VP of PC Tools Product Strategy speaks out

[robwild]

You might want to read this:-

http://www.channelregister.co.uk/2007/03/28/spyware_doctor_bugs/

I presume that he had read PC Magazine's review of SD5:-

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1759,2106191,00.asp

If as PC Tools VP of Product Strategy, Michael Green, says only "50 people were posting issues with the product" why does it take Support so long to reply to some people's emails?

Having said that I feel honoured, I've had 4 emails from them in the last fortnight, sadly none of them resolved my issues, hence I've uninstalled v5 for the fourth and last time for now.

As sales of v5 are said to be up 20% and a free 'lite' version of v5 is to be added to Google Pack presumably "the small percentage of customers that have experienced problems" with SD5 will grow, especially if that lite version is based on an earlier release version .169?

Roll on April 3rd (at least, wisely, the VP of Product Strategy chose not to release the new version of SD5 on the 1st) I'll read the feedback and may risk a fifth installation at some point after that, once they have sorted out the apparent conflict with NIS.

[Gary]

PC Tools blames many of the reported problems with conflicts with antivirus and low level drivers for their hardware. Green suggested that the firm's openness in running a forum, unlike many of its competitors, had backfired. The forum had magnified the apparent number of security bug reports. However he conceded that users were more "vocal" about problems with version 5 than version 4, even though he disagreed with our assessment that diversity and number of complaints with Spyware Doctor 5 was out of the ordinary

What a bunch of BS. Is this guy a politician? Thats it blame some other program for the flaws in SWD . Don't take responsibility for your own flawed product.

[padi]

What a bunch of BS. Is this guy a politician? Thats it blame some other program for the flaws in SWD . Don't take responsibility for your own flawed product.

Would tend to agree they say that BS can sometimes baffle brains.But looking
at those test results SD5 is perhaps little better in one thing over version SD4,the only difference for myself SD4 works fine,but SD5 dont for me, plus quite a few others.

[misery]

It seems I must avoid to get the Free google pack on my machine at all costs, unless I can customize it.

Why would Pctools put their program in a FREE package ???

Am I missing something ?

[robwild]

Perhaps as a taster, a marketing ploy, to get people to upgrade to, and pay for, the full PC Tools product, rather than one of the competing spyware products. Many will assume that as it's in the Google Pack it must be OK or the best one etc.

[RChang]

That VP doesn't understand how forums work. A lot of folks will try the software, find it causes problems, uninstall it, and not say a peep. 50 reports of issues (especially as WIDE ranging as the reports on here are) is too many.

To me, the wide range of problems make it seem like no QA testing was performed.

I mean, come on, it didn't/doesn't even work properly with IE7! How can they release this type of software and not test it with the most popular web browsers out there? I personally had/have problems with SD5 and IE7 and Opera and my windows installation and additional software is pretty uncomplicated.

I continue to use SD4 and will not upgrade until I see posts on here that all these SD5 problem are resolved.

-Rich

[Keith Warner]

I tried the Google one. It's build .169. Why go backwards? Got rid of it.

[MBCANDOVER]

Perhaps these on-line editors did not do there fact checking because they were running 5.0 and their systems crashed or were too slow! These articles were damage control. I bet they pulled the data from the poll thread...

[sloop]

so only 50 people had problems with v5? he has to be telling a lie or is uninformed about the latest blunder made by the people that produce his products - yet another reason to dump spyware doctor - what a bunch of amatures

i posted my opinion at c/net - seems lots of others did too

[gringopig]

so only 50 people had problems with v5? he has to be telling a lie or is uninformed about the latest blunder made by the people that produce his products - yet another reason to dump spyware doctor - what a bunch of amatures

i posted my opinion at c/net - seems lots of others did too

'amatures' LOL!!!

Look pal, I take it you are some droid impersonating a valid user. Well then, Mr. Spy Sweeper; may I say that yr product is ABSOLUTELY THE WORST piece of KEECH I have ever encountered. I have NO PROBLEMS with SD5, as I suspect have 99.9% of all users. There is NO blunder. PCTools is a responsible company and have provided this forum as a conduit for VALID users to communicate EXPECTED and unusual conflicts with the new and radical SD5. I challenge you to provide yr license to PCTools for examination.
You will, no doubt, be proven to be a worthless PUPPET!
:-|

[sloop]

'amatures' LOL!!!

Look pal, I take it you are some droid impersonating a valid user. Well then, Mr. Spy Sweeper; may I say that yr product is ABSOLUTELY THE WORST piece of KEECH I have ever encountered. I have NO PROBLEMS with SD5, as I suspect have 99.9% of all users. There is NO blunder. PCTools is a responsible company and have provided this forum as a conduit for VALID users to communicate EXPECTED and unusual conflicts with the new and radical SD5. I challenge you to provide yr license to PCTools for examination.
You will, no doubt, be proven to be a worthless PUPPET!
:-|

1) not your pal

2) the response for the "support"

To response to your query regarding subscription cancellation, please see my comments below.

I have now processed your request to cancel the automatic renewal for your subscription. For your records, your products expiry date is as below

Spyware Doctor subscription is active until Sep-1 2007.
Registry Mechanic subscription is active until Nov-6 2007 Privacy Guardian subscription is active until Nov-6 2007

Please note you can renew your products subscription manually at any time by following the link below:

spyware doctor prompted me to upgrage - it never said it was a beta release

spyware doctor has (in the recent past) deleted mcafee components causing me to reinstall mcafee

yes, amature

[Lord KiRon]

The guy in original post is marketing - what you expected him to say ?

The support does not resolve the problems because they can't , only programmers can.

The SD v5 is defenatly faulty and unuseful, this happens a lot with a program "rewrote fro scratch" with best intentions in mind.
It takes a time to make them stable, I am sure at some point it will. Also do not forget the Vista "arrival" - now they have a much more of new configurations to test.

The only big question for me is why it was released in such unready state. As always I believe it has to do with budget and deadlines - the plague of entire industry.

What I do not understand is why in light of all this problems they did not took it off and reverted to Beta status ?
They just hurting a reputation of PCTools and SD that in version 4 was a good solid product.

[allibear]

'amatures' LOL!!!

Look pal, I take it you are some droid impersonating a valid user. Well then, Mr. Spy Sweeper; may I say that yr product is ABSOLUTELY THE WORST piece of KEECH I have ever encountered. I have NO PROBLEMS with SD5, as I suspect have 99.9% of all users. There is NO blunder. PCTools is a responsible company and have provided this forum as a conduit for VALID users to communicate EXPECTED and unusual conflicts with the new and radical SD5. I challenge you to provide yr license to PCTools for examination.
You will, no doubt, be proven to be a worthless PUPPET!
:-|

gringopig, I think you owe sloop a wee apology. :o

I passed through this thread earlier and looking at sloops joining date of Nov. 2006 I knew your 'hunches' had to be wrong.

Whoever these 'anti' posters where they would have joined in March 2007 after the release of SD5.

I personally, quite dumbly, have not noticed anything ontoward going on here recently, but I have noticed it's gone a bit quieter on here since AChen made that 'sticky'.

I'm quite shocked by it all really, but lets not get too paranoid towards those who will still post with negative comments if they have had a bad experience. I think that is just human nature :)

[Lord KiRon]

I actually joined right after SD5 release since v4 never give me any problems I had no need to join and write anything.

Anyway, just tried latest build and while it still buggy it seems to "runnable" for me at least for now after 2h using it.

[allibear]

I actually joined right after SD5 release since v4 never give me any problems I had no need to join and write anything.

Anyway, just tried latest build and while it still buggy it seems to "runnable" for me at least for now after 2h using it.

Oh! Sorry Lord KiRon, I didn't mean to imply that everyone joining in March was a 'suspect' LOL, just that whoever those posters where would have joined around then! (I'm trying to play detective now :p ).

I'm sure with a few more release's it will get better. The only way is 'up' from where it started. :)

[Loz_Whale]

I have NO PROBLEMS with SD5, as I suspect have 99.9% of all users.

99.9% of users have no problems with SD5. You sir are the worthless PUPPET!

Wake up and realise the chaos this version has caused to users who don't reinstall their O/S every week...

Maybe I'm employed by one of the competitors???