Jonathan Marston Jonathan Marston

Stardock - (one of) the most annoying software companies...ever

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Stardock - (one of) the most annoying software companies...ever

Their software's so cool...if only it worked right

from Stardock Forums

I love Stardock's software. I've used the trial versions off and on for the last few years, but I never bought it until recently because...well...I always ended up having problems with certain programs, or I got tired of it slowing down my computer.

A couple months ago I gave the latest WindowBlinds a try, and I was impressed. It was fast, complete, and seemed to finally be solid enough for everyday use. So I went ahead and purchased Object Desktop. I was happy...for awhile. Eventually, though, I was let down again. I started noticing certain situations where WindowBlinds would mess things up, slow down, etc. (certain web sites, PhotoShop...). It was annoying, but I decided to work around it.

Well...last week I updated WB to the latest version, and it's been hell on my computer ever since. Every time I start up, processes would lock (usually explorer.exe), and I'd have to sit there in task manager and fight it for 15 minutes before I could use my computer. Eventually things would settle down, and it would run fine...until the next reboot.

I tried disabling WB...no good. Thinking maybe it wasn't WB, I ran a spyware scan; nope, not the problem. HiJackThis? Didn't find anything...I tried everything I could think of...until tonight I got so fed up I just uninstalled every single Stardock app on my computer. Guess what...my computer's running like new again.

Yes...Stardock is [edited]one of[/edited] the most annoying software companies...ever. Their software is so cool...if only it worked right...all the time...not just most of the time. 

I'll probably wait a few more months before reinstalling anything Stardock...maybe they'll get it right by then...

Edited title for accuracy

21,991 views 43 replies
Reply #26 from Stardock Forums Top

Grrr...stupid text communication and lack of inflection...here...let me try this:


"And for the record, the reason I said that Stardock is the most annoying company, is not because I think they're a bad company, or that I don't like their software. On the contrary, they make some of the coolest software ever, with nothing like it in existence. And although my original comment may have been somewhat overstated, it is extremely annoying to have something so cool right in front of you, but not be able to use it."

Reply #27 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I've been using WB since the late 1.x release on Win98, Win2k & XP. I won't say there haven't been issues, there have been. But SD has continually brainstormed & improved their stable of products, including WB. While formal one-to-one support is not SD's strong suit, problems seem to get identified through the forums & newsgroups & the developers tend to get them fixed in time. Over the past year in particular I'd say the developers have spent an admirable amount of time perusing the forums & NG's and responding very quickly to issues identified. Far from being the most annoying software company ever, I'd rate them very highly for the interest they show in user feedback, good & bad, and for their diligence in addressing issues, many of which affect only a handful of users.

There are very few folks who run into absolute "showstoppers" and have to abandon SD's software. I've had personal experience with far more annoying software companies, personally, particularly Visioneer & its PaperPort products & Broderbund to name just two.

Cheers,
Daiwa
TouchTasks - Access tasks with ease on Windows touchscreens.
Reply #28 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I had already disabled the SDMCP.exe process, because it had caused problems for me in the past.


In my experience it is best to let SDMCP.exe run as long as you are using StarDock apps. When I first set up my current machine, I made every effort to keep it lean on processes. I experimented running just IP, WB, and CursorXP on an otherwise clean XPHome Sp2 install. When I did not let SDMCP.exe do its thing, I had all sorts of strange behavior, but after alllwoing it to trun, things have gone smoothly, even adding ObjectDock, Enhanced Dialog, DesktopX, ObjectBar, and other non-Stardock desktop apps.

Give SDMCP.exe another shot. See if it doesn't help with your issues.
Reply #29 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I have WB5 and CursorXP running right now. With no problems...well, very rarely do I get an error message on unloading (albeit RARELY!).
Reply #30 from WinCustomize Forums Top
If all of these program are self contained why do I need SDMCP running? What is its' purpose?
Reply #31 from WinCustomize Forums Top

SDMCP provides tray support to ObjectBar, DesktopX & I believe ObjectDock.  Those apps may also use it for autostarting.

WindowBlinds, WindowFX, IconPackager etc do not use it and there is no need for it to be running.

Reply #32 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I hope I won't sound dumb (because i didn't go through the whole conversation...)...I had to reinstall my work computer after installing WB5, because explorer.exe just wouldn't run... I tried to uninstall...reinstall...and nothing worked... I could browse my documents and stuff with IE, but when I typed "My Computer" in the address bar my computer would just freeze... It really pissed me off because I got 3 HD's in my computer and lots of people wants to have acces them all the time...
...
Then I wiped my hard drive and did a fresh install of Windows... and then I installed all the drivers and programs that I need for work (like 30 or so)...and finally WB5 + Kol's VistaXP skin...and now IT FRIGGIN WORKS! *SooOO Happy!*

Comment:
Something similar to this has happend to me before with WB (e.g. after installing WB(X) my computer was totally F*****)... !

::I am not dumb::
Reply #33 from WinCustomize Forums Top
i , unfortunately, have to agree the Mr Debeli...i have recently been experiencing problems with rightclick, explorer, and 'my computer' links after installing WB5....after re-installing XP, then all stardock software, everything is fine, including using Icon Packager....

i needed to re-install XP anyway, so i would not recommend this as a solution to the problems you are expereincing except as a last resort..

i love all stardock software, so i am willing to put up with it's quirks....it's worth it just so my computer can look so cool and individual (as we all know)...

p.s. i had so many problems with Enhanced Dialogue' that i un-installed it a while back...it messed up alot of my progs...especially Adobe ones...
Reply #34 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Grrr...stupid text communication and lack of inflection...here...let me try this:


"And for the record, the reason I said that Stardock is the most annoying company, is not because I think they're a bad company, or that I don't like their software. On the contrary, they make some of the coolest software ever, with nothing like it in existence. And although my original comment may have been somewhat overstated, it is extremely annoying to have something so cool right in front of you, but not be able to use it."


Still doesnt excuse the fact that your title is still there :

"Stardock , the most annoying software company ever" MAKE UP YOUR MIND ALREADY
Reply #35 from WinCustomize Forums Top

"And for the record, the reason I said that Stardock is the most annoying company, is not because I think they're a bad company, or that I don't like their software. On the contrary, they make some of the coolest software ever, with nothing like it in existence.



I find this somewhat contradictory! If Stardock is NOT a 'bad' company and makes some of the coolest, most innovative software ever, I fail to see how it can be categorically labeled as the 'most annoying'. That's like putting all your good and bad eggs in the one basket.....
It's praise on one hand.....being torn down on the other.

Sometimes, when we get frustrated, it's not a bad idea to count backwards from a 100, so we choose our words more carefully and not have to suffer the taste of shoe leather.

I had some issues when I first purchased and installed OD, but I soon came to realise that it was not necessarily the fault of my Stardock programs. In some cases it was user inexperience, in others it was an incompatability with a few applications which did not like to be skinned.
However, through trial and error, reading the support pages and other users comments, etc, I was able to easily resolve those issues....and if I can do it.

Okay, it took a little time and patience, even with my limited PC experience, but now I'm happily using the ObjectDesktop programs without complaint or issue.

No software is ever going to be perfect, but Stardock's is your best bet if you're tired of the default XP look. If I were you, I'd be investing a bit more time and patience in my purchase/investment before doing a 'Pontious Pilate' on it (washing your hands).
Reply #36 from WinCustomize Forums Top
::I am not dumb::

I'm sure you're not but all the same, you wiped your HD and reinstalled all your apps rather than spend some time reading the forums looking for easier solutions (there have been some posted). To each his own I guess.
Reply #37 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I guess he had time to make this skin : https://www.wincustomize.com/ViewSkin.aspx?SID=1&SkinID=4654&LibID=1

But not reformat windows , and yet he gets work done on his computer? Weird. Strange Times.
Reply #38 from WinCustomize Forums Top
He didn't make that skin - he mearly copied some images from another Royale skin.
Reply #39 from WinCustomize Forums Top

He didn't make that skin - he mearly copied some images from another Royale skin.

'merely'....Spell checker

It's called a 'port', Kona....

Reply #40 from Stardock Forums Top
Please, take no offense at these suggestions. But, as an avid fan of software/computers since heaven knows when, and apart of several communities on the web...I would like to add the following:

It's best at times to not use bundled software packages UNLESS you know how to use them, and what they do. Symantec's (Norton) is notorious for crippling even the most rugged of systems just by installing their entire suite of software. It could be a thousand reasons why bundled software doesn't always perform the same on all machines, simply because they're so many different machines. These programs have to juggle the use, and inter-communication of several differently coded programs and work as a team...which I can tell, ain't easy!!! (I know, understatement of the year) This may not work on your machine...so I suggest that you pick and choose what you really want from this company, and purchase that...as for me, well, I don't need all the fancy gadgets hogging up system resources, even with almost 3gigs of ram to use, and I cannot stand that many programs launching during startup. I have bought and installed each program separately to see how well the system runs with it...and I'd pass that on to anyone who wants to know what theirs can cope with before pointing the finger at anyone else without knowing the full facts about what's really going on under the hood.
Reply #42 from JoeUser Forums Top
I am always intrigued by frustrated software uses that write such things as if their system is not to blame. It's always someone else or some thing else.

I never considered installation on company machines for a many tech reasons. But, I've been a OD personal subscriber using 98 and now XPPro on my personal system for sometime (not sure how many years.) I've encountered frustrating system hiccups after installing certain pre-release versions of Windowblinds, as many do. When that's happens I reconfigure if able. If that doesn't work I uninstall, clean up my system and revert back to the version that worked properly. Then wait for another per-release version that works as it should. Blaming Stardock is a ridiculous stretch since many of us don't have the problems you claim.
Reply #43 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Been using WB for a few years now... and IP, and CursorXP, and, let's see... many others on and off. Never had any real problems with them that didn't ultimately turn out to be my fault.