Streamlining thinkvantage

[seaweedsl]

I am about to ghost my drive for a backup and want to get my OS dialed in first.

Can anybody offer some suggestions / comments about which thinkvantage tools are really important and which ones are most expendible or redundent when using XP?

My T23 has a retail install of XP, so I never had much thinkvantage to deal with....and I like it that way.

Whenever possible, I prefer to use solutions that work on various computers not just thinkpads.

For example, the windows zero configuration wireless is simple and works well for me on various pcs. Access connections is extra and does a lot of things I don't need. I'd rather not have it loading if it's not necessary.

I do need a way to sometimes turn off my radio though.

And I wouldn't want to mess things up by fumbling around on a clean install.

I don't know if this is like questioning religion among the devout but if anybody is like me and prefers less clutter and redundancy in their system, I could use some help sorting it out.

I bet there are others who have streamlined their thinkpads.

[Terrahawk]

I'm not an expert on which tools are necessary and stuff like that, but here's what I have left after pruning, and it works well for me:
Access IBM
Battery Maximiser
Easy Eject Utility (I could probably get rid of this)
Keyboard Customizer (I actually use it but you could probably get rid of it)
Presentation Director
Thinkpad Configuration
Thinkpad Software Installer
UltraNav Wizard

I got rid of Norton AV, the automated web software and driver update thing (I don't remember what it's called) and the messaging center. I also do not have Access Connections installed, and use the Windows tool. Fn+F5 still works for me to turn the wireless card on and off.

With regard to software updates - if it works for me and nothing is broken, I don't really see much point in updating unless it brings useful new features.

[christopher_wolf]

That is a good list; I usually update only the things that I know will be fine and leave the stuff like CSS and RnR alone for the most part. There is new functionality to the updates at times, but most are bugfixes and optimizations.

[seaweedsl]

Sorry about that. I didn't see any response to my request for links or pointers to the imagined previous post, so I rephrased the question to take a different tack and tried a different part of the forum.

Same subject, same topic, different question. I guess next time I need to rephrase, I should do it in the same thread.

Sorry. My bad!

PS. Am I only imaginiing that I saw an "anti-thinkvantage rant" topic on this forum?

[seaweedsl]

Thanks Terahawk. That's just what I was looking for. Getting rid of Norton was my first priority. Sometimes Norton is like having a virus alreay.

I am satisfied with AVG so far.

Is the thinkpad software installer so different than add/remove? I see that it's specialized to thinkvantage, but add /remove does work with thinkvantage installs too, no?

Thanks

[Esben]

Not trying to make you an Access Connection convert, but it actually is very usefull having a profile attached to a specific network.

If you are connected to an unsafe wireless network, you should disable file sharing, and activate a firewall, while on your home network, you would want it just opposite.
Access Connection takes care of both things, and activates/deactivates (un)needed network adapters.

I'd give it a go, it's great.

[Terrahawk]

Is the thinkpad software installer so different than add/remove? I see that it's specialized to thinkvantage, but add /remove does work with thinkvantage installs too, no?

I'm not sure how different it is. When I first got my R40, all of the IBM tools could be added or removed separately under the "Access IBM tools" entry in the Add or Remove Programs list. It was not until recently that I noticed that all of the newer ThinkVantage updates are able to be removed on their own from the Add or Remove Programs list.

My take on it is this - the ThinkVantage Software Installer is handy in that it keeps track of the version numbers of the software you already have installed, and it actually installs them in a nice and tidy way since the downloads from IBM/Lenovo in the vast majority of cases just unpacks the update to your hard drive and does not install it. Otherwise, I don't see any problem with adding or removing any ThinkVantage software direct from the Add or Remove Programs list. Not that I have ever done so though