Solo Technology

Posted on October 12, 2008   2 Comments

Last week I received an invitation to participate in the (free) preview of the new Microsoft PC Advisor program. While we’re “not allowed” to share the initial survey and download link, if you search around the web (and on twitter) you should be able to find it easily enough… do note though: Vista only.

Here’s the pitch:

• Microsoft PC Advisor continuously monitors your PC for problems and gives you the solutions, in real time, to fix them
• Microsoft PC Advisor keeps your PC running smoothly with important software and driver updates
• Microsoft PC Advisor optimizes your Windows experience with useful tips and tutorials
• Microsoft PC Advisor helps optimize your PC by monitoring and updating settings

Here’s a look:

I can tell you that after just a few minutes of use that I’m not the target market. Nor, most likely, are the readers of this site! However, I’m going to run it for a bit as this might be the sort of thing that is helpful for the family & friends whom I (inevitably) support.

For example,  I received this notice that I should clean up my startup folder:

Naturally, I’m curious as to what needs to be repaired so I click the “More details…” link. But that just gives me a dialog telling me more about the perceived issue – not what’s actually causing the issue. In other words, I had expected to see a list of what was going to be fixed but no such luck.

Well, I clicked the “Fix It” button assuming that it would tell me what was up before actually fixing. Nope, nothing there either. This is totally an exercise of faith.

Was anything harmed or broke? Not that I can tell. I just wish I knew what it fixed! But hey, for mom running this at home? She sure won’t care and won’t want to see that stuff… maybe an “expert mode” would be nice though?

Now I’m pondering this “Speed up your internet connection” option… Dare I?

I haven’t been running it long enough to have a feel for resource consumption. When just running in the tray it seems to be under 5K though, which is a great start.

There’s a Toolbox section that has a healthy list of items. At first glance I’m not seeing anything new here – instead, they all look like links to control panels and help topics. However, looking at this from a novice or non-techie perspective, that’s probably a good thing. Navigating the Vista control panels can be an adventure at times… this might simplify that for folks.

Interesting note on the toolbox (and other sections of the tool): It all seems pretty dynamic. As I navigate around PC Advisor will connect and get updates for each section. That might make updates more “seamless” than normal.

If I stick with it, I run it for the next 6 months and take 3 more surveys. Heck, I might even win a drawing for a nice gift cert to Amazon… that’s probably incentive enough to keep my playing along. Hopefully this is something that will be helpful for those friends and family members.

Tags: microsoft, PC-Advisor, preview, vista

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