WeatherBug Hypocrisy
So, have you ever installed AOL instant messenger and tried out the "WeatherBug" application that puts a little temperature indicator in your Windows system tray? The thing is horrible: it pops up windows all over the place and the main window is so crammed with ads it's hard to find the information.
The best thing was when I uninstalled it. It popped up a window saying something very close to "Are you sure you want to uninstall WeatherBug? Please note that if you uninstall WeatherBug you will miss out on LIVE-SAVING alerts of severe weather in your area." That's right -- when I uninstalled WeatherBug it basically said "You might DIE if you uninstall me!!".
Yeah, that's the kind of company I want looking out for my rights as a user of desktop software.
Do yourself a favor and install Weather Pulse instead.
Source: WeatherBug Sets out Adware 'Bill of Rights' · MarketingVOX
Comments
I don't think WeatherBug is so bad. I LOVE the "life-saving alerts" message, though. That's a classic. I think the model of ads being used as a revenue stream for software has a lot to offer consumers. I think it's a model that's really yet to be proven out well, as it'll take some advertiser acceptance for some time before consumers see real, tangible benefits from ad-funded software development efforts over time. With the adware market as it is now (especially confused with privacy and pop-up issues) you don't really see much benefit over many shareware efforts. I'm not even addressing spyware.
The version of Eudora I use is ad-supported, and it's a great trade-off for me. The ads that appear on it though, aren't any great shakes. The targeting uses neither email content (like Gmail does) nor personal behavior (like the behavioral targeting networks). In this fashion, it's not selling high-cost ads and plowing some of those proceeds back into features for me to use. This timidity isn't helping adware or the programmers supported by it.
-tig
Posted by: Tig Tillinghast | June 29, 2004 02:14 PM
Uhm, the problem I have with software like this isn't really privacy concerns, but the fact that it chokes up memory like nobody's business. Who wants to wait 10 minutes for their machine to boot-up because all these "cute, helpful" programs need to load their bloated software? And there is no doubt that these companies use deceptive means in their marketing.
Posted by: Voice of Reason | August 10, 2004 07:57 AM
gave me a virus
Posted by: Carl Larson | February 21, 2005 01:41 PM
I have a problem that I can't find the answer to. The weatherbug started to install, and has not completly downloaded. The bar fills up, then starts over again. The weatherbug icon shows up in right lower corner, but when I to to the control panel to add/remove it doesn't show up. So is constantly running to install, and until it downloads it does not show up in control panel. Does anyone have any solutions. If so I would appreciate any help.
Posted by: rita | June 16, 2005 11:42 PM