Today we released an update for the App Store version of Leech. This minor update changes the way Leech accesses the filesystem via the sandbox; the method we previously used didn’t work correctly in macOS Sierra, which is due out within a couple of weeks. (Because the direct version doesn’t use the sandbox, no update is required for direct customers.)

If you’re an App Store Leech user, please update to 3.3.1 before installing macOS Sierra. The update should be available now, or very shortly, via the App Store app.

We’ve just released Leech 3.1, which includes a few nice new features:

• Specify a custom user agent (in Advanced prefs)
• Set Leech to run at login (also in Advanced prefs)
• Extract URLs from a text file and add to queue

The change log details a few other fixes and improvements, too.

As usual, direct customers can get the update via in-app updating, or by downloading a fresh copy of the app. App Store buyers should see the update in the App Store app—if not now, then very shortly.

Say hello to Leech 3, a major update to our easy-to-use download manager. You can download a free trial to take it for a test drive right now.

We took what was good in Leech—simple UI, powerful rules, long-term history, etc.—and added lots of good stuff that our users have requested:

• Accelerate downloads: Open simultaneous connections—to servers that support this feature—to speed up downloads.
• Limit bandwidth: If you don’t want Leech to use all your bandwidth, don’t worry; you can tell it how much bandwidth to use.
• Schedule downloads: Set a schedule for Leech to start and stop its operations, so you can download overnight, for instance.
• Multiple run modes: Leech can run in your Dock, in your menu bar, or in a new hybrid mode where it’s in both spots at once.

Head on over to the Leech product page to read all about this goodness, and more (like auto-sorting downloads into dated folders, for example).

Purchasing Leech 3

Leech 3 is available now for $6 … oh, right, nearly forgot this tidbit: it’s available directly from us, of course, or for the first time ever, in the Mac App Store. The two versions are functionally identical, though the App Store version is (as required) sandboxed.

Note that anyone who purchased Leech 2 after November 1st, 2015 already has a Leech 3 license; check for upgrades within the app, and you’ll be up and running with a fully licensed copy of Leech 3.

Leech 2 owners: Typically, you’d expect to be eligible for upgrade pricing as an existing owner. In this case, given the app’s very low price, we decided against offering Leech 3 upgrade pricing. This is not a general change in our business practices, just the realities of offering a fully-featured app at a low price point.

Do you download a lot of stuff—like really, a lot of stuff—from the Internet? Would you rather not have those downloads tied to your browser? If so, do we have an app for you to test: Leech 3.

Leech is our lightweight download utility, and version three gains some nifty new features: acceleration, scheduling, and a user-settable bandwidth limit. We’ve made some interface changes, too, and made a lot of tweaks under the hood.

Before we do a general release, though, we’d like to stress test Leech 3 by having some heavy-duty downloaders give it a try. So if you download lots and lots of stuff from the net, we’d love to have your feeback.

So if you’re interested in helping us test Leech 3, please drop us a line and let us know why you’d like to help test Leech. (To participate in the beta, you will be signed up for a Google Groups mailing list, so please send the email from an account that works with Google.)