**STICKY* for Bad Program Alternatives?

[Phoenix64d]

Over the years, we have all been swindled into loading bloated, inferior, over-priced or DRM ridden software onto our machines, thinking that the world had nothing better to offer.

They have names like Norton AV, iTunes, Quicktime, Realplayer, Divx decoder, and various other softwares that take over your machine or introduce you to Big Brother's Future of Digital Media.

Why don't we make a sticky that lists good alternatives to all-to-common, bad software? Things like recommending K-lite & QT lite over divx/itunes, guides for installing iTunes without QT, or links to DRM-breaking goodness. Things like that. I have some contributions, I just think it would be good guerilla warfare against BB and his crew.

[Lavaandy]

I am all for this, but I am as ignorant as the next guy >_>.

[Phoenix64d]

I am all for this, but I am as ignorant as the next guy >_>.

Thanks for support. Let's see if an admin picks this up. I will IM joe and zef about it. No one person has to know it all, just add whatever alternatives you have personally found :) .

[Comixion]

Sounds decent to me. Most of those little pests you mention are just that.

RealPlayer: "Install Me!"

QuickTime: "No. Install me beyotch!"

Norton" "NOOO!!, use your electric bill money and BUY me!"

[Dizzious]

Mcafee sucks too. It adds 15 or 16 startup items & services. Use AVG or Nod32 instead.
More support for the anti-Norton movement here too; I love it when I'm trying to set up a network; and EVERYTHING is set to the settings where it should work, but for some reason the machines won't talk to each other... uninstall Norton from the computers; and all of a sudden it magically starts working perfectly.

AIM, Yahoo Messenger, MSN, and pretty much all the other ones. Uninstall that worthless trash... and go download Pidgin (http://www.pidgin.im). One messenger client to control all your screen names across every instant message network you can think of; no ads; and no cluttered-as-hell buddy list window. That's a no-brainer.

[Comixion]

Mcafee sucks too. It adds 15 or 16 startup items & services.
.

Well, you just blew it. That's Zef's favorite.

[Zefram]

The thread should be in the 'General Software' thread, because this thread revolve around softwares :eek:

I'll turn it onto a sticky thread once Pheonix64d create a new threads.

Well, you just blew it. That's Zef's favorite.

Hahaha, i found no qualms about McAfee, it worked well, and i would opposed to Dizzious's allegation. McAfee doesn't create 15 or 16 startup services, it's more like 8 services, and they're quite efficient in RAM usage. See my task manager screenshot:

http://img165.imageshack.us/img165/2516/capturera1.jpg

McAfee ate about 42MB of RAM in my system, which is darn fine to me. Better than norton :D

[Dizzious]

Eight, Sixteen, whatever.

You should all know by now that everything I say comes with a 50% margin of error.

[JoshKorn12]

Unless you have used the Norton 09 product line...DO NOT judge it.


Be a open minded civilized person before judging a something based on it's past performance.

Go downlost NAV or NIS 09, it'll still in less than a minute. That's right kiddies...it's the fastest installing AV protection to date. Plus, it's actually not half bad.

I have yet to see someone come in to the store with an infection with a current version of NAV 09 loaded on their PC.

Also, there is nothing bloated about Divx 7. That doesn't even make any sense.

[Zefram]

Unless you have used the Norton 09 product line...DO NOT judge it.


Be a open minded civilized person before judging a something based on it's past performance.

Go downlost NAV or NIS 09, it'll still in less than a minute. That's right kiddies...it's the fastest installing AV protection to date. Plus, it's actually not half bad.

I have yet to see someone come in to the store with an infection with a current version of NAV 09 loaded on their PC.

Also, there is nothing bloated about Divx 7. That doesn't even make any sense.

The new, sticky thread is HERE (http://forum.pcstats.com/showthread.php?t=65108). Post your grievances there ;)

And yes, Norton seem to improve a lot on 2009 version, i have Norton 2009 Gaming Edition installed on my brother's PC. :p

[FrozenMercury]

McAfee sucks! /thread

[Ace]

i have Norton 2009 Gaming Edition

:teeth: I really, really thought you were joking. Gaming Edition. I'm just envisaging a programmer hacking away, trying to get around Norton's protection before the words "Game Over" cover the screen.

"Congratulations, you've escalated your priviledges, but you failed to plant the keylogger in the boot sector before the AV scan reached your app. Better luck next time =)".

Having just looked it up, the only 'Gaming' thing about it would appear to be that it can now recognise a full screen game (wow!) and it won't bother you with false positives whilst you're busy killing aliens. Shoulda guessed :sniper: