Bloatware is software that takes up space on a hard drive but is rarely used. It is subjective as some users may find it useful. Some software manufacturers allow users to bypass extra features during installation. Plug-ins can be added later if desired. This approach is preferable to charging extra for main features.
Sometimes referred to as elephantware, bloatware is commonly understood to be software that takes up a significant amount of space on a hard drive, but is rarely or not used at all by the typical user. Essentially, the concept is that the extra software is taking up hard drive space that could be used for more productive applications, causing the drive to become overloaded or bloated with relatively useless files and programs. Generally, bloatware is bundled with features in software programs that are used on a regular basis, making it somewhat difficult for the average user to remove the extras from the hard drive without affecting the function of the desirable features.
One of the problems in trying to determine what constitutes bloated software is the fact that these extra features may not have appeal to one sector of the user market, but are highly attractive to another sector. Therefore, what some consider bloatware is highly regarded and regularly used by others. This makes the definition of bloatware somewhat subjective from a consumer perspective.
To find a middle ground, some software manufacturers have chosen to structure their applications so as to allow the end user not to install extra features the first time they load the program. All the essential files and protocols needed to run the basics of the application are included in one core segment of the installation process. These extras, sometimes referred to as plug-ins, can be bypassed and not installed if the consumer does not see a need for such features. To some extent, this has helped soften critics who say software makers intentionally load extra features onto newer versions of older software when core functionality remains the same as before.
The benefit of managing the incidence of bloatware by creating plug-ins is that if the end user later determines that a certain additional feature is desirable, they simply load the software disc, invoke the desired plug-in, and add it to their files saved on the hard drive. However, it should be noted that the configuration of some software requires the end user to override the entire program to add plug-ins from disk. While this might take a little extra time, many still consider this approach preferable to having to charge extra to enjoy the main features of the application.
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