Overwriting files

If you install and OLD progam on a new system, shouldn't the OLD program let you know if it is about to overwrite a file which is NEWER than the one it's about to replace?

In other words, no program regardless how old it is, should overwrite a newer file with an old one without prompting you?

 

AceH To answer in the term you asked the question in, the answer would be no. No program should overwrite a newer file with an older one but alas, it isn't always true. Some programs do things they shouldn't do and you have no way of knowing whether it will or won't overwrite you into the past.

Backups are always a good idea prior to installing any software but especially freeware and shareware.

 

Zephyr,

I have an old Corel ClipArt program from Win 95 days. For some reason the CD has a "setup" program which has to be run before it can be used. I know something this old has old files so I was just trying to be cautious.

 

I couldn't pick a better company to trust than Corel. No guarantees but I doubt you'll have any problem with that clip art program. I'm not saying the big companies don't make their fair share of mistakes but it generally isn't from poorly written code like some of the fly by night/seat of the pants upstarts.

Go for it! Too bad you don't have GoBack. No fear then...

Edit, Think about getting InCtrl5 so you can monitor your installs and know what changes have been made. That's second best to GoBack but a lot better than working without a net. It's FREE too! InCtrl5

 

Thanks Again!

 

Zephyr,

I remember InCtrl from the Windows 3.1 days--before there were version numbers on it. It was the very best installation tracking program I had seen at that time and, after installing it and seeing how flawlessly it worked and how complete its list of changes to the system were, I didn't install another program without it.

It is also an excellent tool for the analytical types who want to understand more about how programs work.

Thanks for the link. I just downloaded the latest edition and am looking forward to using it again.