Windows XP Hacks

Remove Unruly Applications and Uninstall Entries

Uninstalling programs is sometimes tougher than you’d expect; even when you use built-in uninstallers, programs leave bits of themselves all over your hard disk and Registry. Here’s how to remove them.

Uninstalling applications can be a tricky business. At a glance, it seems simple: choose Start → Control Panel → Add or Remove Programs, then choose the program you want to remove in the Add or Remove Programs dialog box, and click Remove.

But uninstall routines are generally only as good as the programmer that made them. And that means that unruly programs commonly leave bits of themselves behind, even after you uninstall them. They might leave behind DLLs that load every time you start Windows, as well as Registry entries, even though the original program is gone. In both instances, your system performance takes a hit loading resources for programs that no longer exist. The programs also might leave behind unnecessary files and folders, which take up hard disk space.

There’s a good deal you can do to clean up after these unruly applications, though. Follow this advice:

• After you’ve run the uninstallation routine, run the Registry Editor [Hack #68], search through the Registry for any keys and values the program left behind, and then delete them. Frequently, you can find the settings for the program at \HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\ Publisher \ Program Name where Publisher is the name of the software company that made the program ...