FRITTERWARE

fritterware: translation

n.

Feature-laden software that seduces people into spending inordinate amounts of time tweaking various options for only marginal gains in productivity.

"Even without a modem, the computer offers vast possibilities for distraction. With Windows or OS/ 2, you can spend all day changing the color scheme, the fonts, the icons, the look and feel of your screen.... Stephen Manes, a novelist and co-author (with Paul Andrews) of a recent biography of Microsoft mogul Bill Gates, named this kind of program 'fritterware.' "

— Janes S.Fallows, "Computer Nerds, Stop Worrying: Your Obsession Can Make You a Better Human Being,"The Los Angeles Times

beerware

careware

coasterware

herdware

heroinware

macdink

missionware

retroware

shovelware

skinnable

slideware

timesuck

treeware

Programming and Software