Removing old trial programs

Hi Bob,

Thanks for your help, when using the jv16 tools I was able to remove programs but sometimes there are still remaining parts left, when doing file search they show files and folders of programs I have removed. For example C:\Windows\All Users\Documents\Softwrap there is a folder that should have been removed. Can I just delete these folders and files that show up in the search. or is there some type of software out that would completly remove them even safely even if its not freeware

Let's propose that an application cleaner should remove the users files created with the app?

Not a good idea and why no tool I've seen does such.

Bob

How about installing a FREE application call InstallWatch Pro that monitors all changes to files, registry, etc. for each software installation. Therefore, you can easily look to see what files/keys have been added, changed, removed.

http://www.epsilonsquared.com/

toddvan

When ever you install any program it inserts files into the system registry, sure you can delete programs by using their uninstall file or by going to add/remove programs. But this will not get rid of those sys reg files. you need a program like Registry Mechanic or RegSupreme to delete these files. Then you will have rmoved ALL or the traces of the program.

lol....easy as that people....

sure,there are several registry utilities available which remove registry entries at the time of uninstal. but what about removal of several other files -mostly hidden or sys/ini/dll etc left behind uncleared in various directories? these become junk after removal of original programme. these are not detected/removed by any utilities atleast known to me

I wonder if you were looking for something to "get around" the trial limits and reactivate it. If so, that question will cause a discussion to find a fast reply then a lock on the entire discussion.

Bob

I know of no software to mass remove as you are requesting. Since you have not furnished your operating system, I can only suggest to go to Add/Remove programs if using XP or "Programs and Features" in Vista. There you can uninstall them individually. If there are left over remnants in the program folder these can be manually deleted. There seems no other way to removed old and obsolete programs. Sounds like the computer needs a good house cleaning.

Sorry but there are no miracle solutions.

Glenn

no I'm looking for s program that will search thru the registry entries and software folders and sniffing its expiration period has ceased as the expiration date and the present date are different the expiration being older the actual current date for trying to remove or move the software to another hold fo;der not interested in workarounds just an easy way to get rid of old trial programs or buy them.hlding that many expired useless software wastes space and slows down performance as well
there are programs that can sniff everything else out so whay not trial programs expiration dates as many of those are set in the registry anyway

Soneone should easily make a program that can sniff out expiration dates easily enough as they;re usiualy embedded in the programs exe or dll file or in the syatem registrty
old shareware was dumb and could be defeated by turning back the date and time but now that developers have eliminated that option it writes a time track somewhere like the registry that it can know when the computer was actually used so think that would be an easy way to create an uninstaller that will be able to seek those out and tell the user what programs are now expired so you can remove them easily as individual files or the whole group

Here's why. There is no standard for Windows software to put in a known place that it will expire by date. Since that would be specific to each software and each version of said software not to mention each software company would have to share where they store it I'm going to write...

"It will never happen."

I hope this explains the situation clearly for you.
Bob

there has to be an offifical time record somewhere as the software isn;t contiunally running monitoring the date and time as it would lose information everytime the system reset or rebooted it counts records its installation time and relys on the Windows timekeeping record to determine how much time has elapsed for it to decide it;s expiration also if you reset the clock ahead then that time will be written into the record so if you had 30 day evaluation period and you installed the software 3 days ago and changed the date to past 3o days ahead the result would mean the expiration date had already past while in reality no time has passed I learned that the hard way as I set it ahead and my recent trialware was expired after 72 hours
it seeks Windows system official time recording then thus making it possible to compare the installation date with the actual last recorded date since the Windows OS is always running regardless and not relyimg on the software to write its oen enty into the record

That's Dead On Arrival as the PC's time setting is often wrong. I can't count the number of machines that were off by a year or more so between the fact that Windows does not record an install time and this, the entire concept erupts in flames and ends as a smoldering disaster.

Good idea but we're still without any solution as this OS does not enforce any rule that applications reveal themselves as to the registry keys they created, when or where files are and so on.

I wonder if you remember the entire history from DOS to Windows 3.11 to the first concept of add/remove software (Windows 95) and up to today as it would be necessary for you to see how perverse the issue is and why most ideas have not worked.

Bob