is it ok to click on Mackeeper to clean my MacBook?

Avoid it like the plague.

It may not technically be a virus, but it breaks more than it fixes (if it fixes anything at all!).

Your Mac does not require "cleaning." See:

The myth of the dirty Mac

I have been an avid Mac user since 1992 on System 7 which had 2 MB RAM & 160MB HD, staying Mac on numerous models and operating systems up to OS X 10.9.5. (I've tried Yosemite, but won't upgrade to it until it's 10.10.1 or even 10.10.2)

I agree that after trying MacKeeper quite a while ago, I wouldn't recommend it. However, since Apple switched to Intel processors modern operating systems will clean out most junk on a restart or hard start, they still leave behind components that are no longer needed, so I clean my 15" MacBook Pro (2012) and my other Macs with CleanMyMac 2, and would recommend to any Mac user. I say this as a long term customer of theirs and have no connection with the company.

I also disagree that it's not necessary to have antivirus software installed. There have to date been no real viruses for Mac except for the odd trojan horse, some day some sicko will write a virus for Unix based Macs. I believe prevention is better than cure so I use Norton Internet Security for Mac 5, which checks for viruses, provides anti-phishing, a strong firewall, and other features including storing passwords securely in a folder which is password protected. Much better than the ability to store passwords in Safari>Preferences.

Just my opinion as a Mac user for 22 years, beta tester for Apple & several other Mac developers in last few years.

Jim

England, UK.

Jim40 wrote:

I clean my 15" MacBook Pro (2012) and my other Macs with CleanMyMac 2, and would recommend to any Mac user.

I'd have to recommend the reverse. CleanMyMac 2 is not something you should be using. See the link I provided in my last post here. Although that was posted last year, it's still every bit as true today.

If you're using CleanMyMac 2 to uninstall apps, you should be aware that such apps almost never do the job properly except in cases where the app does not require any special uninstallation. If the app can simply be dragged to the trash to be fully removed, CleanMyMac 2 will do the trick... though why you'd want to install an app to do what you could do with a simple click-and-drag I don't know.

Any apps that require uninstalling should only be uninstalled using the proper uninstaller, provided by the developer of that app. General uninstall apps like CleanMyMac 2 should under no circumstances be used in such cases, as they will not do the job properly.

I also disagree that it's not necessary to have antivirus software installed. [...] I believe prevention is better than cure so I use Norton Internet Security

You've chosen poorly on that, as well. Norton is well-known for its ability to harm a Mac's performance, and its detection of Mac malware is only so-so.

There actually is Mac malware out there. Not much of it, but it does exist. The thing is, Mac OS X detects and blocks malware out of the box better than Norton, and many other commercial anti-virus apps. There is one, and only one, anti-virus app that I currently recommend, based on extensive testing and long-term experience, and that is ClamXav.

For more information, see my Mac Malware Guide.

(Fair disclosure: I may receive compensation from links to my site and software, in the form of buttons allowing for donations. Donations are not required to use my site or software.)

I don't use CleanMyMac for uninstalling, but for removing superfluous files. I've had no problems at all with either CleanMyMac2 or NIS for Mac 5.0, although I have to agree their products aren't as good as they used to be, their Tech Support in the UK is superb. Also, as previously stated not impressed with Yosemite.

Norton's now defunct Disk Doctor was a great piece of kit from my experience. What's your opinion of Disk Warrior and Carbon Copy Cloner. I've never used Apple's Time Machine, I prefer to clone back ups.

You seem to know your stuff so hope it's OK to ask about a problem neither Apple nor I can resolve. I use a ZyXEL 660R series modem and an Apple Airport Express 2nd generation wireless router to connect to the internet. Although I rarely get dropouts, if I move from my second bedroom (office) where my router/modem is connected to British Telecomms master socket, my signal drops from excellent to poor. Apple have exchanged the Airport and I've tried various other modems, including Netgear Router/Modems, moved the their location to other rooms, added Wi-Fi extenders all to no avail.

I'm nearly 74, and in a wheelchair due to MS, so tend to use my iMac which is connected via Ethernet, but I'd like to be able to sit my armchair and get a good signal with my MacBook Pro. I'm told the problem is that there's too much metal in my purpose built bungalow, and that this will always cause weak Wi-Fi signals. WiFi Explorer bears this out. 90% + in my office, move 3 yards to my lounge or second bedroom and the signal drops to just over 50%, on either the 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz bands. ???

Any suggestions ?

Jim

Jim40 wrote:

I don't use CleanMyMac for uninstalling, but for removing superfluous files.

But that's the point... using a tool like that to remove "junk files" is not useful. It is a myth that Macs accumulate junk files over time, and that these files need to be cleaned up periodically.

What's your opinion of Disk Warrior and Carbon Copy Cloner.

DiskWarrior is unnecessary. If your hard drive is so badly damaged that it needs DiskWarrior to repair it, you should erase it and restore the data from backups. (You should also consider replacing it, as modern drives shouldn't normally get that badly damaged unless they're starting to fail, in most cases.)

CarbonCopyCloner is a quite good backup tool. I often recommend using it, in conjunction with Time Machine, to maintain at least two separate sets of backups.

You seem to know your stuff so hope it's OK to ask about a problem neither Apple nor I can resolve. I use a ZyXEL 660R series modem and an Apple Airport Express 2nd generation wireless router to connect to the internet.

Unfortunately, troubleshooting wireless networks is not really my strength. I'd advise starting a new topic to ask about that.

Thanks, I'll do that.

Incidentally, I'm just trying out ClamXav and it's found 3 infected files that Norton Internet Security didn't, so may disable that part of NIS 5.

Also, will check out your Mac Malware guide later.

Thanks again.

Jim