CleanMyMac software install....legitimate?

BanffBoop wrote:
I want to keep my Mac running smoothly and have unwanted garbage removed. I saw something somewhere on the Apple site about downloading CleanMyMac (have to pay money) is this legitimate or is there another application that can help me.

bottom line, you don't need any 3rd party software - your Mac is doing a great job @ that.

if it makes you feel better, get OnyX, which is free.

also see _*Five Mac maintenance myths*_.

J GG

BanffBoop wrote:
don't really have any issues, but I know computers get bunch up with unnecessary garbage, and I don't want to start deleting something that is in-fact important.

JG's post probably has you covered, but a second opinion is generally a good thing.

Your Mac isn't going to get bogged down with unnecessary garbage unless you download items from random websites, or save your data all over the place. You don't have to worry about viruses or most of the other nasty junk out there. Viruses for OS X don't exist, and the other nasty stuff, like malware, trojans, etc, require the user to install an application of some kind, which requires the administrator name & password.

Don't download e-mail attachments unless you know who sent the message and were expecting the attachment, and make sure you download software from reputable sites, like apple.com, versiontracker.com or macupdate.com.

~Lyssa

In addition to what others have posted, see:

Mac Maintenance Quick Assist,
Mac OS X speed FAQ,
Speeding up Macs,
Macintosh OS X Routine Maintenance
Essential Mac Maintenance: Get set up,
Essential Mac Maintenance: Rev up your routines,
Maintaining OS X, and
Myths of required versus not required maintenance for Mac OS X for information.

Banff --

I totally agree with JGG.
I am very suspicious of 3rd party "file cleaners."
The only one I want making decisions as to what gets deleted off my Mac, is ME.
I tried one back 10 years ago, and I'll never do it again.

Please don't scam me....Just want an honest answer.

No reason for any of us to scam you. We're all just users here, too. So we have nothing to sell you or direct you to for personal gain.

Essentially, you don't need it. Larger programs like the Adobe applications and Microsoft Office come with their own uninstallers. Generally, you need to use them since they put files all over the place. Which, since the companies know exactly where they all were installed, can get them all for you.

If a program doesn't have an uninstall program, then there's usually only three things to manually remove:

1) The application and/or its folder in the Applications folder.
2) Look in the Application Support folder of both the main Library folder, and the Library folder in your user account. Ditch any subfolder with the same obvious name.
3) In the Preferences folder of your user account, delete any file that clearly belongs to the app you're removing.

That's pretty much it.