This is not so fresh but I couldn’t miss it and neither can you: WinACE got updated on the 12th of July to version 2.65.

Apparently, this release brings only a “new option for licensing your copy of WinACE”. This is how the developers call it; I call it adware supported software. Either way, what it all boils down to is this: if you want to legally use WinACE you can either go the “old way” and buy a license for 29 bucks or the “new way” by installing a “consumer utility that delivers relevant advertisements, exclusive offers and money saving coupons based on the web content that interests you”, namely the notorious WhenU Save adware thingy (check the link for some info).

Good? Bad? Well, in my opinion, it’s not going to make too much of a difference and here’s why: nobody wants adware on their computer, except the so-called “non-tech-inclined” people (also refered to as lazy or ignorant) since they might not have a clue about what those nice and shiny popup offers really do (invade privacy by tracking web browsing patterns, in short). But then again, these “not-computer-proficient” boys and girls don’t normally end up working with WinACE, they generally use the ZIP capabilities integrated in Windows or WinZIP.

I believe that advanced users don’t count in this situation – they’re going to buy it or crack it as they did before.

I wonder what will be the outcome of this for e-merge GmbH and WinACE, if the association between them and “partner WhenU” (quote) will somehow hurt their image.

When you first run WinACE 2.65 you are prompted to read some shareware information that states that the software is fully functional for 30 days, after which you will either have to purchase a license or get a free one by “installing an advertising-related software product”. You are warned that if you uninstall the adware, the “free” license will become void. WhenU Save is not included in the standard WinACE installation kit – it has to be downloaded from the Internet. The download and install process can be initiated from the shareware notice window itself. I tried to see how it works, but it hanged and the download step, although my firewall was not configured to block WinACE’s access to the Net.

Download WinACE 2.65 for Windows (.exe installer – 3.6MB)
Download Unace 2.5 for Linux (.tgz – 200KB)
Download Unace 2.5 for Mac OS X (.dmg – 136KB)
ACE products download page (various operating systems)