Here are some useful utilities that I’ve come across that have helped me in my years of working in academic student labs:
Fseventer – This great tool shows in real time file activity that is going on while you work. Great for seeing what files are modified and created while using an application.
Iceberg – Forget about manually programming package files, this is a fully GUI based program making it super easy. Need I say any more.
Lingon -Â I used to create cron jobs to start programs or to perform certain maintenance routines. Now I just use this easy applet to take advantage of the launchd daemon to handle scripts, programs and other daemons.
Rsyncx -Need to make backups? This uses rsync to make backups either locally or to a server. Great program that can be scheduled by using the Backup Assistant. Preserves file permissions as well.
Carbon Copy Cloaner – This is similar to Rsyncx in that it uses Rsyncx to run backup process but uses a very simple interface. This by far has been the most usefull free tool I’ve used for my servers and daily work as a technician.