Well I built a new computer (my second) last week and started loading my applications. Tonight, I installed my copy of Nero 7 Ultra Edition but before moving on to other software, decided to check the website for updates. I found the new free upgrade to the "Enhanced" version.
It took 3 hours to download after several failures or the download speed dropping to a blazing 15K/second. Finally I got lucky and it managed to download at 345K. Next came the installation.
I launched the executable and it detected my original install. I got a message saying it would uninstall that copy, reboot my PC, then resume installing the new copy when the system was back up. It did uninstall and reboot my PC but when it was back up...nothing.
So I tried running the executable again. It installed and even detected my key code but about 3/4 into the install, it crashed my computer. It rebooted and gave me a message saying Windows had recovered from a serious error. I looked in my folders and the Add/Remove programs and the Nero 7 copy appeared to be there.
I tried running the Burning ROM application and got a message that my key code indicates there were important updates to install. I clicked on the Update button but got a message saying the Update applet was not installed. Not trusting the installation, I uninstalled the whole mess and reinstalled my original, then updated that to a version from last summer (June 2006). Total time: 5 hours.
I have WinXP SP2 with all the latest updates, a 2.4 GHz CPU (Intel C2D), 2 gigs of RAM, nVidia 8800GTX graphics...all high end components. I've been working with computers for over 20 years and this was the biggest fiasco I've ever had to deal with. What the hell is wrong with the Nero developers? I think they need to wake up. Oh, and a special thanks to the person who figured out how to disable that stupid Scout program. Nero is getting to be as bad as AOL with all the crap they automatically put on your machine.
While I don't believe it's the case for every update in existence, I feel (therefore the following statement is pure anecdotal conjecture) a number of "updates" and "enhancements" rolling out of software companies these days are more so designed to counter or prevent piracy rather than actually improve the product.
While your experience definitely reflects otherwise, I generally think Ahead Nero is a good company, basically and I really like their product (although I prefer 7 Premium over 7 Ultra, the latter of which was far too flaky on my [far less powerful] system too).
Thanks...I like Nero and was surprised with all the hassle this update caused. I forgot to mention I tried to install the Enhanced version 3 times after it crashed my PC during the first install attempt. Each time, it crashed at exactly the same point. I read the details of what it actually enhances and it looks like it's primarily for Vista users.
Since I don't plan on moving to Vista until I'm forced to, I think I'll stick with the older version. It works and I can trust it. Everything I've read about Vista has been either lukewarm or negative and these are reviews from trusted sites such as Tom's Hardware. Hardware drivers and gaming support appear to be worse or no better than WinXP, so why muddy the water at this point?
