Tag: BLOATWARE

We've known about Microsoft's plans to release a stripped-down, free version of Office 2010 for quite some time. What's been slightly less publicized is the fact that Office Starter will only be available on brand new computers. That doesn't seem like such a big deal, but there's more to the story. Take a look at the image above. Microsoft wants OEMs to preload Office 2010 (most big companies ...

Many of you probably received a shiny, new netbook, laptop, nettop, desktop, HTPC, or something else with a CPU in it running Windows for the holidays. One thing that has come to be synonymous with new PCs is dreadful preinstalled software (nerdy types call it crapware or bloat). For the most part, the programs OEMs pack onto their systems suck. They're marginally useful at best, and just eat ...

So you picked up a new Windows 7 laptop (or desktop) or you're planning on buying one in the very near future? If you took a look at display models in stores like Best Buy or Frye's, you no doubt noticed that new systems come with a lot of programs pre-installed. Lots of software is a good thing, right? Not always. Trouble is, what you get is often a) not really useful software or b) a ...

So Microsoft has partnered with Yahoo!, and Bing will now provide the heavy lifting when it comes to search. When I read the news this morning, I immediately thought of all the Yahoo bloatware I've seen over the years on certain OEM systems - I won't single out anyone like HP for this. Live (and now Bing) would have been the default search engine on all these systems, were it not for the Yahoo! ...

As someone who unboxes a lot of new laptops, PC Decrapifier has been a trusted helper for a long time. It's always been good at removing the bloat from factory Windows installs. In the past, however, it's taken a little while for programs to go from forum suggestions to being included in Decrapifier. That's what version 2.0 is all about. With an improved scripting engine, updates to Decrapifier ...