Xslimmer: Thin down your obese Mac programs

Xslimmer is a program for the Mac that reduces the space claimed by Universal Binary applications and their language localizations on your hard disk. The programs remain fully functional, and you reclaim some coveted hard drive space. It's a win-win. Now you're beginning to see why we call this program "phat" (pun certainly intended and hopefully understood).

So how does Xslimmer work? By removing the variations of a program's code that does not apply to the architecture of your machine. When a Universal Binary application is created, it contains several versions of the code: a version intended to run on PowerPC machines (like G4 or G5 Macs), another one meant for the more recent Intel machines. This ensures universal platform support, but it bloats the application size. Xslimmer will remove the pieces of code that will never be run on your machine. Voila! More hard drive space, same programs.

If the explanation of how Xslimmer works worries you, fear not, young padawan: the developers have designed Xslimmer to be completely safe and reversible:

• Xslimmer has a database of "blacklisted" applications, that is, applications that have their own integrity check and who rebel if anything is modified. Xslimmer will never modify these applications.
  
• You can create a full backup of all your applications prior to the liposuction.

Xslimmer's execution is simple. Drag and drop any application onto the Xslimmer interface, click slim, and you're done. If you're feeling lazy, the built-in genie will automatically scan all of your applications, and you can slim all or a selection with one click.

You can try Xslimmer for free and slim up to 50 MB, and register the software for $11.95. That's less than a visit to Starbucks, for crying out loud (well, if you get a Venti Mocha Frappucino with extra shots and one of those delicious little sausage, egg and ham muffins. Mmm...muffins...).

Tags: mac, shareware, utilities, xslimmer