DP 8.07 is crashing non stop with new Imac. Help :(

[James Steele]

If you don't run 64 bit plugins, you either need to get a bridge app such as JBridge that will allow you to run 32 bit plugins with DP8, or else you need to go back to DP7.0, which was a very good version.

Just for benefit of people who find this thread and aren't aware: jBridgeM works on 32-bit VSTs. There is also a bridging solution called 32 Lives that works on 32-bit AUs. Sometimes if one can't get a plug to work correctly they other will.

[wvandyck]

Onyx and Disk Warrior are useless nowadays. They fix nothing but waste a lot of your time in the process. Onyx especially, can cause you to "fix" problems that don't exist and allow you to really screw up your machine--it's a good thing that Apple doesn't void AppleCare if you cause the problem with Onyx.

Thoughts on Cocktail?

I've used it on a regular basis for several years. That and a annual clean install has kept things running smooth here.

[mikehalloran]

Thoughts on Cocktail?

I've used it on a regular basis for several years. That and a annual clean install has kept things running smooth here.

Not using it and doing my first clean install in 28 years has yielded the same results.

The only reason I did a clean install is to get applications and their outdated support files off of my Intel machine. Claris Draw, AppleWorks, Finale '98-2010, Epson support apps and whole bunch of other stuff no longer needs to be here. I meant to do this when OS 10.8.2 was released and my Mac was crashing a few times a day (I found all the conflicts but still...). Without going through any work product, I found another 100G of drive space.

Anyway, when it comes to its "maintenance routines", Cocktail does the same thing as the other apps: nothing. It does provide a convenient GUI to certain system tasks if you don't know where to find them in the OS, I'll give it that. I've never seen a reason to spend the $14, no matter how many say it's a "must have app". No, it isn't.

Since Norton Utilities went away, the only utility that actually fixes anything is Apple Disk Utility--and it certainly can. If, however, your drive went to a bad state and DU fixes it, get your data off ASAP and replace the drive. If you did something dumb like unplug an eSATA drive, Disk Utility will fix it after TechToolPro, Disk Warrior, Onyx et all declare the drive dead, dead, dead and you're still good to go. Been there, done that a few times.

TTP is an excellent diagnostic tool. It will find drive and RAM problems that other utilities miss - especially those that can only read Pass/Fail on S.M.A.R.T status.

Disk Utility "fixed" this drive once a week or more and DiskWarrior always declared this a good drive with no problems after correcting pages of directory errors:

[wvandyck]

TTP is an excellent diagnostic tool. It will find drive and RAM problems that other utilities miss - especially those that can only read Pass/Fail on S.M.A.R.T status.

Disk Utility "fixed" this drive once a week or more and DiskWarrior always declared this a good drive with no problems after correcting pages of directory errors:

I stopped using TTP years ago. Restarting from the eDrive after a repair or maintenance run was always a fiddly affair. It seemed to get increasingly sluggish with each new version as well.

Cocktail was purchased years ago during the big cat era of OSX, and certainly hasn't caused any issues. The convenience of the maintenance routines has made the cost worth it.

[Shooshie]

The only reason I did a clean install is to get applications and their outdated support files off of my Intel machine.

I'm nearly to that point right now. I've been having a weird Finder crash, and I can't figure out what's causing it. It never happens in Safe Boot, so it's some 3rd party driver or something, I suppose, but I can never trace what causes the Finder to freeze up. It only started doing that about a month ago, but it's getting worse. I'm afraid it's time to do a clean install of OSX, and spend a week restoring serial numbers, registrations, and so forth. Fortunately, I keep those things written down, so it's easy to restore them, but there are always one or two or ten that slip through the cracks. Those are the ones that take me a week to fix.

I'll probably procrastinate at least another month, or until it forces my hand. Starting over for no reason other than to eliminate an untraceable bug is one of my least-desirable activities. I think it ranks even below cleaning up dog/cat poop. At least the latter only take a few minutes of hell, then it's all gone. System reinstalls seem to drag on for weeks. The upside is the beautiful feeling of computer integrity and operational bliss.

Shooshie

[mikehalloran]

.I'm nearly to that point right now. I've been having a weird Finder crash, and I can't figure out what's causing it. It never happens in Safe Boot, so it's some 3rd party driver or something, I suppose, but I can never trace what causes the Finder to freeze up. It only started doing that about a month ago, but it's getting worse. I'm afraid it's time to do a clean install of OSX, and spend a week restoring serial numbers, registrations, and so forth. Fortunately, I keep those things written down, so it's easy to restore them, but there are always one or two or ten that slip through the cracks. Those are the ones that take me a week to fix.

Those are difficult to find but not impossible as I found out during 10.8.2 Hell.

If it generates a crash report, then the cause can be seen by someone experienced enough. My crash reports always listen Pace first but every support tech assured me that my problems had nothing to do with Pace or iLok--and they were right.

Sometimes you have to keep a Console window open and, after the freeze and reboot, compare the time stamps and see the culprit. If there's a triangle on the stamp, you can drill down on the event. Sometimes the cause is a few layers down.

Once you figure out what it might be, locating it in Find can be a real experience. It's no longer a straightforward process, you may have to search for invisible System files but, if it's on your machine, it can be found and moved to Trash. My education on that was the Bresink Temperature Monitor. Even though I had removed all its files, there turned out to be a hidden System file I had missed.

And here I go assuming that this is a software problem. It could be hardware. The NVRAM RAM battery, your boot drive and bad RAM are the three most likely suspects.

That graph I posted earlier passes all SMART tests that cannot graph the parameters. That drive was the culprit. I would run Disk Utility from another drive and see if Repair Disk shows any problems.

Replace the battery if over three years old.

RAM is a bear to diagnose if it is only bad when the problem occurs. TechTool has a series of routines that bombards it pretty well. When I first encountered it years ago, I couldn't run the TTP RAM test because it kept crashing my Mac. Duh... Ok, I learned.

If you have an old AppleCare disk, you can install that version of TechTool and update it for free on the MicroMat web site.

[mikehalloran]

I stopped using TTP years ago. Restarting from the eDrive after a repair or maintenance run was always a fiddly affair. It seemed to get increasingly sluggish with each new version as well.

Cocktail was purchased years ago during the big cat era of OSX, and certainly hasn't caused any issues. The convenience of the maintenance routines has made the cost worth it.

I know that you don't believe this but "running maintenance routines" is not a task that ever needs doing. Ever.

TTP, likewise has a bunch of tools that accomplish one thing only: they are great for wasting your time. Disk Warrior: has repairing a custom icon flag or deleting the Chinese help files in Word ever made your Mac perform better? Nope.

OS X has never needed these things. Oh I'm guilty of it too, occasionally consolidating my free space but only on my Mac, never on the 30+ others that I service and maintain--even the ones in my home. My performance has never improved and theirs has never suffered. I don't do that anymore.

TTP is an excellent diagnostic tool. There's a reason why AppleCare includes a license for a Lite version. It does not fix anything. I keep the e-Drive on a separate drive so that I can run Disk Utility from other than my startup drive. It can often recover a freshly trashed file but cannot go back two weeks or even two days as advertised.

Even Disk Utilety: If it is repairing a bad problem as it can, get your data off and replace the drive. The only exception is when a loss of power corrupts a drive like disconnecting an eSATA drive when hot or a power outage. In those instances, once DU repairs the drive, it's still good.

As for Cocktail, you asked my opinion so I gave it. If it makes you feel better, then go, be, do. I have other things that I do with my time and my Mac.

[wvandyck]

I know that you don't believe this but "running maintenance routines" is not a task that ever needs doing. Ever.

Please understand that I appreciate your perspective which is why I asked for your opinion.
I went through an initial but brief dual boot transition as of OSX 10.3 Panther which brought me to DP 4.5 in the process. Back then there was much web buzz regarding optimization and maintenance routines. But over time that seemed to have become a non-issue.

It's not a issue of belief but rather just pausing to reconsider the facts.

Thank you for taking the time to respond.
wv.

[wvandyck]

The upside is the beautiful feeling of computer integrity and operational bliss.
Shooshie

That's the reason that makes it worth the effort.
Having a clear method as you indicated makes the process mostly straightforward.
For some interesting reason, I find that the clean install process also seems to bring on a fresh perspective as well. Not going to happen to until the end of this calendar year.

[mikehalloran]

I'm certainly good with the occasional clean install and readily concede that 28 years is way too long.

I'm not comfortable with doing them to resolve mystery problems but if it works, it works. The end result is all that's important, right? These do take forever as you install one app at a time waiting to see if this is the one that caused the problem.

You're generally safe installing the latest versions of commercially supported apps, of course. (Exception: Spin Doctor still comes with Toast - trash immediately and you're safe as it only installs the offending .kext the first time you click on it). It's the little utilities, plugins, and apps developed by small companies no longer in business that are likely to get you. I've already mentioned a few known culprits earlier.

[Shooshie]

Thanks, Mike, you've definitely given me some ideas. I may be able to postpone this clean system reinstall for another 28 years!

Shooshie