04-13-2011, 07:39 PM

I have newish macbook air and made the decision to try and convert to osx. It has been easier than I thought, but today I have a problem with the mba lagging and the spinning colour wheel all over the place.

On the pc I would have initially checked the disk status but I cannot find how do do this on the mba. On the pc it showed a pie chart of the drive.

I would then have done an antivirus, adware and spyware check. I have done iantivirus but not sure of the best ones to use on a mac.

If anyone can help point me in the right direction, or advise me further I would be grateful.

04-13-2011, 07:48 PM

you dont need anti virus, uninstall it. you can check the disk status in disk utility, or with SMARTreporter.

what i would do first is go into disk utility, and repair permissions on the drive.

04-13-2011, 07:52 PM

You can check out your smart status with this.
Apple - Downloads - System/Disk Utilities - SMART Utility
Now, how full is your HD (how big is it and how much free space do you have), and how many applications do you have up and running?
Are you closing applications properly or are you just clicking the red dot?

04-13-2011, 07:59 PM

Mount Point : / Capacity : 120.99 GB (120,988,852,224 Bytes)
Format : Mac OS Extended (Journaled) Available : 34.63 GB (34,625,241,088 Bytes)
Owners Enabled : Yes Used : 86.36 GB (86,363,611,136 Bytes)
Number of Folders : 129,545 Number of Files : 433,764

Thanks for the replies. This is the info from disk utility.

At the moment I am just surfing on firefox.

I do usually just click the red dot, what should I be doing?

I am just going to do the disk repair, then will download the smart utility.

04-13-2011, 08:02 PM

disk repair has a long list then says permissions repair complete. Is that what should happen?

04-13-2011, 08:04 PM

Originally Posted by vix2000

I do usually just click the red dot, what should I be doing?

I am just going to do the disk repair, then will download the smart utility.

For 99% of applications, just clicking the red dot closes the window, but the application keeps running!

This may very well be your problem.
To quit apps, you need to go one of a few methods.
-Command Q
-Go to the menu and click on the running application and select quit
-Go to the running application in the dock and right click and select quit.

Any application that is running in the dock will have it's icon there as well as an illuminated light under the dock icon.

04-13-2011, 08:15 PM

Right, thanks. Have done that and also emptied my trash. Do I not need anything for virus, spyware or adware on the mac?

04-13-2011, 08:15 PM

If you have the install discs that came with the computer, and you got it second hand but didn't do a clean install when you got it, I would do that.

If you have the Macbook Air Superdrive you can just use that.
Otherwise, if you have a another computer you can do a remote install.

Reinstalling software using Remote Install Mac OS X

04-13-2011, 08:22 PM

Originally Posted by vix2000

Right, thanks. Have done that and also emptied my trash. Do I not need anything for virus, spyware or adware on the mac?

There are no Viruses in the wild for OS X, so forget about anti virus software.
Any other Malware is pretty much upto safe surfing.
Don't download pirated software, don't click on dodgy links, and never download anything that asks for your user name and password and you should be sweet.

I would also download OnyX and run it every 2-3 months at most.
Be sure to download the version for the version of OS X that you are running.
Once you have it, run the automation tab with everything checked other than rebuild display of folders content and spotlight index.

Scroll down on the link I gave you and you will see the link to different versions.

Download OnyX for Mac - OS X maintenance & optimization tool. MacUpdate.com

04-13-2011, 08:25 PM

Hey Rob, are you hanging back now and just letting me do all the work?

04-13-2011, 09:58 PM

Originally Posted by 6string

don't click on dodgy links

I agree with everything else you say except this part - how exactly can clicking on ANY link on the web expose you to security vulnerabilities if you adhere to the rest of your advice about not installing untrusted software?

Original poster - also make sure you reboot every week or two to clear up RAM, just in case.

04-13-2011, 10:52 PM

Originally Posted by northrnchimp

I agree with everything else you say except this part - how exactly can clicking on ANY link on the web expose you to security vulnerabilities if you adhere to the rest of your advice about not installing untrusted software?

Original poster - also make sure you reboot every week or two to clear up RAM, just in case.

Ahhem.... Ok.....

Don't click on a link in an email or open an attachment unless you know who sent it and what it is. Links in email can send you to sites that automatically download malware to your machine. Opening attachments, even those that appear to come from a friend or co-worker can install malware on your computer.

Download and install software only from websites you know and trust. Downloading free games, file-sharing programs, and customized toolbars may sound appealing, but free software can come with malware.

04-13-2011, 11:23 PM

Originally Posted by vix2000

If anyone can help point me in the right direction, or advise me further I would be grateful.

I created a Web site to answer this question, because it comes up all the time.

Mac OS X Routine Maintenance
OS X Maintenance And Troubleshooting

With respect to viruses, here is an excellent up to date Web site on the topic of Macintosh malware that you might find illuminating:
Reed Corner Design

...and an associated Macintosh Malware Catalog
Thomas' Corner : Mac Virus Guide

04-14-2011, 03:26 AM

Originally Posted by 6string

Hey Rob, are you hanging back now and just letting me do all the work?

LOL sorry mate, I was asleep!

nothrnchimp: 6string is absolutely right. common sense is the most powerful tool when surfing the web.

if someone sends you a link for "freeipad.exe" would you download it?

stick to trusted sites, and you are fine. Don't click on stupid links i.e porn related, usually, or download pirate software, and you will have nothing to worry about. not that you do anyway, you have a Mac, which currently have no viruses available.

OP - that antivirus software will be hogging your resources, and you don't need it. usually they are only used to search for PC viruses. if you want it there to do a quick scan of a file to make sure it isn't infected (say, before you pass it on to someone with a PC) you should keep it, but take it out of your startup items, and only run it when you need it.

since the repair permissions, has the spinning wheel stopped?

04-14-2011, 09:39 PM

Originally Posted by 6string

Links in email can send you to sites that automatically download malware to your machine. Opening attachments, even those that appear to come from a friend or co-worker can install malware on your computer.

Sorry, but that's just not true. Unless you can provide a link to a respected source which backs up your claim?