Do you read End User Licensing Agreements (EULA) or just skim through the legalese? Be honest, it’s a hassle and takes too much time, doesn’t it? I won’t read every one of them in detail and sometimes that is at my peril. Fortunately, somebody was thinking of this importance to time problem and has developed a solution.

I learned about EULAlyzer in the new Dec 6, 2005 issue of PC Mag (Zinio subscribers received last night: $9.99 for 22 issues
affiliate). This useful app will allow you to drag a crosshair over any Windows software EULA (or you can copy/paste) and present you with specific points of interest before you install the software. There are two versions: a free version and a pro version.

With the pro version you get Otto the Owl who gives a hoot about EULA watching and will automatically detect and scan EULAs for you for most software installer programs. It is a one year license for $19.95 which also includes all new versions within that year. I was a little sketchy on what happened after that year license was up. Did the software quit working or was it just updates that were no longer free? I fired off an email and asked.

If you download/try a lot of software this one could particularly useful. BTW, I ran their own EULA through their software and the screenshot above shows the result. Give it a try and let me know what you think.