The options

AppUpdater encapsulates some of the most important aspects of a package manager, but significantly will alienate many users because it is command-line only. It assumes a working knowledge of the command line and the corresponding willingness to interpret lines like “start /B /WAIT /BELOWNORMAL "" "C:\Program Files\Appupdater\cache\winscp403setup.exe" /verysilent /norestart”. Unfortunately AppUpdater, while it easily enough lists all the packages in its database, does not contain any information on what each program does. This limits its use, as users who do not know the programs already are right back where they started before using a package manager.

AppUpdater is clearly meant for unattended additional setup on PCs by administrators, to ease the burden of installing a lot of applications. On its list of packages users see the application, its current version and whether it has a ‘silent’ install or not. This will help administrators know what they can install without needing to wait around while it ‘speaks up’, asking for user information or the paths to install. It does include the option of installing it as a Windows service, enabling automatic updating.

InstallPad is another story altogether. It provides users with a simple short list of common Windows programs, such as Google Desktop or Adobe Reader. The user selects which to install and hits the install button. The database of applications open to the user is relatively tiny so no real search function is provided as none is currently needed. The database can be updated using XML so the lack of a search function could be problematic if InstallPad grows to fast.

InstallPad acts as a time-saver at best, installing some common programs so the user only needs to download InstallPad, and it will worry about the rest. It won’t bother users with updates and it doesn’t give information on the packages it includes. In this way

AppSnap is probably the closest of the three to a standard Linux package manager, with a sizable database of applications for users to browse. Again searching could be a problem for this growing package manager, but for now the list is manageable, and extensive. While it doesn’t discreetly manage updates it has the ability to check the latest version of each package it offers, which can then be installed over the current version through AppSnap or updated within the package’s program itself.

AppSnap also provides a small description and link to each package’s homepage, so users know what they are looking at when they see an option to install RocketDock or AbiWord. This allows everyday usage with ease, a market the previous two package managers cut themselves out of with small package lists or the requirement of command-line knowledge.

It is interesting to note that most of the applications provided by these Windows package mangers are open-source; many are applications with Linux versions. From Inkscape to OpenOffice the developers of these package managers have clearly been influenced by the content of Linux package managers, as well as their purpose. The problem occurs when the package manager is optional. When it is integrated into the operating system it becomes the default way for users to install things and so is commonly used. With Windows however the default is exploring the internet for programs. This leaves post-OS installation of extra applications as the only role of the package manager.

Package managers in Windows will never become as wide-spread and useful as their Linux counterparts because of a lack of integration within the operating system. They can still find a home providing a small subset of the functions available to programs like Synaptic or YaST.