Is SIMBL evil?

[Durbrow]

I want to use the extra screenspace occupied by the menu for windows. An app called something like MegaZoomer does this but uses SIMBL. I understand that there is some hesitation about using apps with this hack. Is SIMBL safe? Has anyone used this MegaZoomer thing? Is there an alternative that is safer? Note that I want to not just hide the menu but use the space. Thanks for any ideas.

 

[ora]

I've used SIMBL for years as its required for PithHelmet, and had no problems.

 

[fryke]

Just for the record: SIMBL extensions _can_ pose problems. PithHelmet, for example, _has_ had problems when Apple updated OS X/Safari in the past. I've heard PithHelmet has solved its problems by now, so it shouldn't happen again, but generally speaking SIMBL extensions aren't per se 'safe' or not.

I'd install it, try it, and if there are problems, remove it. Since you - of course - have a current backup for everything, this should be no problem even if it all goes down the drain.

 

[ora]

True fryke, i should have mentioned that, but i was late on the couple of updates that caused problem, so never experienced them. ALso, as I understood it the SIMBL conflicts could be fixed by removing SIMBL, no permanent damage, right?

 

[fryke]

Yep, there shouldn't be any permanent damage. But since you _never_ know.

 

[Mikuro]

I use SIMBL for a few things, including PithHelmet. More complicated plugins (like PithHelmet) tend to break every time the affected apps are updated. This is why you see new versions of PithHelmet a day or two after every Safari update. (Actually, usually the old versions of PithHelmet are compatible, but the author takes a better-safe-than-sorry approach and has it disable itself if it detects an unknown version of Safari.)

There is nothing inherently unsafe about SIMBL. It's actually pretty non-invasive compared to similar things, like Application Enhancer (however, Application Enhancer is more powerful). So I say give it a shot. You can always uninstall it if things go wrong.