Interview: Austin Sarner, Developer Of AppZapper

Austin Sarner is the developer of the popular application AppZapper I had time to catch up with him and talk about how AppZapper has been taken up by the public, and what’s in store for the future.

100 Az Dl Feb 06
Where did the idea of AppZapper originate?

AppZapper was originally a feature in a much larger application idea Brian Ball and I were fleshing out. Once we realized that the ability to zap apps was so cool by itself, we branched it off into its own project and AppZapper is the result. Brian had previously worked as the shareware submission manager for MacWorld, so he had to deal with downloading and trying tons of apps. To keep his system in tune he would have to perform clean installs regularly, which is why he felt something for completely removing apps was a necessary addition.

Did you think there would be a market for the application at the outset?

When you look into making a shareware app you have to consider that whatever market you are going to appeal to has to be a subset of the “shareware downloader” market, the demographic of people visiting MacUpdate and reading MacMinute. With AppZapper, we’re targeting general shareware users. That is, whether or not you are in the market for system utilities, text editors, or any other kind of shareware, AppZapper can still (we hope) appeal to you.

When did AppZapper really take off and begin to be noticed?

We wanted to catch on the MacWorld Expo buzz bandwagon, so we released right before the event. By getting dugg and posted on various news sites our initial press coverage was immensely satisfying, and we partnered up with the iClip and Menuet developers for a promotion that went on during the expo called MacGrab. Perhaps the coolest part of the whole launch was when MacGrab (which we bought a dedicated server for that week) crashed due to the level of traffic it was getting.

Appzapper1
MacZOT has also played a large part in distrubuting AppZapper. How did the first BlogZOT effect AppZapper?

BlogZOT, just like MacGrab, was certainly non traditional from any software marketing perspective, but it proved to be immensely beneficial. Our goal from the start has been to get as many people using and (hopefully) liking AppZapper as possible, and then relying on word of mouth to grow our user base. BlogZOT effectively took that model and blew it up within a day. We gave out 5,000 copies of AppZapper thanks to a community effort that resulted in nearly 1,000 blog posts about MacZOT and AppZapper.

What would your estimate be of the percentage of Mac users using AppZapper worldwide?

I would estimate that a fraction of a fraction of a percent of all Mac users are using AppZapper, and that we have a long but exciting path ahead of us to reach a more mainstream audience.

What do you have planned for AppZapper in the future?

We have a lot of great things planned for the next major AppZapper releases and we’re not quite ready to reveal too much, but we are definitely going to be rethinking nearly ever aspect of the app to make it an even more streamlined and slick experience. Bear in mind that as we continue to add new things to AppZapper, we will never “bloat” it up. Even though we’ve more than doubled the feature set since 1.0, the app still sports the same minimal drag and drop interface.

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Do you have any other projects you are/planing to work on aside from AppZapper?

Yes, actually. Jasper Hauser (the designer we worked with on AppZapper) has been working with us on a new software project. He has released a few previews on his blog that are certainly worth checking out. We promise to release some more concrete information about the project in the near future.

Thanks for your time! Good luck in the future

Thanks a bunch for the interview, Glenn.

We have 5 copies of AppZapper to give away. The best 5 comments on this article during the next 24 hours (Judged by Austin Sarner) will be receiving a free copy of AppZapper.

Comments

#1
Jonathan

i really love appzapper and can’t belive how fast it has evolved. i congratulate you….i could really send appzapper to a friend with a mac…he is the only person i know to f one up….

is there an estimated realease date for the new app….i don’t really know what it does…but it sure looks cool….

keep up the good work and i hope to hear from you on or after the 7 of august….wwdc
#2
Fred

What do you think some of your biggest hurdles will be in the future as appzapper evolves?
#3
Perry

I think AppZapper is fantastic. It completely blows competition like Spring Cleaning out of the water with its simple interface, its speed and its uncanny accuracy – there are very few situations where AppZapper misses things or picks the wrong files to be deleted (though certain such scenarios still exist).

What I don’t get is why Apple doesn’t include something like this with OS X; I understand the logic behind the drag-to-trash deleting: it’s simple, doesn’t particularly hinder your system’s performance, and it keeps all of your files that contain specific user settings in case you want to reinstall an app. But at the end of the day, there is some software that you try once, and want to completely get rid of afterwards. Right now, nothing I’ve seen does that job better than AppZapper.
#4
Phone Huynh

Great interview and great application. I get so much junk on my Mac that an application like AppZapper is quite needy.

Glenn, Austin . . . why should I get a free copy of AppZapper?

1. I am a entering college student next year – $12.95 is equal to approximately 65 packages of Top Ramen – so it is either to pay for *great* software or die of starvation

2. Pirating software is bad, but giving away software legally is good.

3. “The value of a man resides in what he gives and not in what he is capable of receiving.�? -Albert Einstein

4. “Just do it” – Nike
#5
Perry

By the way, a quick feature request – any chance of making the ‘zap’ sound customisable? There’s nothing I’d love more than to have my computer yell something like ‘BOOYAH!’ everytime an App gets zapped.
#6
Matt

You have a great app; it does exactly what it says it does. How do you see appzapper getting better?
#7
Aptmunich

AppZapper is another one of those great mac shareware apps that make the OS X platform so attractive.

Why switch? Sure the hardware is pretty, there are less headaches etc. – but my main reason for switching are the great apps that are made with great attention to detail and useability.

AppZapper feels as though it should come packaged in a Jonathan Ive designed packaging that Steve Jobs himself picked out the colours for – that’s how good it is.
#8
Bob

Nifty trick making it so AppZapper can’t zap itself – thus getting around the 5 free trials before registration.

Of course, a simple search via spotlight for AppZapper files reveals the logs that keep that information. Which, as far as I can tell, is 99% of what AppZapper does for you in the first place.

Who needs free registered versions?
#9
wph

AppZapper sounds like a must for anyone that tries out a bunch of freeware and then deletes what they don’t use. (read: me) The mark of a great app is one that you can’t believe it isn’t included in the first place. And AppZapper seems to fit that niche more than any other app I’ve seen.

Just so “Perry” knows, you can change any audio files in an application by opening the package contents of the app (ctrl-click>”Show Package Contents) and replacing the audio file with your own.
#10
Stephen

I’m a recent switcher to Mac and after switching I posted a few comments online about what I felt was missing. “Real uninstall” functionality was close to the top of the list.

I received many nasty comments from die-hard Mac users like “you just want Mac to be exactly like Windows”, “all you have to do to uninstall is drag the icon to the trash, if the developer didn’t provide an uninstall utility that’s not Apple’s problem”.

These guys don’t get it — and it’s apparent from my inability to easily uninstall the Parrallels demo and the Adobe Photoshop CS2 demo that many developers don’t get it either (in both cases I had to go to the UNIX command line and follow some pretty cryptic steps I found on support forums — yeah, I’d like to see my mom do that!).

When I spotted AppZapper, I thought that was just the thing! You’re finally addressing what was one of my top complaints about Mac — well done! I will definitely be trying it out.

Stephen
#11
Jeremy

AppZapper is great. I just wish Austin wouldn’t keep up with the serial numbers being passed around on the internet and preventing them from working. My (failed) hunt alone for that is going to make me a registered user :P
#12
Angel

I’m already an owner of AppZapper, but just wanted to say that it a must-have for every Mac. I would love to see it integrated into the OS.

Coming from using PCs for over a decade, I never really felt like dragging an app to the trashcan was completely doing the job. I feel comfortable that AppZapper is removing all remnants of the app from my system. It’s definitely worth every penny and more.
#13
Ron

I work in a school where I’m constantly trying new software out before we decide whether to deploy it or not. I’ve always worried about the detritus that’s left over after I test an app then send it to the trash. AppZapper looks like an interesting solution, but the way our purchasing department works, buying shareware is a nightmare, so we tend to stick to commercial applications, and so far, nothing in the commercial arena seems to compare.
#14
James Reid

A lovely little tool. As the actress said to the bishop.
#15
Joshua Starr

AppZapper sounds like exactly what our community needs. It’s the best offering yet for the type of functionality it provides.

All your Apps are belong to AppZapper. Also, my dog wants … AppZapper.

Joshua
#16
Ramanan

The application is essentially an intelligent Trashcan; it would be nice if this sort of functionality existed within OS X itself. The great thing about OS X is that a lot of indie-developers are coming up with novel improvements to the system. This application is no exception.

One thing that this application needs is tighter integration with the Finder would be great. For example, dragging an Application to the trash should launch the AppZapper and prompt you to clean up the other files associated with the application. Or, when the Finder is told to empty the Trash one could scan for .app files within it and launch the application to do the extra clean-up on these files if they are encountered. That said, this may be the sort of thing Applescript or Automater can deal with.
#17
Darth Theo

AppZapper looks absolutely cool. I wish there was a similar application for Windows. Please keep up the good work!
#18
Bill

Wow! Sounds like a very interesting program. Any conflicts on the Mac?
#19
Brandon

I have been using the trash can normally to uninstall programs and have found my computer becoming increasingly sluggish. I have been looking for a utility like AppZapper for a long time. I hope that their product does well and that it gets a bigger response.
#20
Dave Nicoll

“AppZapper looks absolutely cool. I wish there was a similar application for Windows. Please keep up the good work!”

uh, Add/Remove programs?
#21
Andy

I just bought my first Mac and ran Firefox from the disc image for almost a week by the time I figured out how easy it was to just install the damn thing. Lord knows I’ll need help uninstalling stuff. Looks like a slick program.
#22
Zaphod Babblebrox

Theo, Dave, there is a Windows program which is somewhat similar: Advanced Uninstaller, from http://www.innovative-sol.com/uninstaller

It provides a drag and drop uninstall mode. It’s not as good looking as AppZapper, tough.
#23
Auryn

I sooooo want a copy of this. Looks awesome.
#24
Glenn Wolsey

Important Note:

Austin has kindly upped the giveaway of AppZapper serials to 10! So get commenting, you have 12 hours left!
#25
Danny

After spending years on the PC side of the world and then months deciding whether or not to move to getting a Mac, a huge hesitation for me was the lack of an uninstaller with OS X. After reading about AppZapper, I knew it would be a key application on my new system. Downloading demos is how you find out if you want it, but the clutter generated is immense without a proper way to get rid of them. Sure, as others have posted, you can do a Spotlight search and remove the files. But after even ten times doing this, a lot of time has been wasted.

So, I would just like to thank you for a magnificent job on a wonderful product. It appears to be worth more than the price. As something that is shockingly absent from the operating system, AppZapper looks like an invaluable tool. I very much plan to acquire this program well before I enter college in the Fall. It will make my transition to the Mac world much, much easier. Thank you again for creating this program and sharing it with us all.
#26
R Berger

maybe Austin can follow up with DateZapper– since all the comments are coming up as July 27th and it’s only July 26th.

Oh yeah– PICK ME! PICK ME!
#27
Glenn Wolsey

I live in New Zealand, thats why it shows the 27th ;)
#28
Nathan Bolender

But.. Glenn.. I don’t live in New Zealand!! You people live in the future.. :-
#29
Glenn Wolsey

We do, and I can tell you tomorrow is a very good day. You will wake up early with your site down by the Digg effect, then a nice man will fix it for you. ;-) *cough* Nathan *cough*
#30
Nawid Arary

I love this app. Or what I’ve tried of it. I’ve even appzapped appzapper (when trial ended). Good thing to have if you love to fiddle with apps.
#31
wph

I can think of one way to make AppZapper better: zapping deleted apps. I’d love to be able to clean out the remnants of apps that were deleted without AppZapper’s magic touch.
#32
Glenn Wolsey

Congratulation to the ten winners:

PERRY PHONG HUYNH STEPHEN JEREMY JOSHUA STARR DAVE NICOLL ANDY R BERGER WPH AURYN

Your serials will be on the way within the next few hours.
#33
wph

Thank you!
#34
Glenn Wolsey

No problem, enjoy it!
#35
Dave Nicoll

Awesome!
#36
Perry

Thanks!
#37
Stephen

That’s really great! Thanks for such a great free application.

Stephen
#38
Jeremy

Awesome! Thank you so much!
#39
Grant Hutchins

Wait a minute, who’s deleting Delicious Library!? That’s a wonderful app! :)

I guess let their demo expire.
#40
Docbot

AppZapperitis
#41

EDIT-XTREEM → iappblog.com

Interesting to look back and see this. Still a great app!

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Written by Glenn Wolsey on Jul 26, 2006.Filed Under: Apple

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Written by Glenn Wolsey on Jul 26, 2006.
Filed Under: Apple