install posts

Filed under: Utilities, Features, Windows, Freeware, How-Tos, Windows x64

How to replace the crappy pre-installed software on your new Windows 7 PC with great free apps

by Lee Mathews Oct 23rd 2009

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 time-limited trial. Office 2007 and the antivirus protection the salesperson told you about? They're 60 day trials. After that, they're going to ask you to pay up...But you don't have to.

No, you can tell those apps to keep their hands off your credit card! With all the great, free software Download Squad has covered over the years, there's really no need to burden your new system with that kind of software timebomb.
With just two simple apps you can quickly strip away all the bloatware (that's what us techy types call the excess crud preinstalled on your new system) and get yourself a nice selection of totally free software that will never expire!

Tags: bloatware, cleanup, crapware, decrapifier, features, install, installer, new laptop, new pc, new-pc, NewLaptop, NewPc, ninite, windows-7, windows7

Filed under: OS Updates, Utilities, Windows, Microsoft, Freeware

Microsoft offers tool to burn Windows 7 ISO - or put it on a USB flash drive

by Lee Mathews Oct 22nd 2009

If you have already downloaded - or plan on downloading - a purchased copy of Windows 7, you may need a tool to help you turn the bits into something bootable so you can actually start installing your new OS.

By some amazing coincidence, Microsoft has a tool designed to handle just such an emergency! Grab the Windows 7 USB/DVD download tool and follow the on-screen instructions and you'll have a bootable DVD or USB flash drive in no time. You'll also need your downloaded Windows .ISO file, of course. If you plan on using a flash drive, it needs to be 4Gb or larger.

Microsoft's page includes exhaustive (and I mean exhaustive) instructions and a list of frequently asked questions on the download tool page.

More experienced users may want to stick with the app I've mentioned before - WinToFlash. It's fully portable, whereas the Microsoft app has to be installed.

Tags: burn, dvd, imaging, install, installer, usb flash drive, UsbFlashDrive, windows-7, windows7

Filed under: OS Updates, Features, Windows, Microsoft

Windows 7 upgraders guide: The simple version

by Lee Mathews Aug 7th 2009

Microsoft released a nice, big chart the other day which details the many possible ways of moving from your existing Windows OS to Windows 7. It's got a slight case of information overload, however, so let's simplify things a bit. After all, not everyone reading Download Squad is an IT director with years of experience.

First, let's spell out the important terms.

In-Place Upgrade: means one you can run from your current Windows desktop. If f you currently own a laptop or desktop with Windows Vista Home Premium you will be able to boot up your computer as normal, pop in your Windows 7 Home Premium disk, and upgrade Windows. Your existing data (music, pictures, etc.) and programs are automatically moved.

Custom Install: "Custom" here really means "new," "fresh," or "clean." When you finish installing Windows your new desktop will be pretty bare - none of your old programs of data will be there, so you'll need to back them up first. Custom installs can't be performed from your existing Windows desktop. You have to force your system to boot from the Windows 7 DVD instead.

We'll take a thorough look at doing just that in an upcoming DLS 101 post.

Tags: install, installation, upgrade, upgrading, vista, windows-7-rtm, xp

Filed under: Internet, Productivity, Freeware, Browsers

New machine installs: the story so far

by Victor Agreda, Jr. Mar 5th 2009

Way back in January I wrote about my corporate-sanctioned machine, complete with a few pieces of bloatware (sorry kids!). I appreciate the awesome suggestions, although since I need this thing for work purposes, I'm opting to go light and lean whenever possible to begin with. Yes, I realize Microsoft Office is the antithesis of "light and lean" but the suite is required to stay on the machine. For everything else, I want a small footprint.

Case in point: I needed a screenshot app. I chose MWSnap because it was small and unobtrusive, and didn't require an installation. It isn't perfect, but it does the job and I remember using it years ago. Unfortunately, my next series of application downloads wouldn't be so lean.

Note that a collection of applications says a lot about the primary user and what they will be doing day-to-day. A few months ago I ran a Twitter straw poll for TUAW and found a large portion of followers were web designers and developers, judging from the software they were using at that time. My use case is simple: I'm using this machine to test software for DownloadSquad, learn some programming, and take basic screenshots and possibly screen video. So far, I'm almost where I want to be with the base set of applications. To see what I've installed so far, keep reading.

Tags: dropbox, evernote, install, irfanview, mwsnap, netbeans, software, windows 7, Windows7

Filed under: Windows, Microsoft

Fresh install of XP, now what?

by Victor Agreda, Jr. Jan 27th 2009

I had the mothership send me a Dell Latitude so I can finally quit angering Parallels on my Mac (which is down to about 2GB of HD space anyway), and it's about as clean an install as any "corporate" computer will get. For example, since our parent company is publicly traded, the rules insist AV software be included. I'm running GuardianEdge for disk encryption (so those Yahoos don't steal my sekrits), McAfee for AV, PowerDVD and Office 2003. The machine came pre-installed with the latest AOL client (naturally -- and it's really quite useful if you work here) but also with Firefox, which is nice. I had to manually install Flash, which shows how stripped-down the machine is.

So now I'm staring at a pretty clean machine, all things considered. What are the top 3 things you readers would suggest I install next?

Tags: install, mod, windows

Filed under: OS Updates, Windows, Microsoft, Commercial

Is Microsoft supporting Vista SP1 Upgrade Edition pirates?

by Danny Mendez Apr 3rd 2008

Experts such as Brian Livingston, editorial director of the Windows Secrets newsletter, say Microsoft is intentionally allowing a loop-hole to exist, which enables more advanced users of Microsoft's operating systems to upgrade to Vista SP1 without having the necessary previous versions of Windows.

The loop-hole exists in the Vista SP1 Upgrade Edition, which requires a previous install of Windows 2000, XP, or Vista but the upgrade edition will install even if they're absent. The Vista SP1 Upgrade Edition retails for about $110 less than the full version of Vista SP1, which means users can save money on upgrading to Vista by purchasing the cheaper upgrade box.

Livingston believes Microsoft supports the hole since the upgrade edition installs over itself in Vista SP1. Although it may seem absurd at first, Microsoft may benefit from such software pirates -- if they can be called that anymore.

The theory behind this is already at play and has been at play for many years. As more and more users install some version of Windows, others will see it as "the standard", and then they will buy it -- or they'll pirate it and indirectly influence others to buy it.

Tags: cheat, hack, install, save, sp1, upgrade, vista

Filed under: Features, Linux, Open Source, How-Tos, Canonical, Troubleshooting

Flipping the Linux switch: Installations are disturbingly easy

by Kristin Shoemaker Mar 16th 2008

All right, the headline is a little bit of a lie. Some Linux installs are hairier, take longer, and just aren't as soothing as the one we're about to show you. They do all work approximately the same way, however, and that's just fine for us as a point of illustration.

So there we are, looking at the "Download" page of an Ubuntu derived distribution. We decide that we'll download the x86 version of the distro (we'll assume we don't have a 64 bit or PPC system or don't want a 64 bit OS). So we click on the file that ends in .iso, and it starts downloading.

Now what?

Tags: how to, HowTo, install, kubuntu, linux, linux-switch, livecd, tweet-this, ubuntu, walkthrough

Filed under: OS Updates, Features, Linux, Open Source, How-Tos

Flipping the Linux switch: Package management 101

by Kristin Shoemaker Jan 8th 2008

Your shiny new Linux system has it all -- except that one program you really needed it to install. You get online, you find the program's website, and click 'download'. Except there's not just a link to the program there.

There are four, or five, or more links to the program. Each has a slightly different format, ending with .rpm, .deb, .tgz, or possibly even .ebuild.

Some include x86 in the name, while others say ppc or amd64. What's the difference? What's actually included in these packages?

Packages are pre-compiled programs for your system (the exception being Gentoo's .ebuild). You've got to know a bit about your system to install them.

Tags: apt, deb, ebuild, how to, HowTo, install, Linux, linux-switch, package management, PackageManagement, portage, rpm, Synaptic, yum

Filed under: Design, Developer, Fun, Internet, Utilities, Blogging, Web services, Yahoo!

Yahoo! launches widget badges

by Chris Gilmer Sep 18th 2007

Yahoo! launched Widget badges today. In keeping with the Yahoo Widgets desktop and Konfabulator theme, the newly developed widgets bring what was previously only offered on the desktop to the web for easy downloading and installing.

With Yahoo! Widget Badges users can now embed download badges into their website, social network or blog through a custom HTML code. These new widgets can then be installed, updated and opened directly on the website they are embedded in, so there is no leaving the website for any installation purposes. The in-page installer makes it easier for people to grab information and applications without the hassle of downloading and then installing directly on the desktop. Yahoo! sees this move as one that will break the barrier that widgets have faced as desktop software, and grow their audience while making it a more advantageous development platform.

GirlSense is one of the first companies to get Widget badges up and running. Take a look at how the badge can be blended into the website so as to not seem distracting or out of place. ~~Users must have the Yahoo! Widgets application running on their computers for the badges to work.~~

UPDATE: Yahoo! has let us know that users do not need to install Yahoo! Widgets in order to take advantage of the Widget badges.

Tags: application, badges, download, install, widgets, yahoo

Filed under: OS Updates, Windows, Microsoft, Commercial

How to make a clean Vista install from an upgrade DVD

by Jordan Running Feb 1st 2007

Ooh. Here's a bit of an "oops" for Microsoft: It turns out it's possible, with no hacking or advanced skills required, to make a full-blown clean install of Windows Vista from a Vista upgrade DVD. Seeing as the upgrade disc costs about two thirds what the full version does, that seems like a pretty big oversight. DailyTech has the scoop. The process is very easy, but takes a bit of legwork. Here's the basics:

Boot from your Vista upgrade DVD.
Don't enter your product key when prompted; click "Next" instead, which will install a 30-day trial version of Vista.
Once your new trial boots up, launch setup from the DVD again, from within Vista.
Enter your product key when prompted, and then choose Custom (advanced) to do a clean install (yes, you're installing Vista a second time).
Congratulations, you've got Vista!

According to Paul Thurrott, all of this info is actually contained within internal Microsoft docs, so it's kind of amazing to me that Microsoft shipped Vista update discs with this capability. Regardless, doing this is almost certainly in violation of your license agreement, so don't try it at home (but if you do, let us know if it works).

Tags: clean install, CleanInstall, install, microsoft, setup, upgrade, vista, windows, windows visita, WindowsVisita

Filed under: Blogging, Productivity, How-Tos, Social Software

WordPress: The Complete Post-Install Checklist

by Ross McKillop Jan 15th 2007

One of the great things about WordPress is how easily you can have it up and running, completely customized to your liking, in such a short period of time. After setting up WordPress for several of my friends, I found that having a 'checklist' makes things go even faster - so I decided to write it all up and share with you.

Please don't hesitate to use the comments to suggest additions etc, I'll update the checklist accordingly.

Depending on how you've installed WordPress (manually or by a "one-click-install" that many hosting providers offer) - one of the very last installation steps is to choose a blog name and provide an email address. That's where this checklist begins. Click on a heading below to get started!

Tags: blog, install, setup, tutorial, walkthrough, wordpress, wp

Filed under: Utilities, Windows, Freeware

vLite - nLite for Windows Vista

by Jordan Running Dec 29th 2006

Not familiar with nLite? Well, let me enlighten you. nLite is a great free utility for Windows that lets you configure a Windows installation to your liking before you install it. Its main use is to remove features you don't need to save disk space and improve performance, but it can also be used to add features and even entire third-party programs and create an unattended install CD. If you haven't tried it, I highly recommend you check it out the next time you need to install Windows.

Of course, with the imminent release of Windows Vista, intrepid programmers have created vLite, a version of nLite for Windows Vista. It works just like the original nLite, though it's been prettied up a bit for the Vista scene. vLite is in beta, naturally, so you probably won't find it as rock-solid as its progenitor, but it's bound to be just as useful.

Tags: install, installation, nlite, vista, vlite, windows vista, WindowsVista

Filed under: Utilities, Windows, Productivity, Open Source

InstallPad: Automated software download and installation

by Jordan Running Nov 1st 2006

InstallPad is a brilliant open source app for Windows that lets you automate the download and installation of entire suites of programs. InstallPad relies on "application lists," which are XML files that tell it where to download the programs and how to install them. It has a built-in GUI for building and editing an application list (or you can edit XML by hand if you like), and you can select which applications from the list to install. The really cool part is that it does all of this silently. You don't have to play "Next, Next, Next, Next, Next, Next, Finish" game with the installers, because InstallPad does it for you. It also lets you pass arguments to the installers and invoke scripts when installation is complete. It can download from HTTP and FTP sources as well as run local installers or network resources. The obvious audience here is the network administrator who frequently has to bootstrap machines with the same bunch of apps, but it also has benefits for when you're doing a reformat-and-reinstall, or setting up a virtual machine with a bunch of apps.

Over at Lifehacker, Gina Trapani has put together a few application lists for InstallPad, including a "PC Rescue Pack," "Media Pack," and a general-purpose "Lifehacker Pack." Don't miss 'em.

Tags: administrator, batch, install, installer, installpad, open source, OpenSource, windows

Filed under: Business, Internet, Utilities, Social Software

AOL badware?

by Chris Gilmer Aug 29th 2006

AOL has been blacklisted on StopBadware.org due to the main fact that it installs additional software with AOL 9.0 without telling the user. The test of the free AOL 9.0 that StopBadware.org tested, reportedly got the bad grade because AOL did not live up to their "rich legacy" as stated by StopBadware.org co-director John Palfrey. Palfrey says this was the only reason why AOL had got dumped into the same category as malicious badware providers.

AOL has said that they are reviewing the report, and that no company has done more to fight malware than AOL. AOL is taking steps to ensure that the issues are addressed, and that they involve only minor UI changes.

Tags: aol, aol 9, Aol9, badware, blacklisted, download, install, malicious, software, stopbadware

Filed under: Internet, Security, Mozilla

Why Firefox makes you wait 3 seconds before installing extensions

by Jordan Running Aug 28th 2006

Have you ever wondered why Firefox makes you wait three seconds before you can click on the Install button when you want to install an extension? Most users (self included) assume that it's just to make users read the dialog. It turns out that's not the case--Jesse Ruderman explains that it's actually a security feature to keep people from unwittingly installing malicious code. He describes an ingenious exploit in which a user is presented, for example, a security (CAPTCHA) image to type in. JavaScript is used to initiate an extension installation when the user starts typing, and when the user types 'y' or enter, it triggers the 'Accept' or 'Install' button, allowing the malicious software to be installed. Since many users type faster than they could respond to the box popping up, the software is installed before they can react. (If you're confused, head over to Ruderman's blog, he explains it better than I can.) The delay in Firefox gives the user time to react and stop typing. Mozilla describes the solution in bug 162020, but the same vulnerability exists in other browsers, most notably Internet Explorer and its ilk.

Tags: delay, exploit, extension, firefox, install, mozilla, vulnerability

The World's Hardest Game 2.0 - Time Waster

So, just how good at time waster games are you? Think you've got the stuff? Well, The World's Hardest Game 2.0 doesn't think you do. Yes, amazingly, it's possible to have a sequel to a game called "The World's Hardest Game". It doesn't seem logically possible, since if the first one was actually the world's hardest, how could another one come along and share the moniker? It made me doubt the name in the first place. That is, until I tried the game. The mechanics of the game are very simple. You are a small red square, ...

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