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SpotOff is a Spotlight controller that allows a user to activate and de-activate Spotlight on a Mac OS X system. Spot-O-Meter is an application available with SpotOff or as a free download (see below) that displays Spotlight activity via an easy to use user interface.
Many users of Macs running Mac OS X since Mac OS X 10.4 have experienced the sometimes intrusive properties of Spotlight. Spotlight is, in case you didn't know this already, a feature built into Mac OS X since 10.4 that allows a user to search their storage media for files. It's a great idea, and it's improved greatly over the years, but one cumbersome feature that many users have complained about is the delays that can occur when Spotlight begins it's periodic indexing and updating sequences, frequently without warning. When this occurs, Spotlight demands a considerable amount of CPU and media I/O resources, which are in turn taken away from any other applications running on the system. A user may experience the following during periods of heavy indexing:
- Applications that normally complete quickly now take much longer.
- Web access slows down considerably.
- Laptops may become hotter than normal, sometimes kicking on fans
- Games may become “jerky” due to CPU cycles being taken away from them.
- Videos, either online or on DVD seem to have unexplainable pauses in them.
- Battery consumption on laptops seems to degrade at a much higher rate than normal.
To many, Spotlight appears to have a life of its own. It starts and stops in what appears (but isn't) an almost random fashion, and sometimes at the most inopportune times. SpotOff allows a user to turn Spotlight off and turn it back on at will. When it's turned off, it's off, even between reboots and shutdowns. Spot-O-Meter can tell a user when Spotlight is performing intense indexing. If it’s occurring at an inconvenient time, they can use SpotOff to disable Spotlight and then turn it back on when it’s more convenient.
High levels of Spotlight indexing typically occur in the following conditions:
- The user has just attached an external hard drive that is new to the system or hasn't been used in a while (such as a backup drive).
- Enough file system changes have occurred over a period of time to trigger a full session of Spotlight indexing.
- A volume that was originally configured via Spotlight to be excluded from Spotlight indexing has been re-added to Spotlight's list of searchable volumes.
- During a system start up.
If you have some critical work to do, or you’re going to do something and you don’t want to be bothered by the delays Spotlight can cause, SpotOff may be the solution you’ve been waiting for. If you suspect you’re suffering from some of the side effects of Spotlight indexing but aren’t sure, you can find out by downloading the FREE copy of Spot-O-Meter which can tell you if and when Spotlight indexing is occurring.
A free, combined product profile for SpotOff with Spot-O-Meter for Mac OS X can be obtained by clicking on the SpotOff icon in the column to the right. The product profile illustrates both applications in use, and makes it clear how easy both of them are to use.
NOTE: SpotOff requires administrative access to use, whereas Spot-O-Meter does not.
To purchase SpotOff with Spot-O-Meter, click on the Buy SpotOff Now button below. To download a free standalone promotional copy of Spot-O-Meter for Mac OS X, click on the Get Spot-O-Meter button below.
Prices:
$5.95 For SpotOff with Spot-O-Meter for Mac OS X
FREE: Spot-O-Meter for Mac OS X Download
Tech Support Note: The packaged bundle of SpotOff with Spot-O-Meter for Mac OS X is fully supported by SCSC, however the free download of Spot-O-Meter for Mac OS X is not. There is, however, very little that can go wrong with Spot-O-Meter.
Introducing SpotOff with Spot-O-Meter for Mac OS X
Need more information?
Included below are are the Product Profiles for all of our Mac OS X products. Simply click on one of the icons below and the Product Profile will be presented to you in PDF format.
Thanks for your Interest!
Click above to get the Product Profile for FSE and FSE-Lite for
Mac OS X
Click above to get the Product Profile for Scannerz with FSE-Lite
for Mac OS X
Click above to get the Product Profile for SpotOff and
Spot-O-Meter for
Mac OS X
