14 DAY TRIAL // As a free virus checker for Macintosh users, ClamXav aims not to secure Macs, but to keep them from becoming carriers of a virus that might eventually end up on a Windows machine. There’s malware targeting Macs as well, and ClamXav will find those too, just as efficiently, according to Mark Allan, the developer of ClamXav. The latest update from Allan is a major one.
“Versions 0.8b to 1.1 have served us well but it is long overdue for a complete makeover,” Mark Allan says. “So, I have given ClamXav a much needed facelift and have rewritten the entire application from the ground up.”
First of all, Java is no more, he adds. ClamXav is now written entirely in Objective-C, which may also have something to do with the considerably reduced launch time. Naturally, Allan was careful to make ClamXav completely Snow Leopard-compatible. The interface is now much simpler to use and more in keeping with other OS X applications, according to the release notes. Users can save their favorite scan locations for easy access now, while toolbar buttons can be rearranged or completely hidden. Infected files are also listed more clearly. Other new features include:
- You can send selected files to quarantine or trash with one click; - Specifying exclusion settings is now a much simpler task; - Setting a schedule is now more straight-forward; - Specifying the location of your own ClamAV installation is now easier; - Updates are taken care of directly within the application, automatically quitting and relaunching Sentry if necessary; - Sentry can be told to monitor sub-folders on a per folder basis; - Sentry no longer requires Spotlight to do the monitoring; - Sentry launches and starts monitoring much more quickly; - Sentry requires far less memory to run; - If a disk or folder is not available when Sentry launches, this isn't a problem any more; monitoring will continue when the folder reappears.
“Back in the days before OS X, the number of viruses which attacked Macintosh users totaled somewhere between about 60 and 80,” Mark Allan (ClamXav.com) says. “Today, the number of viruses actively attacking OS X users is... NONE! However, this doesn't mean we should get complacent about checking incoming email attachments or web downloads, for two reasons. Firstly, there's no guarantee that we Mac users will continue to enjoy the status quo, but more importantly, the majority of the computing world use machines running MS Windows, for which an enormous quantity of viruses exist, so we must be vigilant in checking the files we pass on to our friends and colleagues etc,” the developer explains. Download ClamXav (Free)