Download of the Week: PC Decrapifier

Jos

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For years, computer makers have managed to pull in a few extra bucks of profit out of each sale by bundling all sorts of third-party software with their machines. Commonly referred to as bloatware or crapware, these programs include everything from 30-day anti-virus trials, to needlessly complicated media applications and the always-annoying browser toolbar. At the end of the day it doesn’t matter if it’s a bad product or not, you simply didn’t ask for it and yet it’s there using up space, making your system to boot slower than it should or simply getting in the way.

If you’ve ever spent hours cleaning up your (or probably your friends and family’s) newly bought computer to get it up and running in tip-top shape, then the aptly named PC Decrapifier might be of some help. This 1.3MB, no-installation utility is designed to clean off, in an unattended fashion, most of the annoying software that is typically shipped with new PCs. Simply download and run the file, after which you will be guided through the process with a "wizard" style series of questions. Just pick and choose what you want to remove and PC Decrapifier will handle the rest.


You can find a list of programs that PC Decrapifier removes on the developer’s website. A little word of advice, if there's a program you don't think you want but don't quite recognize, be sure to do a quick Google search before wiping it off so you don’t end up with a non-functioning Blu-ray drive or any random error messages. PC Decrapifier works with XP, Vista and Windows 7 systems, is free for personal use and can be downloaded here.

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This is a great tool. This is like CCleaner's illegitimate son.

I wished I had this when I bought my laptop 5 months ago, it would have made things much more easier. Lucky for me, I'm a techie, but I know if my girlfriend had bought my laptop (or any for that matter), she would still have all the bloatware and crappy toolbars that come pre-installed. Not to mention the horrendous McAfee.
 
Now this might be useful. I mean, I have no problem removing all of the crap myself but something that can do it automatically? Couple this with CCleaner and Auslogics Disk Defrag and you have win.
 
This will be usefull next time one of my friends buy a laptop.. gonna save me some time =P. And i love the name ahah
 
highlander84 said:
yeah I wish I had been paid for all the time i spend takeing crap off computers... man this will be a god send!

But you have to admit, removing all that crapware manually has some sort of satisfaction to it. If crapware had flesh, you'd be slicing it down with a big sword. There's something awfully chivalrous about that.
 
LoL Love the name of the app!!

could be pretty usefull for all the PC's that come trough my office to get ready for use
 
This is great - I think I'll keep it on my thumb drive for whenever my friends/family ask me to look at their machines. I hope it actually does a good job of removing Norton.
 
Oh man, it hurts so bad to see that demo photo with NIS and Live update unchecked.
why? WHY?!
 
NIS is a pain, and it comes with every software nowadays... I totally hate it. Seems like a nice tool, I just go and uninstall one by one so I dont mess anything up or erase a program I actually use without knowing.
 
Oh the joys of building your own computer, don't have to deal with that :D

But man I could have really used this when I used to buy my computers from Dell!
 
when i bot my notebook.. i spent 10 mins booting it up and another 40 removing all that crapware. i'm bookmarking this for future use!
 
Everytime ive ever bought a laptop i've just reinstalled windows from the get go! this tool would have saved soo much time! Im on a mac now though, so i dont get any of that crap :)
 
This should be very useful for when I'm working on peoples computers. I always delete all the crapware right when I get onto peoples computers (with their permission of course) but never thought to look for a program that does specifically that.
 
I haven't using this tool yet. But i'll keep it in mind. Usually, when i bought new PC, i just uninstall the cra[ware.
 
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