Apple Software Push Installs Unnecessary Software

Terry Olaes

Terry Olaes

I Used to be the [H] News Guy
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Blogger Ed Bott has posted an item about Apple’s Software Updater pushing unwanted software out to the public. The latest irritation was a required update for the iPhone Configuration Utility, even though Bott has never plugged any Apple-branded hardware into that particular system.

Apple has been pulling sneaky stunts like this for a long time. As I wrote last year, “Once again, Apple is using its automatic update process to deliver massive amounts of new software to users… And it’s delivering this massive payload without even a pretense of proper disclosure and without asking consent from its users.”
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The updater installs with the Bootcamp drivers... yawn... Don't check the boxes.

Move along.
 
Nobody bitches when programs include toolbars for IE/Firefox that install automatically. No one writes articles about that.

Seriously, this is common practice in technology today, authors should at least admit that Apple is by no means the only (or the worst) offender...
 
The real problem is that the apple updater doesn't provide a "No and don't ever offer me this again" option. That alone pushed me to remove all the apple software from my PCs that I could* over a year and a half ago and is serving as a guarantee that I'll never use and iService or buy an iProduct that needs to interface with my hardware.

* On one of my PC's the iUninstallers decided my admin accounts weren't and refused to let me uninstall anything.
 
budafied said:
Nobody bitches when programs include toolbars for IE/Firefox that install automatically. No one writes articles about that.

Seriously, this is common practice in technology today, authors should at least admit that Apple is by no means the only (or the worst) offender...
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That is because as mentioned above, Apple is the only one that does not give you a choice in the matter. All the other software I install asks me first if I want to install whatever crap search bar they are pushing and give me the chance to say no.
 
Once again.. this is pure bull shit.. They make it sound like it just hits you and you're stuck. It saks you if you want to download, what parts (if any)m or to simply cancel. At no point does it try to be sneaky.. you simply click a button for your choice. If that's subversive or underhanded to you... then you REALLY need to STFU, put doen the keyboard, and go outside and develop some social skills.
 
It defaults to checked and things completely unrelated to what you are installing, that and you can't tell it to go away. That is the issue.
 
budafied said:
Nobody bitches when programs include toolbars for IE/Firefox that install automatically. No one writes articles about that.

Seriously, this is common practice in technology today, authors should at least admit that Apple is by no means the only (or the worst) offender...
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except the fact that MS got sued and paid like 1000000 billion $$ to the EU for IE being auto installed on XP, Vista and W7

yeah no one makes a big deal when MS does it....... retard!
 
Nobody bitches when programs include toolbars for IE/Firefox that install automatically. No one writes articles about that.
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Software updaters should only update the software on the computer, once they start installing extras and crap like that, thats when a large portion of people turn the updater off, which would typically result in a less secure/reliable system.
 
The point is, it's not just Apple who attempts to install extra crap onto your computer. Programs for Windows and OS X do this.

What's the problem here?
 
I have an iphone, and this updater popped up a few days ago, I clicked OK without looking at it, and got safari installed. :rolleyes: Anyways I uninstalled it and will now be making extra sure to read the updater before selecting OK.
 
DanNeely said:
The real problem is that the apple updater doesn't provide a "No and don't ever offer me this again" option. .
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yes it does. you check the items you never want to be asked about again, click tools click ignore selected updates. It has always been lke this.
 
The only thing I use is Apple Quicktime.. which seems to update once every few months.. Unfortunately the updater pops up almost every fucking day saying there is an "update" which is basically an ad trying to get me to install Safari, iPhone utilities and iTunes-- which is funny since I have it set to "update monthly" in preferences.
 
I can't stand the apple updater software. All I want is iTunes to sync to ipod. I don't want quicktime but I understand it's a requirement so that's fine. But I don't want Safari, I don't want some iphone configuration program that I didn't have an option to opt out of, don't want mobileme, bounjour, or any other shit being forced upon me without permission.

Fucking Apple. At least when other programs include toolbars these days I can tell it not to install.
 
leezard said:
yes it does. you check the items you never want to be asked about again, click tools click ignore selected updates. It has always been lke this.
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Yeah, except it doesn't work. At least not on any of the many windows machines I have quitcktime installed on.

The closest result to "no, and don't ever ask me again" that stuck was safari after the internet ripped apple a new one for being underhanded. I'm pretty sure that one had nothing to do with my preferences.

Other than that, every other thing it offers, I have to refuse EVERY SINGLE TIME, despite having told it otherwise.
 
Uninstall Apple Software Update. Problem solved. All of their other stuff works fine without it.
 
The issue I have is that I never plugged an i-phone or an i-pod in my computer and I get the recurring windows update pop up to update the devices, I dont even own an apple device and I dont even have itunes installed. I can only figure it came with the quick time thing. Very annoying. So i uninstalled the apple update software that I never asked to have. I think that is the issue here.
 
I like apple products but i disliked the bloated and slow software they had ever since the ipod came out.. and now this ?
 
rgraze911 said:
The issue I have is that I never plugged an i-phone or an i-pod in my computer and I get the recurring windows update pop up to update the devices, I dont even own an apple device and I dont even have itunes installed. I can only figure it came with the quick time thing. Very annoying. So i uninstalled the apple update software that I never asked to have. I think that is the issue here.
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With any install of Apple software, you're given a choice of weather to install Apple Update or not. Uncheck the box and you'll be fine. I recently installed Quicktime so that I can import video frames as layers into Photoshop, and everything is fine. I simply unchecked the "Install Apple Update" box. I'm also having a hard time believing that Windows Update is offering updates for hardware you've never even attached to your computer, iPhone or otherwise. Let me get this straight: you're saying that Windows Update is popping up saying it has updates for an iPhone, even though you don't have one? I call BS - I doubt MS would even offer updates to an iPhone. That's something you probably have to do through Apple or your wireless carrier when they release firmware updates for the iPhone.
 
Its own fault if you cannot read to uncheck the boxes for unwanted installs. Reading is fundamental.
 
stop!theradio said:
With any install of Apple software, you're given a choice of weather to install Apple Update or not. Uncheck the box and you'll be fine. I recently installed Quicktime so that I can import video frames as layers into Photoshop, and everything is fine. I simply unchecked the "Install Apple Update" box. I'm also having a hard time believing that Windows Update is offering updates for hardware you've never even attached to your computer, iPhone or otherwise. Let me get this straight: you're saying that Windows Update is popping up saying it has updates for an iPhone, even though you don't have one? I call BS - I doubt MS would even offer updates to an iPhone. That's something you probably have to do through Apple or your wireless carrier when they release firmware updates for the iPhone.
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Actually, this is normal. If a device driver is installed into Windows, and the vender has provided MS with an updated driver, WU can provie that update for you when you do a "Custom" mode in Windows Update.
 
UrielDagda said:
The only thing I use is Apple Quicktime.. which seems to update once every few months.. Unfortunately the updater pops up almost every fucking day saying there is an "update" which is basically an ad trying to get me to install Safari, iPhone utilities and iTunes-- which is funny since I have it set to "update monthly" in preferences.
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Quicktime Alternative is your friend.
 
darkpaw said:
It defaults to checked and things completely unrelated to what you are installing, that and you can't tell it to go away. That is the issue.
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This ^

Once again Apple taking a shit on their customers and people want to give them a pass on it. They're pushing worthless software to the consumer which creates bloat. I have an iPhone 3G so I of course will end up seeing this the next time I run the update tool since I have to use that piece of shit software known as iTunes.

Damn thing installs some type of Apache on my computer without my consent? Horseshit. Yet, some people here say "move along." I say screw that! That's opening a security hole in my computer and an invasion of my privacy by installing unwanted and unneeded software.
 
I don't think it's maliciousness. I really think it's just lazy programming.

Spend time writing a checker utility to see if the customer needs a specific update, or just push the update to everyone. From a purely monetary standpoint, the second options is much cheaper.
 
stop!theradio said:
With any install of Apple software, you're given a choice of weather to install Apple Update or not. Uncheck the box and you'll be fine. I recently installed Quicktime so that I can import video frames as layers into Photoshop, and everything is fine. I simply unchecked the "Install Apple Update" box. I'm also having a hard time believing that Windows Update is offering updates for hardware you've never even attached to your computer, iPhone or otherwise. Let me get this straight: you're saying that Windows Update is popping up saying it has updates for an iPhone, even though you don't have one? I call BS - I doubt MS would even offer updates to an iPhone. That's something you probably have to do through Apple or your wireless carrier when they release firmware updates for the iPhone.
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I was saying the apple software update was trying to push me to install the iphone utility itunes etc. not windows. I also must have missed the part where I could check a box not to install the update software. Funny thing tho I installed QT months ago and I'm just recently getting the annoying apple pop up.
 
The main problem with these software updates and pushes of software from Apple is that the "average" person -- read: not most of us who browse [H] or are technologically inclined, but a normal person, your mom, your sister, your console-playing brother, your girlfriend, etc. -- will simply click OK or INSTALL without looking at what they are actually installing. If the defaults was not that every optional piece of software is checked, then people would not be crying foul when they eventually find this unintentionally installed software running on their computer, bogging them down, annoying them with popups for updates, and so on.

So -- the author is justified because and Apple should make this "crap" (yes much of it is "crap") opt-in, instead of opt-out.
 
So any bitching at Sun? Because every time a new java version comes out the installer wants to install Yahoo Toolbar, which IMO is unnecessary software.
 
snowden said:
+1

Or install k-lite codec pack.
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Rofl_Roll_Yellow_5.gif
 
sKiDmArK said:
I doubt it. I think it's a shady attempt to get their shitty browser on more PCs.
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/sigh

People on this board need to apply Occam's Razor. Why would Apple be shadily trying to push out the iPhone Configuration Utility, an enterprise deployment tool for large IT groups? What would they gain from that? What piece of Windows software are they trying to poach market share from?

Please. Use a little common sense here and go for the simplest and most likely explanation: lazy programmers.
 
That is why I remove the Auto Update feature. I will manually check for updates. No I don't want your crappy Safari browser.
 
This particular issue aside (I know nothing about it), I will say this is an increasingly annoying trend with Apple.

You can't just install iTunes. You end up with all kinds of crap. Quicktime, Bonjour, Safari, Apple Update Manger, etc... And there is no custom install option to delete these options.

Just what a Corporate Laptop needs.

Personally, even though I like iTunes, I've started using Media Monkey to avoid all this.
 
darkpaw said:
It defaults to checked and things completely unrelated to what you are installing, that and you can't tell it to go away. That is the issue.
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When updating Itunes I've seen it try to push Safari on me and I've unchecked the box for Safari and the installed. Yes I agree its crap that you can't default it to say no but it still doesn't force it on you - it's more like a sales call with an aggressive pitch.
 
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