The Heartache of Software Setup

Home Office Computing, May, 1999

No matter which operating system we use, we've all had our share of software problems. Windows 95/98 is no mere exceptional in this regard than Windows NT, the Mac OS, or Unix, users of those platforms will tell you. But what I do find exceptional is the sheer number of problems I experience installing new software.

Installation problems range from warning messages to setup program failures right on up to system crashes--some so severe that you need to reinstall the operating system before you can reboot (honest, it's happened to me). These problems stem from a simple fact: The installation utility is the last thing on software developers' minds. After all, they've been toiling for months--or years--getting the program to run. Getting it from the CD-ROM to the user's hard disk is of small consequence. Who can blame them for rushing through it at the last minute?

You'd think product managers would have something to say about such an attitude. After all, the installation program is the first thing a user sees when trying out the company's latest and greatest software. But the marketers usually have little control over the goings-on in the programming department, which is unfortunate for those of us trying to use these products to get jobs done--like our taxes.

Case in point: Last month I loaded up Intuit's TurboTax 98. Although the product's registration program failed right off the bat (just like it did last year), it didn't keep me from getting pretty far into my return (as depressing as it was). But when it came time to load TurboTax's California state tax software, the setup utility crashed right off, stopping me cold.

I had to drive back to the store and bring home a replacement. When I noticed the lot numbers on both boxes were the same, I didn't hold out much hope, but I tried the new disc anyway--and yes, experienced an identical crash.

Then I had a brainstorm and tried TurboTax on my laptop--and everything installed perfectly, I'm not sure I'd call this a tip, since overall I find notebooks more likely to experience software failures than desktops. But in any case, it looks like I'll be finishing my taxes on the road this year. I just hope the electronic filing works.