Name and shame list of the worst software to ever stalk our operating systems and corrupt our storage devices + suggested lightweight alternatives of similar functionality.

-soon to be added – codeblocks, norton pre 2006

In alphabetical order:


Adobe CS3 Master Collection

Primary functionality: Media Creation/Web Development Suite

Reason: Huge (12GB+), adds hundreds of thousands of files to your computer, takes forever to install, the updates are massive (to patch CS3 to the latest, your looking at 800MB of updates), some of the applications are very resource intensive, browser add-ons and toolbars installed and is hideously expensive.

Alternative/s: With the same level of features, usability and tight integration? None, unfortunately. There are those who will trumpet open source solutions such as The GIMP, Audacity etc but they come nowhere near as viable replacements.

Update: Adobe CS4 Master Edition in a BIG improvement on its predecessor. Installation time has been cut by almost 3/4, applications load significantly faster, easier to use and streamlined. It’s still a LARGE install, but it has shrunk somewhat by the discontinuation of Adobe Stock Photos.


DivX

Primary functionality: CODEC

Reason: Expensive, adds way too many shortcuts, corrupts other CODECs installed at the time of installation, makes Windows Media Player lag horribly when locating the appropriate CODEC to ply a media file.

Alternative/s: K-Lite CODEC Pack (http://www.codecguide.com/), Combined Community CODEC Pack (http://www.cccp-project.net/) – Both are freeware CODEC packs which bundle the most common audio and video CODECs into a single self installing package (including DivX), but are configured to minimize conflicts and corruption.


Download Accelerator Plus

Primary functionality: Download manager

Reason: Bloated, interface lags, uses up a lot of RAM, installs adware toolbars, application has built in ad banners, dials home periodically to request new advertising content, bundles the useless and ineffective Speedbit Video Accelerator, installs a kernel level hook which causes system instability, hard to uninstall, ineffective at accelerating downloads, lags your browser due to its poorly coded integration.

Alternative/s: Metaproducts Download Express (www.metaproducts.com), Free Download Manager (http://www.freedownloadmanager.org/). Download Express is freeware, while FDM is open source. Download Express is extremely fast, lightweight, simple to use and has excellent IE and Firefox integration. Free Download Manager is also easy to use, fast and lightweight, but comes with a built in file manager suited more for power users.


Internet Explorer 7

Primary functionality: Web browser (Windows)

Reason: Insecure, hard to customize, crashes constantly and is slow to load, especially with add-ons installed. Also built into Microsoft Windows and can not be removed.

Alternative/s: Mozilla Firefox (www.firefox.com), Opera (www.opera.com) – Both are open source and free

Update: Internet Explorer 8 is an improvement on its predecessor. It does seem to start slightly faster, and tends to crash less than IE7. Security is somewhat improved, though the browser is still not Web standards compliant.


iTunes/Quicktime

Primary functionality: Media Player

Reason: iTunes and Quicktime are bundled together in the installer. iTunes slows down your PC by installing multiple services (Bonjour, iTunes Helper, iPod Helper, Apple Software Update, Apple Mobile Device Support etc) regardless of whether you use Apple hardware. Quicktime for Windows is buggy, unstable and frequently crashes.

Alternative/s: Windows Media Player (www.microsoft.com), Media Player Classic (Download), Media Monkey (www.mediamonkey.com) – WMP is bundled with Windows, MPC is open source and free, MM is free but paid features extra.


Limewire

Primary functionality: (Gnutella) P2P Client

Reason: Application lags, uses a lot of RAM, irritating “chunky” user interface, tries to be an all-in-one P2P application by handling torrents and magnet links as well as Gnutella.

Alternative/s: Frostwire (www.frostwire.com) - A open source (free) fork of the original Limewire. Using the Gnutella network for file sharing is dangerous anyway, due to the high prevalence of viruses, fake downloads, child pornography and the FBI/RIAA/MPAA monitoring the network and suing users. Perhaps try Bit Torrent or USENET?


Nero 9

Primary functionality: CD/DVD Burning… I think (I’m not sure what it does, as its now trying to take on the kitchen sink in a 1-on-1 duel)

Reason: Massive install size (2GB+), massive update/patches (200MB+), very slow to install (30 minutes), bundles Ask.com toolbar, adds system taskbar search box, installs multiple processes, fills auto-run menu with options, flashy program with little functionality, too much paraphernalia installed (audio editors, mic recorder, backup application, media centre functionality, file indexing, etc), overpriced, built in codecs need to be unlocked by paying more money, despite buying the “Ultimate” version, phones home periodically to check licensing, very poor updater.

Alternative/s: Ashampoo Burning Studio  (www.ashampoo.com), CDBurnerXP (http://cdburnerxp.se/) – ABS6 is closed source but free, CBX is free.


Visual Studio 2008

Primary functionality: Programming IDE

Reason: Massive install size (6GB+), very slow installation (1 hour +) on most computers, adds multiple services to your PC, slow to load, clogs up registry with thousands of entries. To be fair, the installer allows you to customize what it installed, but the “Typical” option includes much more than most programmers will need.

Alternative/s: Sharp Develop (www.icsharpcode.net), NetBeans (www.netbeans.org), Eclipse (www.eclipse.org) – All are open source and free.