Primewavez
Posts: 7
Smile Score: +1 
Primewavez's Posts
Average Rating from Primewavez:
(3)
(3) 
Copyright © 2012 MacUpdate LLC
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DiskWarrior
Primewavez reviewed on 13 Oct 2011
Other utilities mentioned, such as TechTool and Drive Genius, are decent products and also have larger feature sets. However, on severely corrupted disks, DiskWarrior is the only one to have consistently positive results. It may seem like a 'one trick pony', but darned if that pony isn't the best on the market.
Their updater application works perfectly to get a newer version of the app working on the SAME boot DVD version that you bought initially, but it gets better:
Their customer service is top-notch. In the past two years, I've contacted them a couple times about getting newer versions of the boot DVD. Both times they have been fast to respond and charge a fair price for the service.
The short version of this story: I have received complimentary copies of most of the disk repair software on the market. I bought DiskWarrior. I use DiskWarrior. I love DiskWarrior.
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iVPN
Primewavez reviewed on 25 Aug 2011
For those who understand the router configuration, using a dynamic DNS service, and other intricacies of this type, iVPN is a great solution that was well worth its price tag.
I say "was" because as of the release of Lion Server, for $50 you can get VPN functionality plus a whole lot more for relatively minimal cost above the price of iVPN. For most people, I think Lion Server will give a better overall value and bang for the buck. There are a few factors that would still get me to suggest iVPN to folks, though.
If you have an Intel Core Duo Mac (unable to run Lion) or a PowerPC Mac, the author is still working to support PowerPC and does still support 32-bit Intel hardware on previous versions of the OS. If you have older hardware that can't run the latest OS and want to get a VPN setup going quickly and cheaply, iVPN is your solution. Hands down, it's great on the older machines.
I think everyone should do some research and fiddling before making a purchase of this or any server software. I don't think you'll be disappointed by buying iVPN as it is a solid solution. You may find more value for your dollars (or pounds sterling) in another solution, depending on your specific situation.
Deja Vu
Primewavez reviewed on 07 Jul 2010
The app works relatively well, until you get to a file larger than 4GB, and then the "Safety Net" feature ALWAYS makes copies of the file, regardless of it's modified status. It steals hard drive space down faster than you could ever imagine if you're working with large files, which is mostly what I work with.
I emailed the developer back in January asking for assistance before buying the software, as it is useless to me if it is going to needlessly duplicate large files. I never heard back from the developer and I never paid for the software.
Still looking for a similar, functional solution if anyone has ideas.
LimeWire
If you use LimeWire, back up your data FREQUENTLY and VERIFY your backups FREQUENTLY. What might be more fun than using LimeWire but still just as problematic is to have random encounters with strangers on the street without protection and afterwards just waving a magnet over your hard drive. Both options are about as smart.
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The conclusion that I've drawn is that machines with LimeWire and severe catalog corruption do not experience recurrent symptoms after a zero out of the hard disk and cessation of the use of the LimeWire application. In the vast majority of cases (5-10 machines per week, for years) there is not a hardware malfunction that can be reproduced with any available diagnostic tool.
Sure, there are machines with LimeWire that were running the good old IBM 75GXP disks, or the MacBooks with the disks prone to failure now covered by Apple for a free replacement, even out of warranty. However, when a machine is perfectly functional after a low level wipe of the drive and running a restart loop and memtest or Apple's hardware test for days, it's usually pretty clear what the cause of the issues is.
Also, I've not seen any issues like this on the Windows version of LimeWire, though my exposure to it is significantly less than that of the Mac version. I see rare incidences of catalog issues with folks running Acquisition, and a few more with folks who run FrostWire and Vuze. LimeWire is the primary discernible culprit.
If you use LimeWire and it works for you without destroying your drive, then go for it. I will not let it touch any of my personal machines EVER, and I'll continue to fix my customers' computers by backing up the data, wiping the drive,and suggesting they do not run this application in the future.
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Hundreds of folks have brought me their computers looking for a resolution to their disk catalog problems, and a lot of "repair shops" take a look and simply say the hard disk is failing once they see invalid extents or keys out of order in Disk Utility. Others like you, sir, may suggest an archive/install as the solution which is exactly the WRONG thing to do, especially if the customer lacks a backup of their data. A decent Mac technician knows that disk catalog issues aren't fixed by an archive/install, since you're just writing data back to a disk that doesn't know where to store information properly. Just what someone doesn't need is a MORE corrupted operating system than they got into the situation with.
I'm not saying that disk corruption isn't caused by other things like frequent hard shutdowns, bad RAM, failing disks, or pinched data cables. Assuming a hardware failure is cavalier and profit driven. With a proper backup, zeroing out a hard disk and reinstalling an operating system takes a few hours and can be done at home with little cost to the customer. Getting a computer repaired is rarely convenient for the owner of the computer, so getting a proper diagnosis through thorough testing and isolation is key.