3.x version, as hinted on MacUpdate.com.

Re: Etresoft Tips for a Healthy Mac
Urquhart #48015 02/19/18 03:04 PM
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FWIW My first impressions of Etrecheck 4:
  • I had contributed to Etrecheck when it was donationware so my upgrade to a full licensed copy of Etrecheck 4.0.3 was free and I can install it on up to 5 machines. Pricing could have been more obvious on the web site but then I entered via a link in Etrecheck 3 and not directly so I may have missed that information.
  • I think the new GUI is appropriate for non-technically oriented users such as my wife, son, daughter, son-in-law, grandson, and a few semi-techs who only think they know what they are doing.
  • I wish the "Detailed report" were viewable on screen in the GUI and I didn't have to print it out to see it. Oops, I found it. blush I hadn't scrolled down the list of outputs. tongue
  • The Top Processes by category could be quite useful and it is nice to have them all in one place.
Personal opinion — Etrecheck 4 is more useful for a non-technical audience than previous versions and the detailed report is still there for those who have the knowledge and experience to comprehend it. I will stick with it but submit suggested improvements. As to making it pay ware — it will help assure the continued development and improvement of the product and I will almost certainly pay for the Etrecheck 5 upgrade when it ships.

Last edited by joemikeb; 02/19/18 08:01 PM. Reason: correct my own mistakes

If we knew what it was we were doing, it wouldn't be called research, would it?

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Re: Etresoft Tips for a Healthy Mac
joemikeb #48016 02/19/18 06:20 PM
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Originally Posted By: joemikeb
Edit Reason: Change 4 to 5

Back to the future?


The new Great Equalizer is the SEND button.

In Memory of Harv: Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. ~Voltaire
Re: Etresoft Tips for a Healthy Mac
artie505 #48017 02/19/18 07:41 PM
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Not back to the future just confused. I sent an email to Etrecheck support by clicking on a link in Etrecheck and it was titled Etresoft 5 — so I got confused. I was right the first time.


If we knew what it was we were doing, it wouldn't be called research, would it?

— Albert Einstein
Re: Etresoft Tips for a Healthy Mac
joemikeb #48019 02/20/18 09:49 AM
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Originally Posted By: joemikeb
Personal opinion — Etrecheck 4 is more useful for a non-technical audience than previous versions and the detailed report is still there for those who have the knowledge and experience to comprehend it. I will stick with it but submit suggested improvements. As to making it pay ware — it will help assure the continued development and improvement of the product and I will almost certainly pay for the Etrecheck 5 upgrade when it ships.

Check out the exchanges between EtreCheck's developer and users at MacUpdate.

My bottom line is that a new interface doesn't qualify as a $20 upgrade, and I think that the casually curious users at whom it's directed are the users who are least likely to pay $20 to get it.

I think the dev has overreached and is asking too much in exchange for too little. (This dev has always come across as greedy: his donations page doesn't accept "whatever you like donations", the reason for which once was a now deleted fictitious "technical incompatibility with PayPal".)

I'm reminded of that app, Menusomething(?), that was in everybody's menu bar until it was sold and changed from freeware to $20 shareware and more or less disappeared.

And as for future product improvement, the items on the dev's to-do list don't overwhelm me, so I'll just stick with v 3, which is 64 bit and will hopefully remain functional for quite some time.


The new Great Equalizer is the SEND button.

In Memory of Harv: Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. ~Voltaire
Re: Etresoft Tips for a Healthy Mac
artie505 #48101 03/03/18 04:19 PM
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Because of Etrecheck 4.1, I have a lot of emails to write to software developers including a few whose products I rely on almost every day. I just discovered that under the Minor Issues heading, 32 bit applications and executables are listed. I found I had over 30 apps and executables that are 32 bit and only half a dozen or so of those were in the /Applications folder. The remainder are found in various places such as /Library/frameworks, /System/Library/Input Methods, /Library/Application Support, etc. One was in a folder containing the instruction Manual for an app, and a couple are Apple's own products including the DVD Player app. I discovered that some old standby utilities I have relied on for many years are 32 bit and sadly they are out of print and no longer supported.

There is a lot more information in Etrecheck 4 that was not included in the previous versions. If you passed on it previously, you might want to take a second hard look at what it offers for the $20 upgrade cost.


If we knew what it was we were doing, it wouldn't be called research, would it?

— Albert Einstein
Re: Etresoft Tips for a Healthy Mac
joemikeb #48102 03/03/18 04:51 PM
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Originally Posted By: joemikeb
Because of Etrecheck 4.1, I have a lot of emails to write to software developers including a few whose products I rely on almost every day. I just discovered that under the Minor Issues heading, 32 bit applications and executables are listed.

There is a lot more information in Etrecheck 4 that was not included in the previous versions. If you passed on it previously, you might want to take a second hard look at what it offers for the $20 upgrade cost.

Thanks for the update.

I can't be certain, because I've got Spotlight disabled, but I believe that 32 bit info can be found in System Information, albeit not all in one place. (It can also be found in Activity Monitor > Kind for running processes.)

I'm not worried about my Apple 32 bit apps and processes, because they'll take care of themselves, and I see no need to spend $20 to find my other ones. (EC wouldn't find them, anyhow, because I keep them on a separate partition.)

I went through v 4 once without seeing anything compelling (and, as a matter of fact, I found its GUI off-putting), and I'll give it another try sooner or later, but in the meantime, v 3 satisfies my need for paranoia-ware.


The new Great Equalizer is the SEND button.

In Memory of Harv: Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. ~Voltaire

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