Free software advocates always were sceptical about non-free application such as Skype. Their closed nature doesn't allow community t review what it does to your computer. I have always been careful with using non-free applications, especially under GNU/Linux platform unlike my friends who keep on recommending and endorsing non-free applications such as Skype and Photoshop.

A recent goof-up exposed Skype's practice of installing partner software on Windows PCs without users permission or wish to install such app.

H-Online reports that "Users were given the option to abort the installation – but the program was installed regardless. The unwanted program created a separate program folder and proved difficult to uninstall. Although it appeared in the list of installed programs and could be uninstalled from there, the program folders and their contents as well as the Skype plug-in remained in place."

I don't think Skype had any malicious intent, but this is the very nature of non-free applications which makes me skeptical about them.

Skype says on its site, "The Extras Manager has been included in Windows releases of our software since 2006. This latest update from EasyBits included elements of their desktop games organizer in error, but it neither installs nor un-installs correctly."

Do you get a message about the installation of EasyBits when you install Skype? I don't know because I don't use Windows.

So what is EasyBits and how it helps ordinary user?

EasyBits is a game channel and a collection of multiplayer games, both classic board games and casual games. I don't know if my mom ever played such games so why is it installed on her machine without her permission?

In its statement EasyBits said, "Our users have made many suggestions during the years and our last update was driven by making as many of the suggested improvements as possible in the EasyBits GO update. Since the update, game sessions have jumped from 850,000 top daily game sessions to over 7 million game sessions globally yesterday."

This is yet another reason why you must stay away from non-free applications such as Skype, user open source!