Driver Agent Not Needed

[GX1_Man]

For anyone considering Driver Agent as a solution, I advise you to "just say no". I investigated after others had posted a link to their "results" and found that 37% of my drivers were "Bad" per their scan on a freshly formatted Win2K installation with ALL drivers updated through the manufacturer's directly. The cost to fix all of my "problems" was a mere $29.95. The machine was functioning fine, of course, also.

THIS IS A RIP OFF AND I DON'T ENCOURAGE ANYONE TO USE IT!

Any drivers, if needed, can be readily found on the net, as seen here:
http://www.computerhope.com/forum/index.php/topic,24560.msg513813.html#msg513813

[patio]

Great Info  that needed saying...

There are BIOS upgraders that use the same tactics....

patio.   8-)

[patio]

I suggest this as a sticky in the Drivers Forum...

patio.   8-)

[GX1_Man]

I shall, but unfortunately I think they advertise here and in other computer forums. Also unfortunately, it is owned by Touchstone who also owns Check-It and other programs.

[patio]

Well i certainly wouldn't want to offend any advertisers or supporters of the Forum.

So i'll say no more.

patio.   8-)

[bukti]

I paid for a subscription in June 08 ,it's now end July08 ,have sent 6 e-mails plus one letter to USA address ,and still have had no service or even an answer to any one of my messages to them,explaining why my money  has not gotten me anything.
Keep well clear of this rort

[Derek]

Much as I suspected. As my AVG picked up a Trojan within their download - it got promptly dumped.

[Broni]

Never pay for anything what can be found for free. Simple.

[STROSS]

I agree that it is Ripp Off and I personaly prefer software called DriverMax!
There was no drivers I couldn't download from there!
And it is completely FREE!!!

[Sylver Cheetah 53]

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

[kinglyevergreen]

I read most of the posts and I can only agree. Driver Agent cheated and ripped me off too.

DRIVER AGENT AS WELL AS BIOS AGENT IS WORTHLESS SIMPLY *censored*!

[MasterChiefRed]

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

I use DriverAgent as a technician and it saves me a lot of time.  Lets be honest, if you know what a driver is and are experienced in computers you can probably find everything that you need for free.

I had a white box system come into my shop the other day.  New install of XP and wouldn't you know it didn't have the drivers for about 4 devices and did not recognize the devices (VGA Display Adapter, Network Controller, Etc.).  I did a quick scan on DriverAgent and it automatically detected exactly what the hardware was.

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.

[Carbon Dudeoxide]

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.

[MasterChiefRed]

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.

Do you have a better way that you would recommend for identifying and locating drivers on a white box system?  Not every computer is going to be from an OEM.  Additionally not every piece of hardware will be on-board and identifiable from within windows.

[Carbon Dudeoxide]

Do you have a better way that you would recommend for identifying and locating drivers on a white box system?  Not every computer is going to be from an OEM.  Additionally not every piece of hardware will be on-board and identifiable from within windows.

If your computer is custom built (white box), you can still locate, identify, and install the drivers through Windows.
Chances are Device Manager will help you through this but if you are looking for detailed information about the exact piece of hardware you are installing, that is what free programs such as Everest Home are for.

Additionally not every piece of hardware will be on-board and identifiable from within windows.

If you cannot identify the hardware in Windows, how would additional software help?
Heck, if you post the Everest Summary, we will help you locate the drivers.

Attaching new software is almost like attaching a Flash Drive. Windows will know its there.

[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.