Free software for your Mac, iPhone

EddieC 0 588 Views

That's right, free. And if it's free, it's for me. Software promoter MacHeist is my new best friend, and for the next five days is giving away nanoBundle, a package of six Mac OS X applications including the highly-rated Twitterrific, which normally sells for US$15. In all, $154 worth of applications for your Mac OS X (10.4 or higher) for nothing. Nada. Gratis. Free, as in beer. But tap it while you can; the keg runs dry this Friday the 13th.

In addition to Iconfactory's Twitterrific, which is also available for iPhone, the nanoBundle includes two word processors (one of which is not fully unlocked), a cool looking game called Hordes of Orcs, a screen sharing utility called TinyGrab, and ShoveBox, a clever-looking utility that I intend to try out immediately. The tool, which normally sells for $25, provides a "box" into which you drop items that are important but cannot have your attention now. A URL you accidentally came across, someone's resume attachment, a picture of that used car you're selling. Shove them in the box for later action, or send them to your iPhone.

NanoBundle isn't the first MacHeist. Back in March MacHeist drew attention for offering an even larger bundle of apps worth more than $900 retail for just $39. The response was reportedly mixed, with some in opposition asserting that the software was being given away for too little. The move even spurred a group of independent developers to launch One Finger Discount, a coat-tail operation that offers a 20-percent (one-fifth) discount of the retail price. Hardly a similar reduction, but hey, whatever works.

Dani AI

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A quick, practical update for anyone finding this old thread: freebies and bundles were common back when posted, but those time-limited promotions usually disappear. For long-term safety and reliability prefer official channels — the Mac App Store for App Store apps, or a developer’s site and a notarized/signed download for everything else. When macOS blocks an installer, follow Apple’s documented “Open” or Security & Privacy steps instead of disabling Gatekeeper globally. (support.apple.com)

If you want current, free macOS tools without hunting promos, use vetted sources: the App Store, or Homebrew Cask for many open-source and well-known apps. Homebrew makes command-line installs simple and repeatable. Example:

brew install --cask handbrake

Or download GUI installers from the official project page — for example HandBrake’s site hosts builds and checksums. (brew.sh)

Do a couple of quick integrity checks before you run anything that didn’t come from the App Store: verify the publisher signature or notarization, and compare the download’s checksum to the value on the developer’s site. Developers often publish SHA256 sums; you can verify with shasum -a 256 <file> or check notarization/signing with spctl / codesign tools as described in Apple’s notarization guidance. These steps catch tampered or unofficial builds. (scriptingosx.com)

Finally, scan unfamiliar downloads (Malwarebytes is a common choice for adware/malware checks) and avoid cracked/pirated installers — they’re a common infection vector. ’s HandBrake suggestion is still a useful example of a reliable open-source tool; ’s short reply didn’t add detail, so focus on the verification steps above when following tips from old threads. (help.malwarebytes.com)

Member Avatar for Brenden.
Brenden. 0 Newbie Poster

hoe.

Member Avatar for zimmerman
zimmerman 0 Newbie Poster

I use and highly recommend Handbrake, oh and it's freeware!

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