Pacifist 2.0.1 review
DownloadPacifist is a small program that attempts to do in Mac OS X what TomeViewer did in Mac OS 9 - it opens up .
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Pacifist is a small program that attempts to do in Mac OS X what TomeViewer did in Mac OS 9 - it opens up .pkg installer packages and lets you install individual files out of them.
This is useful if you need to install just one file out of a package instead of the entire package (for example, if you deleted Sherlock and need to reinstall it, but not the whole operating system), if you experience bugs in Installer.app that mess up your symbolic links, or if you just like a little more control over the installation process.
Pacifist can also update prebinding information for files that you install to optimize their performance.
Here are some key features of "Pacifist":
Lets you install individual items or folders from .pkg packages, either to their default install locations or to a custom location you specify
Allows you to install to a disk other than the boot disk if you prefer
Works with the new Mac OS X 10.2 (Jaguar) package format as well as the old Mac OS X 10.0 format
Works with .mpkg metapackages
Includes the ability to verify existing intallations, comparing the files on your hard disk with the files listed in the package, and notifying you of missing files as well as files that have different permissions or checksums than those listed in the package*
Follows all symlinks and aliases properly, without overwriting them
Doesn't alter the properties of existing folders, including their permissions
Correctly gives the sizes of a package, both compressed and uncompressed
Displays the following information about files in packages: path, size, kind, owner, group, permissions, modification date, checksum
Allows the user to selectively choose whether or not to display certain types of metadata
Inspector window gives a more detailed look at files in a package
Displays total size of currently selected files, letting you know exactly how much space your installation will take on your hard disk. Dynamically updates this size as the selection changes.
Correctly sets all file owner and permission settings
Automatically converts AppleDouble files into resource forks and metadata when installing on HFS+ disks (leaves the files alone if installing on UFS)
Automatically updates prebinding information after installation to optimize system performance
It is possible to cancel the extraction at any stage of the installation
Multiple-document interface
Multi-threaded
Has a working search feature
Supports drag and drop
Supports contextual menus
Commonly used functions available via toolbar
Auto filename completion
Works with compressed or uncompressed packages
By default, prompts before replacing any files
Uses the Security Framework if the files will need to be installed as root
If you install a folder and the folder already exists, Pacifist installs the folder's contents and doesn't overwrite the parent folder. The exception is application bundles, which by default will ask you what to do.
The buffer used when piping to pax is configurable, unlike command-line gzip, so you can tweak it to get faster decompression with gz-compressed packages
Works around a bug in pax so that hard links extract from packages correctly instead of generating “File not found” errors
Spiffy icons by Adam Betts
Dutch localization by Koen van Hees
French localization by Ronald Leroux
German localization by Sebastian Krau?
Italian localization by Gabriele Callari
Japanese localization by Takehiko Hatatani.
Limitations:
15 seconds startup delay.
What's New:
New Czech localization by Lukas Vajda
Interface clarification: if you select a folder or a package that contains other files and folders, the contained files will now get highlighted light gray to indicate that they will get extracted/installed as well
Replaced the generic error message on failure to open a file with something more specific
Fixed a bug in which using the “Install” feature on certain packages could make Pacifist crash
Fixed a bug which could cause some packages to install in the wrong place under certain conditions
Fixed various localization issues.
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