We’ve previously discussed the many types of computer “wares” such as spyware, malware, nagware and vapourware. In recent times we’ve seen the rise of a new type of “ware”: Trialware

Trialware is free trial software included with a new system. Usually the software companies pay to have it supplied on new computers. The computer manufacturers, particularly the laptop vendors, love this idea so much they've started overloading their computers.

We're often finding new computers loaded down so badly that they take ages to start. Walt Mossberg of the Wall Street Journal found his new Sony Vaio was six times slower than his Mac due to this stuff.

Trialware that bogs down your computer is like to a new car being supplied with an advertising covered trailer welded to it. It makes parking impossible and ruins your economy yet the dealer boasts about the great ‘free deal” you just got.

Obviously customers hate it and the computer press has labelled it “crapware”. The manufacturers conter that it means cheaper computers, as Micheal Dell pointed out earlier this year.

Now it appears that Dell are finding the backlash is so great that the new range of Dell Vostro business computers are trialware free. An interesting observation made at the product launch was that trialware actually increased Dell’s support costs as customers struggle with removing the rubbish.

As Dell have shown, it is possible to buy a trialware free computer. It means shopping around and asking some very pointed questions. It’s clear too that computers aimed at the mass market and sold through computer superstores get more garbage than others.

If you can’t get a trialware free one, then we recommend uninstalling all the trial software before connecting the computer to the internet. A tool to automate this for you is the PC Decrapifier. We’d recommend running this before you install any programs of your own.

The Dell move is the first death knell to trialware. Now one supplier has kicked this silly habit the others will too. Until then, choose a machine with the least possible amount of trial ware and resign yourself to spending time uninstalling the rubbish.