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Bloatware Removal Threatens PC Industry Profits

Posted by kdawson on from the like-an-ad-blocker dept.

Anti-Globalism sends along a piece on how a consumer-friendly service is not so good for PC manufacturers. "Before they ship PCs to retailers like Best Buy, computer makers load them up with lots of free software. For $30, Best Buy will get rid of it for you. That simple cleanup service is threatening the precarious economics of the personal computer industry. Software companies pay hundreds of millions of dollars to PC makers like Hewlett-Packard to install their photo tools, financial programs, and other products, usually with some tie-in to a paid service or upgrade. With margins growing thinner than most laptops, this critical revenue can make the difference between profit and loss for the computer makers, industry analysts say."

7 of 341 comments (clear)

  1. We call this the linux philosophy by poetmatt · · Score: 4, Informative

    Thankfully, Linux comes pretty free of bloatware. I guess they don't like that artificially inflated revenues by shoving crapware in people's faces is now heading back towards "realistic revenues by giving people what they actually want"?

    I seem to recall a time way back when some company actually installed gator with their pc's bloatware.

    1. Re:We call this the linux philosophy by nelsonal · · Score: 4, Informative

      The people have already spoken. They want the best hardware specs on the side for the least money with little care about measures of quality that require a little more knowledge. When was the last time you heard of anyone buying an airplane ticket based on anything other than price and time?

      Other companies already build similar computers without bloatware, but the prices are higher and they have fewer customers.

      --
      Degaussing scares the bad magnetism out of the monitor and fills it with good karma.
    2. Re:We call this the linux philosophy by clodney · · Score: 4, Informative

      I used to feel that the same way, but the last time I looked at building a basic box for a family member I found that I basically couldn't beat Dell's prices - maybe $50, but not enough to compensate for the extra effort of buying pieces and assembling them.

      At the high end I think you are correct, if only because I can cut back on expensive components I don't care about.

      But given the economies of scale that the big operators have, it is hard to beat them significantly on price.

  2. Re:Not sure how I feel about this... by Scoth · · Score: 4, Informative

    This isn't always true. My fiancee got a laptop a year or so ago that came with no discs whatsoever. It gave you the option of burning restore discs, which included all the bloatware. There was no way, short of buying a retail copy of Vista or going pirate, to reformat/install without the bloatware. Fortunately most of it uninstalled fairly cleanly, but "just format and reinstall!!" isn't always an option.

  3. Re:Not sure how I feel about this... by LunaticTippy · · Score: 3, Informative

    I call shenanigans. An IT guy that has never heard of the PC Decrapifier

    --
    Man, you really need that seminar!
  4. Re:Not sure how I feel about this... by Just+Some+Guy · · Score: 3, Informative

    I do Unix. I bought the laptop to run Quickbooks and some industry-specific applications. I appreciate the link, but the point was that you don't have to be a complete babe in the woods to have these sorts of problems.

    --
    Dewey, what part of this looks like authorities should be involved?
  5. Re: g-limits by icebrain · · Score: 3, Informative

    Certification standards require that all such aircraft be able to withstand 150% of the highest allowable g-limit without structural failure. This is true for both Boeing and Airbus aircraft--and neither manufacturer is going to significantly overbuild their aircraft, because that adds weight. In fact, if tests show the structure is stronger than that, they will remove some to save weight.

    And a properly-designed fly-by-wire system doesn't "trump pilot judgment." It puts in g-limits (so you don't rip the wings off) and an alpha limiter (so you don't stall the airplane; incidentally, this makes windshear recovery easier since you can just haul back on the stick). Almost any situation where you would possibly need to overstress the aircraft, or would get into a stall, is likely the result of poor judgment on the pilot's part.

    I can think of only two incidents off the top of my head where aircraft crashed due to FBW-related problems... the aforementioned Airbus, and the recent B-2 crash.

    I'm and engineer working on a fly-by-wire program, and a private pilot, fwiw.

    --
    The meek may inherit the earth, but the strong shall take the stars.