Almost two-thirds of our readers said that InstallShield DevStudio 9.0 was the Best Installer Software. However, this product has not only a new version but also a new maker. Since the Readers' Choice survey was conducted, InstallShield released a new version called InstallShield X. Shortly thereafter, Macrovision acquired InstallShield and its products.

Readers who liked DevStudio 9.0 will probably also like InstallShield X because InstallShield X combines the power and flexibility of DevStudio 9.0 with the cross-platform support of InstallShield MultiPlatform. The result is that you can build a single installation to target every platform, including Windows, Linux, Mac OS X, Sun Microsystems' Solaris, and any flavor of UNIX. You can even extend your installation capabilities to configure database servers, install Web services, and support mobile devices. And with InstallShield X, the application's life cycle doesn't end with its installation. You have the ability to continually update applications with updates and hotfixes.