Driver Agent Not Needed

[Carbon Dudeoxide]

That is where Everest Home comes in.
You use it to identify exactly what the hardware is and, with a Google Search or a trip to the hardware manufacturer's web page, you can download and install the driver.

Granted there appears to be an easier and more expensive alternative to going on google yourself, why spend $30 bucks (whilst not being sure if it will work or not) when you can accomplish the task for free?

If you are having trouble finding the right driver, that is where our Forums come in. A simple question posted here and you're off, unless you're too lazy to even use Google. In which case, Driver Agent will suffice.

[Calum]

If time is critical, you trust Driver Agent, and you're willing to pay, then sure it's one way to get your drivers.
However, I'd rather spend the extra 5 minutes and less money to get the drivers from a source I trust, i.e. the manufacturer.

[normski]

yes driver agent is a RIPOFF
i paid for it yesterday still no reg info
called 4 times
excuse 1 it takes time to process
excuse 2 youll have it in 15 mins
excuse 3 sorting it now
excuse 4 we just moved premasis and the servers are in the air cant see you on system yet
so ive given them another 5 hours to deflate the servers back to ground level

[MaryBet52]

I downloaded Driver Agent, then googled for reviews before installing. I also scanned it for virus and Symantec Endpoint declared it safe.
I think that whether a program that does what Driver Agent says it does is worth purchasing depends on a person's level of computer experience and the time they can afford or want to spend on keeping their computer(s) functioning vs actually using their computer(s). I spend way too much time trying to keep my Windows computers working, working efficiently and secure from online threats.
Not one of the Windows OEM computers I have purchased has been configured to run at the speeds one would expect from the processor/buses&ports/memory configuration. None have provided adequate info about the hardware and I've had to spend time needed elsewhere first IDing the hardware and then trying to get info on it. Windows never gave me enough information - I've always had to use 3rd party software. I'm still sane because of the generosity of so many who shared their knowledge freely on the net or at minimal cost.
If Driver Agent reliably notified me of any and all outdated drivers, it might be worth some of my money. One forum responder had a good experience and others report a security issue, inaccurate scans and poor contact response, so I'm going to investigate some more and try Drive Max and the other suggestions.

[Broni]

IMHO, drivers should be left alone, unless something stops working.
Even then, how many drivers are you gonna need? One?
Well, if you wanna pay Driver Agent for finding one driver....I'm sorry, but it's not too smart in my opinion.

[wil303]

Driveragent is a total rip, i got sucked in, I updated drivers through their software- and it still says they are bad. Did you know that the Touchstone corporation requested-and got-the copyright of the happybirthday song. (see "The Corporation" movie-amazing!) I take it these are the same "people", it sounds like it. Spread the word.

[Driver-Chat]

OK Fair hit . Did you consider  several factors.
1/ some (not all) drivers have several drivers pending to "be OK"
2/ the second scan if taken from the desktop shortcut or the task bar icon repeats the original scan.
3/ you failed to read notes etc and chose the drivers you "needed" rather than looked at the picture the scan presented
4/ are just peed off because you expected the scan and update to fix your troubles when in fact the trouble was http://sounds.stoutman.com/sounds4c3/error.Wav
5/ you don't know what you are doing and did not install the given drivers correctly if at all

[Tux2]

I also tryed Driver agent. They only want to get our money. They are good for nothing.

Don't bash on it because you are cheap and want everything in life for free.  For some of us out there the $29.95 is money well spent.

Why buy this rip-off when you can get it your drivers for free?

I'm pretty sure you could have found the hardware if you looked hard enough.

Best chance on finding drivers for an unknown device would be to go to the computer manufacturers website, locating the specific computer model, and downloading drivers.

How much success have you guys had with modem drivers?

[Driver-Chat]

"How much success have you guys had with modem drivers?"

If you are asking me  I do not recall having any trouble with modem drivers they may sometimes not install but if the old driver is uninstalled first (if needed ) very good to excelent I would say

[Dairyman]

Why would you need a driver agent, when Windows has one built into Windows Update and the Device manager? It's as simple as getting the version, checking the site for a newer driver and downloading and installing it if there is a patch/update.

Rip off indeed!

These guys need to be sentenced to jail for a lifetime.

[Broni]

when Windows has one built into Windows Update and the Device manager?

Nah...
It's not a good idea to update any non-M$ driver through Windows Updates, because they're often wrong.
As for Device Manager, it never finds anything. The driver is always up to date, even if it's not working

[Computer Hope Admin]

Topic locked to prevent a never ending debate.

Computer Hope's feelings regarding drivers is that it's best that users obtain their drivers directly from either the manufacturer of their computer for from the manufacturer of the hardware device they're needing drivers for. Links to driver related questions and manufacture links on the below link.

http://www.computerhope.com/drivers/

If you're having difficulties finding a driver I suggest creating a post on the below link.

http://www.computerhope.com/forum/index.php/board,4.0.html


ps. As noticed by many of you who contributed to this post I did remove a lot of posts, this wasn't done to silence opinions just done to help clean up the overall thread and prevent people from having to read through pages of debate on driver agent.