The VAR Guy

The VAR Guy has a message for Redmond and the PC industry. It’s time to put an end to craplets, those “useless, annoying trial versions of programs” that are packed onto new Windows PCs, as the Wall Street Journal put it today.

Windows Vista was supposed to appease frustrated Windows XP users, restore faith in Microsoft and give PC makers a big boost. But instead, the media continue to point out what’s wrong with Windows PCs. As Walt Mossberg wrote in today’s Journal, “…to an extent that amazes me, makers of Windows software and hardware have failed to update their products to work smoothly, or to work at all, with Vista.”

Plus, Mossberg and a bunch of bloggers are complaining louder and louder about craplets. Annoyed bloggers include BitsfromBill, Bytewriter, Microsoft Watch … and The VAR Guy (that’s why he’s writing this on a Mac).

Imagine a world where you actually have to pay retailers to uninstall craplets before you bring your new PC home. That world is here. And once again, Apple is poking fun a the situation with a commercial called Stuffed.

A lot of us–customers, PC makers and journalists–complained in the 1990s when Microsoft tried to control the Windows desktop, blocking PC makers from making adjustments on their own. Eventually, PC makers gained the power and freedom to make changes. The result: Craplets now plague Windows desktops and hard drives.

Freedom in the PC world, it seems, certainly comes at a price.