Many OEMs like to install some starter software when they distribute a new PC.

Well it looks like Microsoft is doing away with their Works edition and allowing system builders the ability to install Office Starter 2010.

This new version will come with all the bits installed to allow upgrade to the standard home, business and student versions of office.

I really hate these OEM suck installs … often the distributor hides a partition on your main drive with the system restore information in an encrypted bin. If you need to restore your computer you pop in a Key CDR that unlocks and copies over the operating system or other software in a block…

They think distributing a dvd with everything on it is too expensive but then the customer is screwed if they want to install a new drive and get rid of the crappy small and slow OEM drive that came with the system…

The ability to install office in Adware version is no treat.

Honestly I have moved away from office and now use OpenOffice or other freeware open source tools to do most of my work.

The fact is most people can live with a word processor that has a decent spell check and only need a spread sheet at tax time or to record expenses.

But office isn’t the only software I have got rid of… for almost two years now I have been using GIMP instead of Photoshop and I was an avid user of PS since its 2x version.

Those few little bells and whistles can be worked around and you are not dealing with a company that over charges users or cow-orkers that feel warezing software is a game.