Weekly Download #82: Spring Cleaning (Your Mac)

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Hello , it’s Sunday, April 20 – Happy Easter / Passover weekend / "420.” I’m gonna get right into it.

SPRING IS HERE! It may have been late, but I’m joining you today from in front of an open window, breathing in that fresh Massachusetts air.

Editor’s Note: Speaking of fresh Massachusetts air and it being 4/20, I took the liberty of putting in some work today and testing out a vape that the fine folks at G Pen sent to the site: G Pen Elite II. 

Quick Two-Sentence Review: The G Pen Elite II heats up lightning-fast and delivers smooth, flavorful vapor thanks to its smart hybrid heating system. With a roomy chamber and easy controls, it’s built for both quick solo sessions and sharing with friends.

The only kicker is the price. This vape usually retails for $200, but it’s only $129.99 during a 4/20 sale—that’s 40% off. In fact, for a limited time, all of their products are 40% off sitewide. So, if you’re in the market for one, well, here you go.

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In honor of spring’s late arrival, I declare this the SPRING CLEANING EDITION of the Weekly Download.

So, what does spring cleaning mean for your PCs and Macs? Just like your house, it can get cluttered with stuff you don't need.

Stick around, we will show you how to make your PC or Mac run like new again. But first, here’s what else we have lined up for you this week.

• HOW TO: (Spring) Clean Your Mac

• THE BIG ONE: One big news story in 150 words or less

• FAST FIVE: Five news stories you missed.

• GEAR FEATURE: Spring Clean Your Screen Time with Brick

• GENIUS OF THE WEEK: Robot waitresses in Havana, Cuba.

• DEALS: Save money on gear you NEED.

• TOOLS: Cool apps on our radar.

Let’s spring into it!

-Roger

P.S. We’ve still got a giveaway going for that BLUETTI Charger 1. You have until May 5th to enter, so do NOT miss your chance.

ENTER GIVEAWAY HERE

HOW TO
(Spring) Clean Your Mac

The other day I was griping to Kevin about my 2019 MacBook Air’s drastically degraded performance and he had some good advice: it was time to run an app like CleanMyMac, something I’d put off for too long.

Why would you need to use something like CleanMyMac?

While Windows has a disc cleaner application built in, Apple decided to hide your caches, binary files, and other folders that help apps run smoothly. Over time, this “Junk” builds up.

What does it do?

CleanMyMac has five modules: Cleanup, Protection, Performance, Applications, and Clutter. I ran a “Smart Scan” and it found the following:

Here’s what I learned from my first scan:

• Stay by your computer, you may have to log in or allow certain access

• The initial Smart Scan took about 30 minutes, but subsequent scans were faster

• Make sure you’re reviewing the junk before you nuke everything – but overall my scan found a bunch of stuff I didn’t need.

How can I keep my Mac clean between scans?

A lot of the junk I’d built up was caches in my browsers, Photoshop, AfterEffects, and Ableton Live. I’d recommend checking those caches (for instance, here’s how to clear it from Google Chrome).

Great, so how do I get CleanMyMac?

CleanMyMac is available directly from the developer, MacPaw. It offers a 7-day free trial. A subscription license is $2.95/month (billed annually), or a lifetime license is $119.95.

Pro-Tip: Do what Kevin does: Subscribe to Setapp for $10 monthly, and you'll get Clean My Mac along with 40 other carefully crafted premium apps that supercharge your Mac. Seriously, if you own a Mac, subscribe and thank us later.

How do you keep your computer clean? Do you have any tips? Reply to this email or leave your tips in the comments below, and we'll share them with other subscribers, giving you credit!

THE BIG ONE
One big news story in 150 words or less

Remember how Katy Perry was going to space aboard Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin spacecraft for the “First all-female spaceflight since the 60s?” Fortunately, the 11-minute tourism trip went off without a hitch, but the crew has been plagued with negativity ever since.

Here are some bullet points:

• Perry had a “big announcement” to make, but the livestream cut out.

• People have questioned the optics of millionaires doing space tourism with a recession looming.

• Fellow space-tourist Gayle King has responded to the backlash by criticizing us earth-bound peons.

• Conspiracy theory truthers are flooding the zone, saying that Perry, King, & Crew faked the entire trip (for the record I don’t think this is true).

What do you think about Blue Origin’s latest celebrity space flight? Let us know in the comments!

FAST FIVE
Five news stories you missed

1.) Elon Musk’s X planning to “kill” DMs in favor of “xChat.”
KnowTechie’s take: Rumor has it this is because he was DMing influencers to ask if they would have children with him.

2.) Trump’s DOJ targeting crypto fraud
KnowTechie’s take: On the one hand, good. But who decides what’s fraud and what’s just “risky investing”?

3.) PS5 gets price bump everywhere but America
KnowTechie’s take: Gonna take this one as a win.

4.) Meta planning to train its AI with EU users’ data
KnowTechie’s take: Don’t be surprised if your Meta AI chat starts sounding a little bri’ish innit?

5.) Anthropic’s Claude can read your emails. Should you be worried?
KnowTechie’s take: Nah… click that link to see why Kevin’s not worried about it.

GEAR OF THE WEEK
Spring clean your screen time with Brick

Keeping with the spring cleaning theme, it’s time for you to stop looking at your danged phone! That’s why I got Brick, a simple device/app that has made a huge impact on my screen time.

What is it?

Brick is a small NFC-powered device and iOS app that helps you block distracting apps and websites on your iPhone, turning your phone into a focused tool instead of a source of constant distraction.

Why I love it:

• Customize which apps are available when you “Brick” your phone, for instance, I keep Spotify, the Camera, and Messaging/Calling on while “Bricking” out all my social media sites and other distractions.

• Set different modes, e.g., “Work”, “Family”, or “Relaxing” with different sets of apps.

• At $59 per device (it’s basically a small magnet), it feels a little pricey to start – but once you get into it, you’ll notice a big difference.

Check out Brick and get yours here

GENIUS OF THE WEEK
Robot waitresses in Havana, Cuba

To keep up the good springtime vibes, I’m spreading positivity. This week’s Moron of the Week has been replaced with a well-deserved Genius of the Week entry, which goes out to the owners of Doña Alicia restaurant in Havana Cuba.

Despite Cuba’s spotty internet and electricity, the owners of Doña Alicia have pushed the tech envelope in the relatively short time they’ve been open. After taking the plunge with Alexa-assistance, Digital POS, and touchless bathrooms, they’re going whole hog: robot waitresses.

And look how cute they are!

DEALS

Meta Quest 3S hits its lowest price yet ($269.99)

AdGuard is practically giving away lifetime subscriptions for $11

TOOLS

Voila: An AI assistant that seamlessly blends into the way you work to help you create, write, brainstorm, and research.

Monologue: Your AI co-host for your next video/podcast.

Stupid Notes: Simple, minimalist note-taking app.

Summarization dot AI: Chrome extension that reads and summarizes webpages instantly.

Voicenotes Pages: Transform your voice notes into websites in no time flat.

THANKS FOR READING!

Alright!

Once again, remember to enter the giveaway, and please—if you dig this newsletter—share it with your friends! Word of mouth is essential to folks like us.

-Roger & Kevin

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