What bloatware should I remove? Full list provided

It's a brand new Inspiron 1720.

Ok, here's the list: (From Add/Remove Programs)

Java(TM) SE Runtime Environment 6
Microsoft Office Home and Student 2007
MSXML 4.0 SP2
Dell Datasafe Online
Dell System Customization Wizard
Games, Music & Photos Launcher (Dell Inc)
Product Documentation Launcher (Dell Inc)
QuickSet (Dell Inc)
Dell Support Center
DellSupport
MediaDirect (Dell)
Modem Diagnostic Tool (Dell)
OutlookAddinSetup (CyberLink)
Live! Cam Avatar Creator (Creative)
Live! Cam Avatar v1.0 (Creative)
Digital Line Detect (BVRP Software, Inc)
NetWaiting (BVRP Software, Inc)
Broadcam Management Programs
Dell Touchpad
Adobe Flash Player 9 ActiveX
Adobe Reader 7.0.8
Advanced Audio FX Engine
Advanced Video FX Engine
Conexant HDA D330 MDC V.92 Modem
Dell Webcam Center
Dell Webcam Manager
Laptop Integrated Webcam Driver
URL Assistant
User's Guides

I already deleted a few things like Roxio and Google Desktop.

 

thanks for nice information i will be getting mine on next week i will revisit this thread btw is there any help or thread for clean reformation DELL coz i don't want any extra stuff.

 

These are the things I would keep:
Java(TM) SE Runtime Environment 6
Microsoft Office Home and Student 2007
MSXML 4.0 SP2
MediaDirect (Dell)
Broadcam Management Programs
Dell Touchpad
Adobe Flash Player 9 ActiveX
Adobe Reader 7.0.8
Advanced Audio FX Engine
Advanced Video FX Engine
Dell Webcam Center
Dell Webcam Manager
Laptop Integrated Webcam Driver
Conexant HDA D330 MDC V.92 Modem
Dell System Customization Wizard
QuickSet (Dell Inc)

These are what I would (probably, pending a little investigation,) delete:
Dell Datasafe Online
Games, Music & Photos Launcher (Dell Inc)
Product Documentation Launcher (Dell Inc)
Dell Support Center
DellSupport
Modem Diagnostic Tool (Dell)
OutlookAddinSetup (CyberLink)
Live! Cam Avatar Creator (Creative)
Live! Cam Avatar v1.0 (Creative)
Digital Line Detect (BVRP Software, Inc)
NetWaiting (BVRP Software, Inc)

I think it would be good for someone to break down each a little betetr as to the pros and cons of keeping/deleting

 

I personally would keep a few of those things you have on the list...

Java(TM) SE Runtime Environment 6 (maybe get a more up to date one)
MediaDirect (Dell)
Broadcam Management Programs
Dell Touchpad (this is useful for disabling touchpad etc)
Adobe Flash Player 9 ActiveX
Adobe Reader 7.0.8
Conexant HDA D330 MDC V.92 Modem
Dell Webcam Center
Dell Webcam Manager
Laptop Integrated Webcam Driver

 

Haha... I guess we had the same idea... maybe a mixture of both of these lists depending on your needs

 

Thanks a lot guys, I really appreciate it.

Also, what's the best way to get rid of running processes? I have over 50 right now.

And I probably need some kind of registry cleaner as well, right?

 

Yeah, pretty much! Except you had him deleting Microsoft Office 2007 (didnt he have to pay for that? It costs about $135)

I have no idea what
Advanced Audio FX Engine
Advanced Video FX Engine
.. are for.

And I think MSXML is part of Microsoft's XML core services, a major feature of Explorer

Other than that, we made the same choices

Oh, Quickset might not be that useful, I dont know. It lets you choose various configurations for your brightness, power, timeout settings, etc. Like plugged in, vs battery operation settings. Probably not all that helpful, but I cant imagine it takes up any processor cycles.

 

I glanced really quickly and just assumed he got the free crappy version of Office that doesn't even have Word or whatever. Your updated list looks pretty good though. Only things are you may want to see if they have newer versions of adobe/java available on the internet.

 

A good registry cleaner is Ccleaner. Download from filehippo.com. I've used it numerous times before and it is spyware, adware, trojan, worm, etc. FREE (i.e. has none of those, so it's ok to download).

WORD OF CAUTION WITH ANY REGISTRY CLEANING PROGRAM: USE AT YOUR OWN RISK AND MAKE SURE YOU KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DELETING. IF IN DOUBT, LEAVE IT.

That's my 2 cents...

 

Funnily enough, "Do no evil" Google offers its bloatware to OEMs.

 

Do I really need "MediaDirect"? Will deleting it negatively affect any othe programs that I DO need.

Anyone know?

 

That's the DVD playing/ music playing OS.

 

Adobe Reader 8 is current.

 

LOL. I think Google should downgrade their slogan to "Don't be as evil."

Do people recommend removing bloatware rather than reformatting? I like the idea of a clean sweep but would be very nervous about throwing out the baby with the bathwater by doing so.

 

Is Dell touchpad really that important? I have a USB mouse hooked up, and I don't plan on using my touchpad at all. If I delete it will the touchpad still work? Or will I just not be able to change settings.

 

none of them are big or resource hogs in any kind of way, none of them should have any impact on performance whether you remove them or not.

 

... just do a clean install folks....

 

I'd remove these (if you don't plan on using and/or paying for them):

Microsoft Office Home and Student 2007 (takes up hundreds of megs of memory, doesn't include Outlook, and won't work after 60 days unless you pay $159 for it!!!)

Dell Datasafe Online (I still can't get the POS to show my files online!)
Dell System Customization Wizard (useless)
Games, Music & Photos Launcher (Dell Inc)
Product Documentation Launcher (Dell Inc)
DellSupport
MediaDirect (Dell)
Modem Diagnostic Tool (Dell)
OutlookAddinSetup (CyberLink) (WHAT??? They give you a version of Office that doesn't INCLUDE Outlook!!!!)

Live! Cam Avatar Creator (Creative)
Live! Cam Avatar v1.0 (Creative)
Digital Line Detect (BVRP Software, Inc)
NetWaiting (BVRP Software, Inc)
Adobe Flash Player 9 ActiveX
Advanced Audio FX Engine
Advanced Video FX Engine
URL Assistant

DO NOT delete your touchpad software! What happens if you mouse dies, battery goes, driver goes bad, etc.?

 

That won't do any good if you don't have a clean copy of Vista.

 

If you intend to view flash videos online you don't want to unistall Adobe Flash Player either. I'd uninstall the Dell software other than Media Direct.
I personally enjoy watching a DVD without booting the system up. Unistall Office unless you paid for it. Don't uninstall something if you don't know what you're taking out. You might not want to uninstall the video camera software if you like it. URL assistant can safely go, but what if you need the Audio FX for better sound? Take it in baby steps and if you're satisfied with the speed of your laptop, no need to jump on the clean install bandwagon.

 

Agreed; I thought I saw another version of Flash on the list, but it turned out to be java (I'm getting senile, I guess). Thanks for catching that.

 

Its not VERY important... but yeah. You can't configure any settings for your touchpad. As in.. when you can't set it to autodeactivate whenever you plug in an external mouse. So i'd say its definitely handy

 

Hmm so i formatted without saving the touchpad manager thing.. is there any way to get this thing back or should i just go back to the factory settings?

 

I think there is a driver on support.dell.com for the touchpad. As for the Advanced audio and video FX, and Live! applications, those are for the webcam so you can entertain yourself with silly effects.

 

Hello,

I'm experiencing numerous errors and bugs with my new Vista Dell 1720, and I'd like to do a re-installation of Vista, but will I lose every single bloatware that was installed by default when I received my laptop, like the bloatware people talked about in this thread? First, is it true you automatically lose all the bloatware and of course the programs you installed when you re-install the OS? Can I choose not to lose everything during the Vista re-installation process?

Thanks for your help.

 

Just resore to factory dell settings at boot up.... select that and it will reinstall orginal config...unless you already formatted that is..otherwise that option is gone once you clean her out...cheers!!!

 

if you are just receiving your laptop and do not have any thing of your own on it and just what dell gave you when you purchased your system, then what are the downsides of doing a clean install?

 

Downsides - they bundle some software that I think beginner users would appreciate, such as this cool "Dell Support" program that tries to help keep all of your drivers patched. Dell wallpapers... and obviously the bloatware which is primarily there so Dell can make some money, but again - some people like it so the "downside" is that you don't have the software preinstalled anymore.

I think it all comes on CDs anyway though, so it's really just a matter of convience. 4 hours is a big project for many people.

 

hello,
i have a question.
would advanced video fx engine interfere with video playing?
i feel the video i played on 1520 is cloudy and bluish compared to playing the same file on my desktop

 

This is a great guide as to what services/processes are necessary and not. Despite the url name the site is work-safe. Just read EVERYTHING CAREFULLY and if you're not sure about something DON"T DO IT unless you like to take risks.

http://www.blackviper.com/WinVista/servicecfg.htm