Do you install 3rd party applications on your PC/Mac if the OS can do that job as is?

[joelovesapple]

Hi, apologies for the long subject title.

Just wondered if anyone here installs as many 3rd party applications for their Mac or PC regardless if the computer can do that job or not.

For example, installing camera software when pretty much all Operating systems can do what is offered in said program.

I just raised the question because my sister felt it wise to install some ****** Canon software on our Windows machine. I said to her 'You know you can already do 99.9% of things in Windows already, right?'

'I know you can'

'Then why bother with this stuff?'

'Because I wanted to'.

Lame

I hate computer numpties.

I try to avoid installing 3rd party apps on any system if I can help it, especially if that functionality is already present. Why waste resources otherwise?

 

[GoCubsGo]

I bet what she installed was more feature rich than what the OS offered.

 

[joelovesapple]

I'd have thought that Windows Live gallery would have sufficed?

 

[Richard1028]

I'm a "minimalist".

If OSX can do it reasonably well or the application is made by Apple (like iLife) then I don't bother finding something else unless there's no other choice.

This practice has served me well and my system has always run just fine - even after the SL upgrade.

 

[coops]

Well, if you're on a PC and browsing the web - then IE will do the job, right? But I've been using Opera for years, others have chosen Firefox, and either of these users would look at an IE user and ask why on earth they haven't changed....

Same goes for PC's windows file explorer - if you tried any decent 'norton commander' type file manager, you'd never bother with the windows version again.

And so, have in MAC world now installed Pathfinder and using Songbird instead of iTunes.... and still using Opera.

There's lots of good software/freeware out there written to do specific jobs very well - in windows the TCMP media player and it seems like VLC in MAC are an example.

It is annoying how camera's and the like will do their best to cram as much crapware on your sytem - even some thumb/flash drives come preloaded with irritating auto launching sh@te.

At least the Macbook pro came without the usual Windows boatload of preinstalled crap.... after a usual windows reinstall, would take ages throwing out all that rubbish, rebooting etc etc. Ugh.

Coops

 

[kasakka]

Depends if the 3rd party program does things better than what comes with the OS. I find with camera and printer software this is rarely the case. Same goes for any media players that come bundled with some hardware.

I don't use many Microsoft or Apple programs though. For example for video players there are tons of much better options than WMP and Quicktime Player. Likewise for browsers it's Firefox and Chrome instead of IE and Safari. Path Finder instead of Finder, Textmate/Notepad++ instead of TextEdit/Notepad, iWork/OpenOffice rather than MS Office and so on.

Truly great programs that come with the OS are IMO quite rare. Preview is one of those.

 

[mslide]

I only install what I feel is necessary. A PC comes with IE yet I still install firefox. Windows comes with music and media playback and management capabilities (media center, windows media player, etc) yet I install other applications to handle that. I also don't use the standard text editors that come with Windows and OSX and instead install others that, IMO, are much better suited for my needs.

Perhaps your sister felt that the Canon software offered something that the OS's native software did not. Maybe she's just used to it and doesn't want to change. If it really bothers you that much, then get your own computer and don't let her use it

You do have a point though. I've found that when it comes to camera and printing software, what comes with the cameras and printers are usually crap.

 

[sOwL]

Besides disk utility being powerful enough, i'll never regret buying toast titanium 9, and actually thinking into upgrading to toast titanium 10...

 

[joelovesapple]

Well, if you're on a PC and browsing the web - then IE will do the job, right? But I've been using Opera for years, others have chosen Firefox, and either of these users would look at an IE user and ask why on earth they haven't changed....

Same goes for PC's windows file explorer - if you tried any decent 'norton commander' type file manager, you'd never bother with the windows version again.

And so, have in MAC world now installed Pathfinder and using Songbird instead of iTunes.... and still using Opera.

There's lots of good software/freeware out there written to do specific jobs very well - in windows the TCMP media player and it seems like VLC in MAC are an example.

It is annoying how camera's and the like will do their best to cram as much crapware on your sytem - even some thumb/flash drives come preloaded with irritating auto launching sh@te.

At least the Macbook pro came without the usual Windows boatload of preinstalled crap.... after a usual windows reinstall, would take ages throwing out all that rubbish, rebooting etc etc. Ugh.

Coops

No I completely understand about people wanting to change the browser because I agree with you on that point. I install either Google Chrome, Firefox or Safari on any PC because I've never been a fan of Internet Explorer.

I was meaning about the rubbish junk that is camera software. I think Picasa is enough to suffice as it offers a ton of functionality. You really don't need more than one photo managing app if you're an average user. I've got both Picasa and Windows Photo Gallery on the family XP machine so there's a choice. We now have that Canon software too which in my eyes is overkill.

Petulant older sisters are a computers worst enemy. Thank god it wasn't spyware.

Cheers for the replies.

 

[cjmillsnun]

I'm a "minimalist".

If OSX can do it reasonably well or the application is made by Apple (like iLife) then I don't bother finding something else unless there's no other choice.

This practice has served me well and my system has always run just fine - even after the SL upgrade.

Likewise.

iPhoto looks after my pictures,

iMovie is fine for the limited amount of video work that I do.

Pages is my word processor

Numbers is my spreadsheet

Mail is my email client

Safari is my web browser.

However on my Windows partition (Boot Camp)

Chrome is my web browser (IE Sucks)

OpenOffice.org is my spreadsheet/wp (I paid MS enough already)

Thunderbird is my email client (Don't get me started about Outlook Express)

iTunes looks after my music (WMP is actually fine, I just prefer the iTunes interface)

The only thing I let Windows handle with its own inbuilt app is the picture browsing, which is actually damn good (on XP)

 

[rhett7660]

I was meaning about the rubbish junk that is camera software. I think Picasa is enough to suffice as it offers a ton of functionality. You really don't need more than one photo managing app if you're an average user. I've got both Picasa and Windows Photo Gallery on the family XP machine so there's a choice. We now have that Canon software too which in my eyes is overkill.

What camera software did she install? I know I installed some of the canon software to print. I liked what I could do with it better then just the print driver that came with my printer.

 

[Mr Dobey]

Never!

I like to keep my machine as streamlined as possible, this means even deleting some built in apps. I try to use the stock apps to their full potential before downloading 3rd party.

 

[Richard1028]

I like to keep my machine as streamlined as possible, this means even deleting some built in apps. I try to use the stock apps to their full potential before downloading 3rd party.

You spent $1500 just to use those silly apps?

 

[macrem]

I'm also a minimalist on OS X as the software that comes with is of excellent quality, tightly integrated, etc.

3rd party stuff must have a unique value add / a de facto standard. For ex, I would not consider Skype to be an excellent quality app, but I really need it to chat with friends on Skype.

On the other hand I would not install an AIM app when I can use iChat instead.

I used to install whatever seemed interesting but in the end found it was adding a lot of clutter & wasting time.

Sometimes with browsers I break this rule but Safari 4 brought me back to one browser.

 

[macrem]

It is annoying how camera's and the like will do their best to cram as much crapware on your sytem - even some thumb/flash drives come preloaded with irritating auto launching sh@te.

Agreed! It makes me worried when these software packages require a reboot after install. On OS X, I'm shocked by 3rd party apps that require a reboot without a really good reason...

 

[EndlessMac]

Petulant older sisters are a computers worst enemy.

It sounds more like an ongoing issue you have with your sister rather than a computer issue.

To answer your question I like trying out other applications to see if I like them better. Sometimes the applications that comes with the OS or hardware is too basic or doesn't fully do what I need it to do. I usually don't install others just for the fun of it. I actually test them out and see which one I like better. I can always uninstall them later if I don't like them. Your sister sounds like she installs applications just because they are there. If that is the case then I understand what you are talking about.

 

[Catfish_Man]

On OS X, I'm shocked by 3rd party apps that require a reboot without a really good reason...

I'm curious, what third party apps have you run into that require a reboot? Parallels/VMWare do, but that's pretty reasonable considering.

<edit> actually, do they? It seems like they would have to due to installing kexts, but I don't really remember. </edit>

 

[Ashka]

I'd like to lock down all new Macs for a month or more so the user actually uses ALL the installed apps and utilities first. Then maybe the common open slather downloading that goes on as soon as the computer is out of the box and online will be a little more sensible

Deactivating the delete button and Trash for the same period so needed apps actually stay where they belong might be a good idea too.

 

[apfhex]

I bet what she installed was more feature rich than what the OS offered.

Not the useless stuff that comes with most consumer point-n-shoots. My parents got a new one and I told them not to bother since they use iPhoto anyway.

Yeah, there's certainly a point to installing 3rd party of similar function if that software is better. But most stuff that comes with cameras, scanners, printers — besides drivers, which can be necessary — is pointless if you have Image Capture, iPhoto, or whatever.

I'm curious, what third party apps have you run into that require a reboot?

I think sometimes really old crappy installers will claim you need to restart. The same ones that tell you to quit all open apps (worse are the ones that do it for you without warning).