Not Including Reinstallation CD’s
Nov 5th, 2006 by Peter
OK first off it’s 3:56 am EST and I can’t sleep. I am becoming addicted to this and it’s scaring me. OK on to the meat of the topic. What’s up with computer companies not including re-installation CD’s anymore?
Seriously… is the extra $4-$5 really making that much of a difference? TRUE a few years ago I may have been here ranting about them sending too many CD’s… including AOL software which I use to use as drink coasters because I had hundreds kicking around. Talk about going from one extreme to the next!
When I first heard that no reinstallation CD’s were included I immediately flipped. Come on folks get real. Why should I have to take up to an hour of my day on my new PC and burn them myself with some stupid “wizard”??? Include the CD’s right from the get go…
I hear Dell is charging $10 if you want them included. WOW now here’s a thought… Imagine going to a restaurant and paying if you want to use silverware… OK maybe that’s going a little too far but I think you get my point. I Bought the dang software with the PC…. where’s my flippin’ disks!!!!
I think what bothers me most about this new cost saver for computer companies is when I have to provide tech support for someone. Think about it, if there is a major problem with Windows, there is a good chance you might end up having to reinstall the entire thing. I know, the real tech heads out there will tell me that is a cop out, but I beg to differ. Sometimes you are better off with a clean slate and just the programs they need. Typically you fix not only the problem at hand, but you remove the spyware they didn’t know was there and you get rid of the registry bloat that is sure to be there if the computer is any more than 6 months old.
Without their installation CDs, you are in a world of hurt trying to track down their legal installation files that match the activation code on that sticker somewhere on the machine. Now, activation codes…that’s another topic sure to appear on the rant list sometime in the near future!!