I support many PC systems for technically unsophisticated users. I cannot recommend the current 3.x version of Patch My PC Updater to these people because they would be confused by the left-hand pane and think they need to select all those items and would install a massive amount of software they don't need.
The ability to install programs that are not currently installed is a separate and unique function from the stated purpose of PATCHING. That pane should be hidden under an "Expert" tab with some guidance for its purpose.
Don't get me wrong, I like being able to see all the programs and version information, I just don't think it should be part of the main UI window the end-user sees upon running the program.
In addition to that complaint I would also offer the opinion that the ACTION buttons for Rescan and Install/Update should be much larger, brighter, and prominent. Upon my initial examination of this program I thought that area was just another small pane for information feedback. It took some study to determine those were the buttons to click to make something happen. People don't usually read every last bit of text on a UI, they need guidance that is plain and obvious. Put simply, an action should be represented by a button icon of the sort popularized in Visual Studio or many current web sites.
In terms of function however I would like to state that the program works wonderfully! I was using the FileHippo tool previously and your program is 1000% better! Thank you very much for your effort and time!
Hey!
Thanks for the detailed feedback. We will take this into consideration.
Justin
I agree!
Perhaps split the programs in to two categories = "Installed" & "Available"
Keep the Installed category as a column on the left side, as it is now - and put the Available column on the right side...
And yes, PMP is 1000% better than all the other updating programs out there!