CleanApp Editor's Review

CleanApp is a Mac OS X application uninstaller.

Even though the software installation and uninstallation on OS X is quite easy, some applications leave a certain amount of junk files that won't be removed when you drag a program into the garbage can. In this case you need an application like CleanApp.

When you first use it, the program asks if you would like to install a daemon that is required for a proper usage. After this step, followed by a system restart, you can start using the CleanApp. The interface provides you a drop zone where you can drag any of your installed applications. Besides this easy method, CleanApp provides you the possibility to use some advanced working modes.

The 'Applications' button allows you to see the list of installed applications on your Mac. It displays all the programs, no matter what the installation path is. From here, you can either delete the language localization packs, search the dependencies, or delete the unused files. Selecting the 'Search dependent files' has the same effect as dragging an application over the drop zone.

The 'System Accessories' view shows you all the installed items such as: Dashboard widgets, various plugins, preference panes for System Preferences, or various scripts. This view also allows you to search the dependencies and delete the files if you would like to.

The 'Archives' view allows you to preview the created archives. The 'Applications' and the 'System Accessories' views allow you to create backup archives of the installed items and their dependencies. The 'Archives' view allows you to upload the backups onto a ".Mac" account, and it also has the possibility to show you either the local or the remote archives.

The 'More Features' button displays some more views such as: Unused Files, Language Packs, Universal Binary, or Cache Files. These views allow you to do some even more cleanup to your system.

Besides the main application and the daemon, the distribution package also provides you a widget for the Dashboard. The usage of the CleanApp widget is somehow not comfortable. You need to select the application, hit the shortcut key for the Dashboard, and then drop the application onto the widget.

Pluses: it allows you to completely uninstall an application; it has a lot of useful features; it integrates well with the Mac OS X; it displays all the installed applications regardless of their installation paths.

Drawbacks / flaws: the provided Dashboard widget is a little unusable.

In conclusion: this application is a real helper if you do work with lots of applications that are installed and uninstalled pretty often. An application that provides this kind of uninstallation, but it has less features, is AppDelete.

version reviewed: 2.3