Win 7 Programs what should go?

[systemcrash]

Just browsing through the internet (never new it was so large) and i came across some programs i thought id try i even have programs i'll probably never use like PAP the animation program but i have it just in case i fancy doing some animation at one point in my laptops life time/

I have installed PDF Fill, PDF Nitro PDF Exchange, and PDF Nitro. I know i dont need all but i dont no which is best to keep.

I have absolute uninstaller but im not sure if to use that over win7 default uninstaller although it has some good features like batch uninstall, but i dont often uninstall multiple programs at once.

I have imgburn and Roxio Burning software

Loads of DVD software some should probably go, DVD Decrypter
DVD Shrink, DVDFab 8, DVDStyler, Handbrake, Modiac Blu-ray Ripper, Modiac DVD Ripper, Windows DVD Maker

I rarely use registry programs but i have 2 anyway Wise Registry cleaner and registry clean expert. But i also have Ahampoo Win optimiser 6 and ccleaner
+ cc enhancer

Although space isnt a issue i got loads left there probably isnt any point halling programs im never going to use, i look on Giveawayofthday and although reject downloading a lot i probably still download licensed alternatives that a worse then freeware. Like Modiac Blue Ray ripper it came as a super pack with the dvd ripper and converter I dont have a blue ray drive or a blue ray dvd player at home. But its installed...

Should i get rid of programs that i havnt used in a month or just let them go out of date never used

Feel free to suggest what programs i should get rid of or exchange

[kendall.a]

When I installed Windows 7, for some reason, I became a minimalist. I certainly wasn't that way with XP. Where before I used to brag about how many programs I had (at one point, I think I had 6 registry cleaning programs), I'm now proud of how little I've added to my Windows 7 install. For the most part, I am using all built-in Windows tools.

(I think this is partially related to my hard drive going bad on me and having to buy a new HD and then a complete fresh install of Windows. I also think for me, it's about doing regular image backups. The less programs I have, the less time and space my image backups take.)

My recommendation is to make an image backup and then start deleting like crazy. Be merciless. Get rid of everything you don't need. Then, use CCleaner and then defrag. Then, make a new image backup. I think you will find that your computer reboots faster, is more responsive, and your new image backups will take a lot less time and space.

P.S. I too used to be a GOTD junkie. I still check daily, but I can't remember the last time I downloaded or used something from there.

Just my 2 cents. (American expression)

[J_L]

Keep what you need or use, everything else must go. There shouldn't be programs that have the same functions unless they detect junk or malware.

[Anupam]

If you feel that you do not want multiple programs installed, but you still feel that you might need them some time, then just uninstall the programs and keep their setups. That way, when you feel the need for them, you can install again from the setups. This is what I do.

I have around 3 GB of software setup on my hard disk. All are freeware. I have installed the programs that need to be installed. For the rest, I just keep the setups, and install them whenever I get the need. If space is a problem, just write them on a disk.

The above is a reason why I never download programs from GOTD. Because, they have to be installed the same day, and cannot be installed otherwise. I like to keep setups of software that I think would be useful to me sometime. Also, most of the software I need, I get as freeware, so why should I go for something like GOTD.

Regarding multiple programs for the same purpose... you already have them installed... so just check them out, use them a bit, and keep the ones you like the best, or which suit your purpose the best. Uninstall the others.

Reviews on Gizmo's Freeware are a good benchmark to decide which software to keep. Many many of the freeware I have on my PC, I downloaded after seeing the recommendation here.

Regarding Nitro Pdf, or PdfXchange... its your own personal choice, which one to keep. I like PdfXchange more. I had tried Nitro Pdf once, out of curiosity, but found various things I disliked.

While freeware CD/DVD burners are excellent, but the ones like Nero, or Roxio, which come preinstalled with OEM versions, often have extra features like burning video CDs, or making video DVDs. So, you can keep Roxio installed.

I have all the multimedia programs which you mentioned, except for Modiac stuff. As I said earlier, I do not keep them installed, but I keep their setups, and I install them when needed.

I do not use registry cleaners, or all in one system optimizers. I do not believe in such software. I feel that they could cause more harm rather than doing good.

I just use CCleaner as junk cleaner. I have tried some other cleaners in the past, but found that most of them resembled CCleaner, or were not safe to use. CCleaner is the safest of them all.

Well, just keep the software you need. Uninstall rest of them. Keep the system lean and clean, it will perform better.

[Concerned User]

@ systemcrash:

In the past, I used to collect a lot of programs

Now, I've stopped doing that and my system is in one piece

The only "registry cleaner" I use is ccleaner...

Now that you're using Windows 7, you should think about cutting down on the number of programs since the inbuilt features should be more than enough.

I have installed PDF Fill, PDF Nitro PDF Exchange, and PDF Nitro. I know i dont need all but i dont no which is best to keep.

To be very honest, I switched back to adobe pdf reader and the latest version seems to be pretty fast. I guess that you should stick with Nitro and ditch the rest.

DVD Shrink, DVDFab 8, DVDStyler, Handbrake, Modiac Blu-ray Ripper, Modiac DVD Ripper, Windows DVD Maker

That's a very big list....Keep just one and remove the rest.

Should i get rid of programs that i havnt used in a month or just let them go out of date never used

Remove them...you and your system will be happier

[garth]

Apart from having a couple of different media players and malware scanners i tend to have one application of its type installed. Now i've settled on my "default" media players i will be getting rid of the unused ones. For everything else i use portables, so even my secondary browser (SRWare Iron) is portable. I've even now removed all incarnations of Firefox except FF4 RC1.

[Jojoyee]

Originally Posted by Anupam

I have around 3 GB of software setup on my hard disk. All are freeware. I have installed the programs that need to be installed. For the rest, I just keep the setups, and install them whenever I get the need. If space is a problem, just write them on a disk.

Same practice here, except that I didn't check how many G's in total. If possible, I'd also keep the current and the previous versions, in case the current version doesn't work as stable as the previous.

[systemcrash]

thanks for the tips, i decided to uninstall nearly all my programs except certain one like dextop and open office, then i made all the other programs portable and added there installers into the file so the ones i dont use i'll put away on a external HD and the ones i do use i'll put into one folder and create shortcut links so there easier to get at. I went to do that back when i had XP but for some reason didn't carry it over when i got win 7. I may just avoid going on giveawayoftheday, so not to be tempted.

[oblivion]

Originally Posted by Concerned User

@ systemcrash:

To be very honest, I switched back to adobe pdf reader and the latest version seems to be pretty fast. I guess that you should stick with Nitro and ditch the rest.

Adobe's (allegedly) a malware magnet. My current PDF reader of choice is SumatraPDF -- fast, effective, and not prone to the same bloat or feeping creaturitis.

There's a lot to be said for not having lots of programs that do the same thing, but the other side of that is, you stop experimenting and you stop learning new stuff.

Backups are the answer. And yes, be ruthless and remove stuff that looked like a good idea at the time but you never use.

[J_L]

Giveaway of the Day is still worth visiting, especially if there are no viable freeware alternatives available.