How do experts install freeware CutePDF Writer into "C:\My Programs"?

[Susan Sharm]

Program Files are well organised
I don't see the difference with installing into C:\Prografiles or C:\My programs

Hi Ivan,

I appreciate your perspective. I will courteously share mine (which
differs slightly from yours). There's no difference between C:\Program
Files & C:\My Programs IF we don't mind two major flaws of C:\Program
Files
- FLATNESS
- ORGANIZATION

FLATNESS: The C:\Program Files flatness is utterly ridiculous. The
long-standing computer rule of thumb (from the UNIX world) is to plan
on having, on average, roughly, about 10 directories at any one level
of a hierarchy. Anything much less is overkill; anything much more
generally begs for another level of hierarchy. In my case, I have
nothing in the top level of C:\My Programs other than ten tasks (my
plan being to install grouped tasks together, e.g., to group media
editors under "My Editors", and to group finance programs under "My
Money", and to group the kid's games under "Tims Games", etc.

ORGANIZATION: Besides the untenable flatness of the C:\Program Files
directory, nobody in their right mind would willingly organize programs
by their brand names. That mixes programs at any one level of hierarchy
that have absolutely nothing to do with each other than they share a
common letter in the alphabet. Even then, some manufacturers respect at
least a single hierarchy (e.g., C:\Program Files\Adobe), while others
create additional flat hierarchies (e.g., C:\Program Files\Microsoft
Office, C:\Program Files\Microsoft Games, C:\Program Files\Windows
Update, etc.). You see, it's not even organized by brand name.

Put it this way. Say the movers are unpacking your house. Instead of
you telling them to put the garden supplies in the shed, the car in the
garage, the dresses in the bedroom, the shoes in the closet, the linen
in the linen closet, the toothbrush in the bathroom, the dishes in the
kitchen, etc, you allow them to leave EVERYTHING in the living room, in
a bijumbled mess, based loosly on the brand name. Anyone who says this
makes sense is going to have to have a PhD in logic if they plan on
convincing me of the logic in this plan of operation.

To those who would argue that we could organize C:\Program Files
hierarchically, I state that I tried that for years. Basically
Microsoft madness will defeat you. If you change your "programfilesdir"
variable in the system registry you will, all of a sudden, get tons of
total crap in your C:\My Programs directory. The minute you use any
Microsoft Office tool, it does this (try it - you'll despair as I have
already done). Worse yet, the PC comes to you already filled with
unorganized crap in the C:\Program Files directory. Just like the Start
Menu is filled with items organized by a four-year old on LSD.

Basically, anyone wishing to run an organized PC learns the hard way to
leave the Start Menu and C:\Program Files mess as it was when you
bought the machine, wholly unorganized. They then create menus that ARE
organized, and they create a C:\My Programs hierarchy that uses the
SAME task-based organization.

By the way, don't even get me started on the fact that Microsoft thinks
it's perfectly sane to leave an insane set of FILES in the root level
of the C drive! It's obvious they never even thought about where files
belong. But, just because they caved in to chaos doesn't mean we have
to succumb to the Microsoft Madness ourselves!

Respectfully yours,
Susan

 

[Rod Speed]

Ivan Tisljar wrote

I appreciate your perspective. I will courteously share mine
(which differs slightly from yours). There's no difference
between C:\Program Files & C:\My Programs IF we don't
mind two major flaws of C:\Program Files
- FLATNESS
- ORGANIZATION

FLATNESS: The C:\Program Files flatness is utterly ridiculous.

That is just plain wrong. It isnt a flat organisation,
they're organised by manufacturer and then application.

The long-standing computer rule of thumb (from the UNIX world)

That doesnt make it a long-standing computer rule of thumb.

is to plan on having, on average, roughly, about
10 directories at any one level of a hierarchy.

That is just plain wrong too.

Anything much less is overkill; anything much
more generally begs for another level of hierarchy.

Mindlessly superficial. What matters is how logical the hierarchy is.

In my case, I have nothing in the top level of C:\My Programs other
than ten tasks (my plan being to install grouped tasks together, e.g.,
to group media editors under "My Editors", and to group finance programs
under "My Money", and to group the kid's games under "Tims Games", etc.

No reason why it should be organised by function, its actually
better to organise it by manufacturer at the top level, because
its easier to work out what the manufacturer is than what
category is. In spades with the automated install, that can
never be done reliably by category, trivial by manufacturer.

ORGANIZATION: Besides the untenable
flatness of the C:\Program Files directory,

Just your pig ignorant fantasy.

nobody in their right mind would willingly
organize programs by their brand names.

Wrong again, most obviously because that is trivial to automate
and anything else requires manual intervention at install time.

That mixes programs at any one level of hierarchy
that have absolutely nothing to do with each other
than they share a common letter in the alphabet.

Irrelevant. What matters is how easy the right one is to fine.

That will always be more reliable by manufacture than by category.

Even then, some manufacturers respect at least a single hierarchy
(e.g., C:\Program Files\Adobe), while others create additional flat
hierarchies (e.g., C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office, C:\Program
Files\Microsoft Games, C:\Program Files\Windows Update, etc.).
You see, it's not even organized by brand name.

Yes, its organised by manufacturer and then brand name.

Put it this way. Say the movers are unpacking your house. Instead
of you telling them to put the garden supplies in the shed, the car in
the garage, the dresses in the bedroom, the shoes in the closet, the
linen in the linen closet, the toothbrush in the bathroom, the dishes
in the kitchen, etc, you allow them to leave EVERYTHING in the
living room, in a bijumbled mess, based loosly on the brand name.

Completely useless analogy.

Anyone who says this makes sense is going to have to have a PhD in
logic if they plan on convincing me of the logic in this plan of operation.

Likely you actually are that stupid.

The obvious reason for doing it by manufacturer is that that is always
going to work reliably without manual intervention at install time.

Even you should have noticed that the apps arent
manually executed from the Program Files tree on PCs.

To those who would argue that we could organize C:\Program
Files hierarchically, I state that I tried that for years. Basically
Microsoft madness will defeat you. If you change your
"programfilesdir" variable in the system registry you will, all of a
sudden, get tons of total crap in your C:\My Programs directory.
The minute you use any Microsoft Office tool, it does this (try it -
you'll despair as I have already done). Worse yet, the PC comes
to you already filled with unorganized crap in the C:\Program Files
directory.

Your pathetic anal hangup are your problem.

Just like the Start Menu is filled with items
organized by a four-year old on LSD.

In spades. You're always welcome to reorganise that any way you like.

Basically, anyone wishing to run an organized PC learns the
hard way to leave the Start Menu and C:\Program Files mess
as it was when you bought the machine, wholly unorganized.

You're pig ignorantly lying there. It isnt anything like wholly unorganised.

They then create menus that ARE organized,
and they create a C:\My Programs hierarchy
that uses the SAME task-based organization.

By the way, don't even get me started on the fact that
Microsoft thinks it's perfectly sane to leave an insane
set of FILES in the root level of the C drive! It's obvious
they never even thought about where files belong.

More mindlessly silly pig ignorant ranting.

But, just because they caved in to chaos

Lying, again.

doesn't mean we have to succumb to the Microsoft Madness ourselves!

Doesnt mean we have to take any notice of pig ignorant fools like you either.

 

[Craig]

Thanks for the rebuttal, Rod. I've highlighted your main points.

Craig

 

[Susan Sharm]

It is still better than the C:\ flat directory structure of pre-95 Windows.
Except that in english (and probably other) versions of Windows "Program
files" includes a whitespace in the directory name.</offtopic>
Personally I prefer to direct them to "D:\Program files".

Hi Morten,

I agree. Prior to Windows 95, Windows 2.1 and 3.1 (if I remember
correctly the numbers) were a mess. Even with Windows 95 & Win98, there
wasn't the concept of a separate data hierarchy from the documentation
hierarchy. Then, when the latest incarnation of 2K/NT/XP-based Windows
software arose, the separation of data from program files became
accepted but Microsoft made such a mess of both directories that I
still use the well organized system I learned off the Internet.

C:\My Archivers (for PGP, PDF, ZIP, RAR, COA32, INCTRL5, etc.)
C:\My Browsers (for Firefox, Netscape, etc.)
C:\My Calendars (for TaskMaster, CalendarManger, etc.)
C:\My Databases (for map programs, address book managers, etc.)
C:\My Editors (for picture editors, video editors, etc.)
C:\My Finances (for Quicken, TurboTax, TaxCut, etc.)
C:\My Games (for games)
C:\My Hardware (for dvd burners, telephony SKYPE, etc.)
C:\My ISP (for NetZero, SBCGlobal, VPN, etc.)
etc.

And, that having been said, I agree that saving these important
programs onto a separate partition is also commonplace practice.

Likewise, it goes without saying too much that the DATA files for each
of these applications goes into the same directory tree in C:\My Data.
For example, PGP keys would go in C:\My Data\My Archivers\PGP Data;
browser bookmarks would go in C:\My Data\My Browsers\Firefox Data, etc.

To those others who say you can't organize your PC by task, well, I
can't say much to them as they wouldn't even understand the point.

Respectfully yours,
Susan

 

[Susan Sharm]

Although you can move the Documents and settings\USERNAME\Application
Data folder, I don't see that you can change the internal arrangement
at all, since these names are usually built into programs.

Hi Aandi,

In the olden days (circa Windows 95, Windows 98, etc.) it was much
easier to maintain a healthy C:\My Data directory because Microsoft was
basically ignorant of the concept of data storage.

Then, in the Windows 2K/NT/XP era, it became a bit harder to manage
(yes, harder - not easier) mainly because Microsoft (to their credit)
tried to create a culture which stored data separately from program
files; however (much to everyone's dismay), Microsoft created such an
abomination of a data directory tree that we were forced to abandon all
hope of making any sense of it, even after a multitude of well meaning
attempts to conform to their heinous data structures.

However, it's generally very easy (almost trivial) to ensure all
programs save data into their proper locations, e.g.,
C:\My Archivers (for PGP, PDF, ZIP, RAR, COA32, INCTRL5, etc.)
C:\My Browsers (for Firefox, Netscape, etc.)
C:\My Calendars (for TaskMaster, CalendarManger, MeetingMaker, etc.)
C:\My Databases (for map programs, address book managers, DBASEIII,
etc.)
C:\My Editors (for picture editors, video editors, text editors, hex
editors, etc.)
C:\My Finances (for Quicken, TurboTax, TaxCut, StockWorld, etc.)
C:\My Games (for games)
C:\My Hardware (for dvd burners, dvd rippres, telephony SKYPE, modems,
etc.)
C:\My ISP (for NetZero, SBCGlobal, VPN, etc.)
etc.

IMHO,
Susan

 

[Susan Sharm]

So, I remain undecided on the shill issue. Which is of course
what the "so it would appear" that I wrote was meant to convey.

Hi Logan,

I didn't even know what a "shill" was until I looked it up just now.
Typically I just ignore non-helpful comments in Internet posts (such as
those from a certain set of posters in this thread) as those childish
posters simple feed off of the controversy they cause by their lazy
commentary (lazy because they bring nothing to the table and offer
nothing in return).

The reason I generally cross post is that I really and truly believe in
both learning from and in edifying as many intelligent people as
possible. I do sincerely try to limit the posting to relevant groups,
e.g., for a freeware PDF program, to comp.text.pdf,
adobe.acrobat.windows alt.comp.freeware, and (I thought it was
relevant) misc.consumers.frugal-living (being intelligent use of
freeware).

This conversation has morphed from how to install one program, to the
use of another which was suggested by someone else, and then to the
proper installation of program and data files, hence necessitating a
revision of the relevant newsgroup list. For example, windows XP basics
and deployment are now more relevant than are the pdf-related
newsgroups.

I can not (and will not) prove to you that I am not a "shill" (for whom
I might wonder), but, I do thank you for allowing me to learn yet
another word in our wondrous language!

Respectfully yours,
Susan

 

[TT]

My oh my you sure do love to hear yourself type. More longwinded that my
college philosophy teacher.

 

[Susan Sharm]

My oh my you sure do love to hear yourself type. More longwinded that my
college philosophy teacher.

Hello TT,

Think about what you've contributed to the thread.

Then compare it with what "The Six Million Dollar Man", "Aandi Inston",
"Morten Skarstad", "Ivan Tisljar", etc. have contributed.

We offer ideas, suggestions, helpful hints, insight, explanations,
logic, and reasoning.

You offer ... ?

Respectfully yours,
Susan

 

[pjp]

I think one could debate the merits and faults of almost any organization of
programs and data till the cows come home. To my mind, I'd first like to see
everyone who uses a pc at least have some basic "plan" rather than what I do
see which is everything almost everywhere. Cluttered desktop, cluttered
root of C: and data files of all sorts scattered almost anywhere else, e.g.
sub-folders of apps etc. etc. My experience also leads me to believe that
the vast majority of users never ever even think of "backup" even when they
have the means (e.g. burner) or if they do, they have no idea of what to
back up or where to find it, e.g. so long as "Open" in the app works, they
don't care.

 

[Susan Sharm]

I think one could debate the merits and faults of almost any organization
I'd first like to see everyone who uses a pc at least have some basic "plan"

Hi PJP,

I agree.
So others can benefit from what I've practiced for a decade, here is
the two-step "plan" I offer the masses for PC organizational strategy:

1. Determine an organizational strategy you are comfortable with!
- For example, organize all programs by task as shown below
2. Then, apply that organizational strategy to the FIVE key areas:
- Applications (e.g., your program files)
- Application data (e.g., your settings & personal files)
- Application shortcuts (e.g., your start menu)
- Application installers (e.g., your downloaded initial installers &
updates)
- Send-to menu

It matters not what organizational strategy we choose; I merely offer
one which has been in use for more than a decade and which has served
me well (see prior posts). The point is you always know, even before
you save or install any application, exactly where every application
belongs, e.g.,
C:\My Archivers\PDF Writers\PrimoPDF
C:\My Browsers\Firefox
C:\My Calendars\Meeting Maker
C:\My Databases\Maps\MetroGuide USA
C:\My Editors\Text Editors\Lemmy
C:\My Finances\Tax Programs\TurboTax2006
C:\My Games\Flight Simulators\MSFS2006
C:\My Hardware\DVD\Rippers\DVD Shrink
C:\My ISP\Dialup\NetZero
... blah blah blah ...

While the benefits of the mindless approach of piling all applications
into a single flat directory are debatable, notice the huge benefits of
this simple two-step organizational process:
- Backing up data is nearly trivial (back up C:\My Data & you're done!)
- Recovering all programs from a system crash is nearly trivial
- Managing & utilizing multiple machines is extremely consistent
- Locating & updating applications and files is tremendously logical
- Migrating to new systems over time reinforces & strengthens your
original strategy

Again, I agree with all of you that having an organizational strategy
(any organization you are comfortable with) is the right approach ...
all I do above that concept is to offer one that has been working for
me for more than a decade on Windows-based PCs (all operating systems
up to and prior to Windows XP).

I hope this posts continues to add to our general knowledge,
Susan

 

[Marco Kesseler]

Irrelevant. What matters is how easy the right one is to fine.

That will always be more reliable by manufacture than by category.

Right. So now I have to move the MacroMedia stuff into the Adobe folder?

In spades. You're always welcome to reorganise that any way you like.

Given this remark, it is utterly beyond me, how you rant against someone
who WANTS to organise stuff her way. You say you are not ranting?

Just your pig ignorant fantasy. [SNIP]
Completely useless analogy. [SNIP]
Likely you actually are that stupid. [SNIP]
Even you should have noticed that the apps arent
manually executed from the Program Files tree on PCs. [SNIP]
Your pathetic anal hangup are your problem. [SNIP]
You're pig ignorantly lying there. It isnt anything like wholly unorganised.
[SNIP]
More mindlessly silly pig ignorant ranting. [SNIP]
Lying, again. [SNIP]
Doesnt mean we have to take any notice of pig ignorant fools like you

either.

Then don't, and let us have a polite discussion.

Marco

 

[Sharon F]

Again, I agree with all of you that having an organizational strategy
(any organization you are comfortable with) is the right approach ...

I think consistency is the key. Once you have developed your own plan,
stick to it. When performing system maintenance, check for "loose ends"
(that can and do happen when you're in a hurry) and move them into your
chosen folder structure.

 

[Susan Sharm]

However, it's generally very easy (almost trivial) to ensure all
programs save data into their proper locations, e.g.,
C:\My Archivers (for PGP, PDF, ZIP, RAR, COA32, INCTRL5, etc.)
C:\My Browsers (for Firefox, Netscape, etc.)
C:\My Calendars (for TaskMaster, CalendarManger, MeetingMaker, etc.)
C:\My Databases (for map programs, address book managers, DBASEIII,
etc.)
C:\My Editors (for picture editors, video editors, text editors, hex
editors, etc.)
C:\My Finances (for Quicken, TurboTax, TaxCut, StockWorld, etc.)
C:\My Games (for games)
C:\My Hardware (for dvd burners, dvd rippres, telephony SKYPE, modems,
etc.)
C:\My ISP (for NetZero, SBCGlobal, VPN, etc.)
etc.

Oh, oh. Correction. I didn't mean to suggest a YAFFO (yet another flat
file organization)!

In my haste to be responsive, I forgot to type the C:\My Programs in
front when I responded. To be clear, I would NEVER suggest YAFFO for an
application programs hierarchy.

I meant to type:
C:\My Programs\{My Archivers, My Browsers, My Calendars, My Databases,
My Editors, My Finances, My Games, My Hardware, My Internet Accounts,
...., etc.}

Basically, one well honed organizational strategy is to presuppose one
category for every type of program, and even sub categories within that
for every type of possible program to be installed.

Then, the theory goes, we repeat this organizational hierarchy for each
of the FIVE key Windows areas {Application installations, application
installers, application data, application menus, and send-to menus).

The con is that it looks like more work than blindly throwing
everything into the living room instead of moving them into the closet,
bedroom, kitchen, etc. - but - in reality - it is LESS WORK and MORE
PRODUCTIVE to organize your system than to leave it in the default
YAFFO Microsoft chaos.

This is an opinion supplied to increase the knowledge of the community
.... your differing offerings are always welcome,
Susan

 

[Susan Sharm]

consistency is the key.
Once you have developed your own plan, stick to it
When performing system maintenance, check for "loose ends"
and move them into your chosen folder structure.

Hi Sharon,

I agree. What I do for consistency is I have a set of CDROMs & DVDs
backed up that I call my "blueprints". I use these whenever I set up a
new PC.

Over the years, I learned to give up on trying to reign in the YAFFO
Microsoft Mess. In the olden days, I used to change the registry keys
for the common files dir, program files dir, data directory, etc. Too
many programs had hard-coded paths that didn't use system variables.

Lately, I simply maintain a CDROM of a consistent yet EMPTY set of
hierarchies for each of the FIVE key areas:
- Application installations, i.e., C:\My
Programs\{Archivers,Browsers,Calendars, etc.}
- Application data, i.e., C:\My Data\My
Programs\{Archivers,Browsers,Calendars, etc.}
- Application menus, i.e., Start->My
Programs\{{Archivers,Browsers,Calendars, etc.}
- Application installers, i.e., C:\My
Installers\{Archivers,Browsers,Calendars, etc.}
- Send-To menu, i.e., Send To -> {Archivers,Browsers,Calendars, etc.}

I call this framework CD of blank blueprint files my YAHOO CD (yet
another hierarchical organizational option).

My use model, when I set up a new system, is so simple and yet so
intuitive. All I do is grab my YAHOO CD and copy the file structure
over. This has worked time and time again. Nothing needs to be changed
in the original system (I gave up long ago using PC Magazine's Change
of Address (coa32.exe) to try to fix the default YAFFO Microsoft Mess).

Then, from that point forward:
- I save all downloaded installers where they belong (e.g., c:\my
installers\...)

During installation:
- I install all programs where they belong (e.g., c:\my programs\...)
- I set up the program default data locations (e.g., c:\my data\...)

Immediately after installation:
- I move the original shortcut to where it belongs (e.g., Start->my
programs\...)
- I copy a shortcut to the SendTo menu (e.g., Send To -> my
programs\...)

Voila! Instantly organized Windows PC!
Everything has a place to go BEFORE I even start the installation of
anything!
All data is kept in a single hierarchy, in a known logical hierarchy.
All menus are in the same known logical hierarchy.
All installers are kept in the same known logical hierarchy.

What could be simpler or easier?
All it takes is the upfront work of deciding upon the organizational
tree (which I've already done for every single type of program I've
ever encountered).

I write this lengthy reply because I think, as you appear to believe
also, that many millions would benefit from this simple organizational
YAHOO CD idea. And I wish to help them. And to improve my own YAHOO CD
blueprints!

Together, we welcome polite discussion that increases our knowledge as
a whole,
Susan

 

[Rod Speed]

Rod Speed wrote

Right. So now I have to move the MacroMedia stuff into the Adobe folder?

Dont know, dont, care. If it offered something
at install time, you likely can specify that there.

Given this remark, it is utterly beyond me, how you rant against someone who
WANTS to organise stuff her way.

Your problem. I wasnt commenting on her wanting to organise
things any particular way, just pointing out that her assertion
that Program Files has a flat structure is just plain wrong and
rubbing her nose in the reason its organised by manufacturer,
because that requires no manual intervention at install time
and that is obviously very desirable.

What matters is how easy a particular directory is to find
in Program Files if you need to find it, and you usually dont.

<reams of your puerile shit flushed where it belongs?

Then don't, and let us have a polite discussion.

Just how many of you are there between those ears ?

She was nothing like polite with her rant about how its done by default.

 

[Rod Speed]

To those others who say you can't organize your PC by task,

No one ever did anything like that.

well, I can't say much to them as they wouldn't even understand the point.

You didnt understand the point they were making.

 

[Sharon F]

I write this lengthy reply because I think, as you appear to believe
also, that many millions would benefit from this simple organizational
YAHOO CD idea. And I wish to help them. And to improve my own YAHOO CD
blueprints!

Together, we welcome polite discussion that increases our knowledge as
a whole,

Although I have no idea how "yahoo blueprints" came into the discussion
(this post is showing up in many, many newsgroups) -- yours is a good plan.

It illustrates another important point in file management which is to keep
the structure simple. Simple structure = regular backups. Complicated
structure = "oops, I haven't done a backup in 3 months."

While my plan is different (partition images and data backups), it
accomplishes the same things. It's easy to perform on a regular basis and
it's easy recovery if things go pear shaped. Neither plan is "better" -
they are both good tools that accommodate individual computing styles and
usage patterns.

Interesting topic - a favorite of mine. Thanks for letting me join the
discussion.

 

[Susan Sharm]

An important point in file management is to keep the structure simple.
Simple structure = regular backups.
Complicated structure = "oops, I haven't done a backup in 3 months."

Hi Sharon,

Thank you for offering your insight. This is a favorite topic of mine
also!
I agree, the simpler and more consistent, the better.

My backups are trivial.
1. If I wish to backup all my important data, I back up C:\My Data.
2. If I wish to backup all my application installers, I back up C:\My
Installers.

My backup strategy is that simple.
Susan

 

[Susan Sharm]

My backups are trivial.

I back up C:\My Data.
I back up C:\My Installers.

Also, when I migrate to a new machine (which I do often), setup is just
as simple.

First, I grab my archived blueprint CDROM containing empty directory
trees.
Then, I grab my archived DVD backups of "My Data" & "My Installers".

I copy the "My Programs" blueprint empty directory tree to the new PC.
I copy the Start-Menu blueprint of archived shortcuts to the new PC.
I copy the "My Data" backup to the new PC.

Then, one by one, I install the applications from my archived "My
Installers" DVD (i.e., archivers, browsers, calendars, databases,
editors, finances, games, hardware, isps, mailers, etc.) into the now
existing blueprint of empty directories.

Voila! The new PC is all set up the same way the old PC was!
It's so simple & intuitive, I don't even have to create new shortcuts!

I hope my posts add to the general knowledge level & abilities of the
community,
Susan

 

[Susan Sharm]

Then, one by one, I install the applications from my archived "My
Installers" DVD (i.e., archivers, browsers, calendars, databases,
editors, finances, games, hardware, isps, mailers, etc.) into the now
existing blueprint of empty directories.

One more point.

The organization of the application installation hierarchy needs to be
as hierarchical as it needs to be (as compared to the typical
"C:\Program Files" which is too flat and almost wholly unorganized
except by the inconsistent whims of each of the individual installation
program marketing groups).

However, in my use model, there is a rule that there shall NEVER be an
application installed directly into the C:\My Programs hierarchy. That
is, a flat file structure is strictly forbidden in my use model.
Everything belongs at least one subdirectory below the top level of the
My Programs hierarchy.

For example, for a simple set of applications such as "C:\My
Programs\My Mailers", one might expect to see only a few installed
applications only two levels deep, e.g.,
C:\My Programs\My Mailers\Blat
C:\My Programs\My Mailers\Eudora
C:\My Programs\My Mailers\Pegasus
C:\My Programs\My Mailers\Thunderbird
etc.

Likewise, I promote a simple two-level hierarchy for NNTP news readers,
e.g.,
C:\My Programs\My Readers\40tude Dialog
C:\My Programs\My Readers\Free Agent
C:\My Programs\My Readers\NewsXpress
C:\My Programs\My Readers\Xnews
etc.

In stark contrast, some hierarchies require three or more levels, e.g.,

C:\My Programs\My Vaccines\My Cleaners\Crap Cleaner
C:\My Programs\My Vaccines\My Cleaners\Clean Up!
C:\My Programs\My Vaccines\My Cleaners\Easy Cleaner
C:\My Programs\My Vaccines\My Cleaners\Internet Eraser
etc.

C:\My Programs\My Vaccines\My Firewalls\Filseclab
C:\My Programs\My Vaccines\My Firewalls\Kerio
C:\My Programs\My Vaccines\My Firewalls\Sygate
C:\My Programs\My Vaccines\My Firewalls\Zone Alarm
etc.

C:\My Programs\My Vaccines\My Malware\Ad-Aware
C:\My Programs\My Vaccines\My Malware\HijackThis
C:\My Programs\My Vaccines\My Malware\Spybot Search & Destroy
C:\My Programs\My Vaccines\My Malware\Spyware Blaster
etc.

The main point is the rule that nothing ever gets installed flat into
the application hierarchy by name; everything is installed at least two
levels deep by task and subtask as needed.

I hope this post, like all my posts, add to the general knowledge of
the community,
Susan