不久前，我们发表了一篇关于下载和安装免费软件时需要注意的风险的文章。虽然我们知道执行快速（或典型）应用程序安装会造成多大的破坏，但没有仔细阅读您将要安装的内容，我们想要的是获得一些数字，并进行一些测试以评估全部影响。我们决定进行一些测试，以下是我们得到的结果：如果您选择快速（或典型）桌面应用程序(desktop app)安装，而不了解您的身份，您会以切实的方式破坏系统性能和计算体验即将安装：
我们安装的测试程序和桌面应用程序(desktop apps)
我们拿起我们的测试笔记本电脑(test laptop)并在其上安装了最新更新的Windows 10 。然后我们安装了Bootracer ，以测量(Bootracer)操作系统(operating system)启动、测试之前和完成之后所需的平均时间。这让我们很好地了解了快速应用程序安装对典型计算机启动时间的不利影响。(boot time)
然后，我们总共选择了 34 个免费和流行的桌面应用程序(desktop apps)进行下载，每个应用程序都代表所提供的功能类型。为了选择应用程序，我们检查了Softpedia、Download.com和Ninite，以查看每个类别中最受欢迎的应用程序。我们安装了以下流行的应用程序：Firefox、Google Chrome、Opera、Thunderbird、IncrediMail、Winamp、jetAudio Basic、AIMP、RealPlayer、KMPlayer、VLC Media Player、BS。播放器(Player), IrfanView , Adobe Photoshop Album SE , Adobe Acrobat Reader DC , LibreOffice , OpenOffice , Foxit Reader , AVG Antivirus Free , Avast Free Antivirus , Malwarebytes , uTorrent, BitTorrent , StrongDC++ , Dropbox , Google Backup and Sync , 7 Zip , PeaZip , Daemon Tools Lite , Virtual CloneDrive , CCleaner , Advanced SystemCare Free , CDBurnerXP,团队查看器(TeamViewer)。它们都很受欢迎，大多数读者都应该熟悉。
这些应用程序是从他们的官方网站或我们被重定向到的网站下载的：Download.com、SourceForge等。我们只使用了稳定版本，没有安装任何 beta 版本。
我们使用它们的默认选择一一安装应用程序，这通常意味着快速、标准(Quick, Standard)、快速( Express )或典型(Typical)安装。当我们被要求安装捆绑的附加软件时，我们接受了所有对话，因为它们是由每个应用程序作为推荐给用户的东西呈现的。
在评估每个应用程序安装的不需要的东西时，我们并不认为桌面快捷方式(desktop shortcut)是不需要的。此外，应用程序需要其他应用程序才能正常运行，例如Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributables、.NET Framework或驱动程序，我们认为它们是合法的先决条件，我们不将它们视为“不需要的软件”在您将要看到的表格中。
测试结果总结
我们将所有测试结果集中在一个电子表格中，您可以在下面查看：
如果它没有在您的网络浏览器中正确加载，您可以从我们的(web browser)OneDrive下载电子表格。现在让我们分解表格并分析结果：
1.主流网络浏览器、音频媒体播放器、文件压缩(file compression)工具最安全
最安全的应用程序类别可能是Web 浏览器、音频媒体播放器(Web browsers, Audio media players)和压缩工具(Compression tools)。从下表中可以看出，他们没有安装任何您可能不想在系统上安装的东西。谷歌浏览器(Google Chrome)、火狐(Firefox)、Opera默认安装干净，没有捆绑任何不需要的项目，只要你从官方渠道或信誉良好的下载位置下载即可。
Winamp、jetAudio Basic、AIMP等音频播放器以及7 Zip或PeaZip等存档器也是如此。
2. 许多视频媒体播放器，还有一些虚拟驱动器模拟器都是邪恶的
在我们安装的所有应用程序中，我们发现我们尝试过的两个视频媒体播放器是最差的。RealPlayer和KMPlayer不仅将自己设置为在Windows 启动(Windows startup)时加载，而且还安装了浏览器插件和其他不需要的软件。例如，RealPlayer安装了Norton Security的 30 天(Norton Security)试用版(trial version)，而KMPlayer更进一步，安装的不是一个，而是两个额外的应用程序：Avast Free Antivirus和ByteFence。后者，尽管它标榜自己是反恶意软件(antimalware software), 也被称为潜在有害程序，因为它与其他合法软件捆绑在一起的分发策略。RealPlayer和KMPlayer 的(KMPlayer's)默认安装会导致启动时间变慢、操作系统(operating system)变慢和网页浏览体验(browsing experience)变慢。
我们在我们测试的驱动器模拟器之一中目睹了类似的不良行为：Daemon Tools Lite。它的典型安装意味着我们还安装了不是一个，而是两个不需要的应用程序：一个Booking.com的应用程序和一个名为WarThunder的游戏。这两个应用程序如何有用并推荐给想要驱动模拟器(drive emulator)的用户，这是我们无法理解的。
3. 大多数办公应用程序和电子邮件客户端都有安全安装
如果您使用流行的电子邮件客户端，例如Thunderbird或Incredimail，则使用它们的默认安装(default installation)选项是安全的。对于OpenOffice(OpenOffice)或LibreOffice等(LibreOffice)开源办公(source office)应用程序也是如此。其中一些应用程序可以将自身设置为在Windows 启动时加载(Windows startup)(Incredimail)，而一些应用程序可以安装附加组件(Adobe Acrobat Reader DC)。但是，我们不认为这些行为是不受欢迎的行为，因为它们的意图是好的。
另一方面，OpenOffice是唯一将其安装文件留在桌面文件夹中的应用程序，需要用户手动删除它们。
4.安全软件(Security software)减慢Windows 启动(Windows startup)和浏览体验(browsing experience)
AVG Antivirus Free和Avast Free Antivirus将自己设置为在Windows 启动(Windows startup)时加载。与其他应用程序不同，我们不认为这是不需要的行为。需要获得针对病毒和恶意软件的所需保护。此外，他们安装了浏览器插件，以便他们可以扫描互联网流量(internet traffic)。同样(Again)，我们不认为这是不受欢迎的行为，因为它旨在保护您免受在线危险。如果您想要一些基本的安全性，那么您必须对这些小负面因素感到满意。
结论：快速安装应用程序会导致启动时间过长和其他烦恼
看看这个实验的统计数据，我们可以得出几个结论：
- 我们测试的 34 个应用程序中有 27 个安装了我们预期安装的东西。这是经过测试的应用程序的 79%。考虑到我们之前使用免费应用程序的经验，我们认为这比几年前有所改进。
- 41%（34 个中的 14 个）已安装的应用程序设置为在Windows 启动(Windows startup)时运行，即使在大多数情况下，用户在每次Windows 启动(Windows startup)时都不需要提供所提供的服务。此规则的唯一例外是防病毒产品。结果是更长的启动时间并增加了每次登录的用户烦恼。(user annoyance)所有应用程序在我们系统最初的 22 秒启动时间中总共增加了 35 秒。从长远来看，这使得启动过程慢了 159%。为了增加烦恼，在每次启动时，我们都会受到越来越多的打开窗口和快捷方式的欢迎。这一切都造成了糟糕的计算体验。
- 我们测试的 34 个应用程序中有 4 个在我们的测试计算机(test computer)上安装了额外的不需要的软件。这是一个相当低的数字，仅占我们测试的应用程序总数的 12% 左右。不过，这四款应用中，有两款是视频媒体播放器，一款是驱动模拟器(drive emulator)，一款是系统优化应用(system optimisation app)。在我们看来，很明显这三类应用程序具有最危险的默认安装。此外，与其他安装烦恼相比，您获得的其他不需要的软件通常对您的 PC 的速度和可靠性更有害。(speed and reliability)
- 开源软件(Open-source software)的表现往往比其他类型的自由软件好得多。我们测试的开源软件没有捆绑任何我们不想要的东西，或者对它的正常运行不重要的东西。
- 从好的方面来说，现代应用程序似乎不再尝试安装不需要的工具栏（尽管仍然存在例外，例如Norton的工具栏），或更改您的默认搜索引擎(default search engine)，就像过去许多人所做的那样。
您还在进行快速/典型的应用程序安装吗？
看到一些免费桌面应用程序如何尝试在您的(desktop apps try)Windows 计算机(Windows computer)上进行不需要的系统更改或安装其他不需要的应用程序后，我们很想知道您对此主题的看法。此分析是否(Did)说服(analysis convince)您停止快速安装应用程序？您是否打算在 Windows PC 上安装应用程序之前切换到自定义安装并仔细阅读所有内容？随时(Feel)在评论部分分享您的想法和意见。
Analysis: Quick desktop app installations ruin computer performance!
A while back, we published an article about risks to watch for when downloading and inѕtalling free ѕoftware. While we had an idea of how damaging it can be to рerform quick (or typical) application installations, without carefully reading what you arе about to install, what wе wanted was to havе some numbers, and do somе testing to evaluate the fυll impact. We decided to run a few tests and here are the results we got: tangible ways in which you ruin both the рerformance of your system and your сomputing experience if you сhoose to make quick (or typical) desktop app installations, without reading what you are about to install:
The testing procedure and the desktop apps we installed
We took our test laptop and installed Windows 10 on it with the latest updates. Then we installed Bootracer, to measure the average time needed for the operating system to boot, before our tests, and after they were done. This gave us a good picture of the adverse effect quick app installations have on the boot time of a typical computer.
Then, we selected a total of 34 free and popular desktop apps to download, each representative for the type of functionality offered. To choose the applications, we checked Softpedia, Download.com, and Ninite, to see the most popular applications for each category. We installed the following popular apps: Firefox, Google Chrome, Opera, Thunderbird, IncrediMail, Winamp, jetAudio Basic, AIMP, RealPlayer, KMPlayer, VLC Media Player, BS. Player, IrfanView, Adobe Photoshop Album SE, Adobe Acrobat Reader DC, LibreOffice, OpenOffice, Foxit Reader, AVG Antivirus Free, Avast Free Antivirus, Malwarebytes, uTorrent, BitTorrent, StrongDC++, Dropbox, Google Backup and Sync, 7 Zip, PeaZip, Daemon Tools Lite, Virtual CloneDrive, CCleaner, Advanced SystemCare Free, CDBurnerXP, TeamViewer. They are all very popular and should be familiar to most readers.
The applications were downloaded from their official websites or from the sites where we were redirected to: Download.com, SourceForge, etc. We used only stable releases, and we did not install any beta versions.
We installed the applications one by one, using their default selections which usually meant Quick, Standard, Express or Typical installations. When we were asked to install the additional software that was bundled, we accepted all the dialogues, as they were presented by each application as something recommended to the user.
When evaluating the unwanted things installed by each application, we did not consider a desktop shortcut as being unwanted. Also, other applications that were required by an application so that it could function without problems, such as Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributables, .NET Framework or drivers, we considered them to be legitimate prerequisites, and we did not count them as "unwanted software" in the tables you are about to see.
The summary of tests results
We centralized all the tests results in a spreadsheet that you can check below:
If it doesn't load correctly in your web browser, you can download the spreadsheet from our OneDrive. Now let's break down the table and analyze the results:
1. Major web browsers, audio media players, and file compression tools are the safest
Probably the safest categories of applications are Web browsers, Audio media players, and Compression tools. As you can see from the following table, they did not install anything you might not want to have on your system. Google Chrome, Firefox, and Opera have clean default installations, without any unwanted items bundled, as long as you download them from official channels or download locations with a good reputation.
The same is true about audio players such as Winamp, jetAudio Basic, AIMP, and also about archivers like 7 Zip or PeaZip.
2. Many video media players, but also some virtual drive emulators are plain evil
Out of all the applications we installed, we found out that two video media players we tried, were the worst. RealPlayer and KMPlayer not only set themselves to load on the Windows startup, but they also installed browser add-ons and other unwanted software. RealPlayer, for instance, installs a 30-day trial version of Norton Security, while KMPlayer goes even further and installs not one, but two additional apps: Avast Free Antivirus and ByteFence. The latter, although it advertises itself as antimalware software, is also known as a potentially unwanted program because of its distribution tactics of being bundled with other legitimate software. RealPlayer and KMPlayer's default installations lead to slower boot times, a slower operating system, and a slower web browsing experience.
We have witnessed similar bad behavior in one of the drive emulators that we tested: Daemon Tools Lite. Its typical installation meant that we also installed not one, but two unwanted apps: an app of Booking.com and a game called WarThunder. How could these two applications be useful and recommended to users who want a drive emulator, is beyond our understanding.
3. Most office applications and e-mail clients have safe installations
If you use popular email clients such as Thunderbird or Incredimail, going through with their default installation options is safe. That is also true about open source office applications such as OpenOffice or LibreOffice. Some of these apps can set themselves to load at Windows startup (Incredimail), and some can install add-ons (Adobe Acrobat Reader DC). However, we do not consider these as unwanted behavior, as they are well intended.
On the other hand, OpenOffice was the only application that left its installation files in a folder on the desktop, requiring the user to delete them manually.
4. Security software slows down the Windows startup and the browsing experience
AVG Antivirus Free and Avast Free Antivirus set themselves to load at Windows startup. Unlike with other applications, we do not consider this to be unwanted behavior. It is needed to receive the required protection against viruses and malware. Also, they install browser add-ons, so that they can scan internet traffic. Again, we do not consider this to be unwanted behavior, as it is meant to protect you from online dangers. If you want some basic security, you must be OK with these minor negatives.
Conclusion: quick app installations can lead to long startup times and other annoyances
Looking at the statistics resulting from this experiment, we can draw several conclusions:
- 27 out of the 34 applications we tested installed the things we expected to have installed. That is 79% of the applications that were tested. Considering our previous experience with free apps, we consider this an improvement than what was happening a few years ago.
- 41% (14 out of 34) of installed applications set themselves to run at the Windows startup even though, in most cases, the service being offered is not required by the user at each Windows startup. The only exception to this rule is antivirus products. The result is longer boot times and added user annoyance with each login. All the applications added a total of 35 seconds to our system's initial 22 seconds spent booting. To put things in perspective, this makes for a boot procedure that is slower by 159%. To contribute to the annoyance, at each startup we were also welcomed by an increased number of open windows and shortcuts. It all makes for a terrible computing experience.
- 4 out of the 34 applications we tested, installed additional unwanted software on our test computer. That is a rather low number, only about 12% of the total number of applications we tested. However, out of these four apps, two are video media players, one is a drive emulator, and one is a system optimisation app. In our opinion, it is clear that these three categories of applications have the most dangerous default installations. Also, the additional unwanted software you get is usually more harmful to your PC's speed and reliability than other installation annoyances.
- Open-source software tends to behave much better than other types of free software. The open-source software we tested did not bundle anything we would not want, or that was not critical to its proper operation.
- On the good side of things, it looks like modern applications no longer try to install unwanted toolbars (although exceptions still exist, such as Norton's toolbar), or change your default search engine, as many used to do in the past.
Do you still make quick/typical app installations?
Having seen how some free desktop apps try to make unwanted system changes or install additional unwanted apps on your Windows computer, we are curious to know your opinion on this subject. Did this analysis convince you to stop making quick app installations? Do you plan to switch to custom installations and read everything carefully before installing apps on your Windows PC? Feel free to share your thoughts and opinions in the comments section.
