OldVersion.com

{{Short description|Archive website for old version of software}}

{{Infobox website

| name = OldVersion.com

| logo = OldVersionLogo.png

| screenshot = OldVersion.com Homepage 2025-04-01 18.31.42.png

| caption = OldVersion.com Homepage 1 April 2025

| url = {{URL|http://www.oldversion.com/}}

| type = Freeware/shareware archive of old software versions

| language = English

| registration = Optional (to post on forum).

| author = Alex Levine, Igor Dolgalev

| launch_date = {{Start date and age|2001|05|31}}

| current_status = Up

}}

OldVersion.com is an archive website that stores and distributes older versions of primarily Internet-related IBM PC compatible and Apple Macintosh freeware and shareware application software. Alex Levine and Igor Dolgalev founded the site in 2001.{{cite news

|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB114117101940985905 |title=Unhappy Upgrades: Software Users Seek Help 'Downgrading' Their PCs |author=Andrew Lavallee |date=2006-03-07 | work=The Wall Street Journal | url-access=subscription}}

Levine created the site because "Companies make a lot of new versions. They're not always better for the consumer." As reported in The Wall Street Journal, 'Users often try to downgrade when they find confusing changes in a new version or encounter software bugs, or just decide they want to go back to a more familiar version,' said David Smith, an analyst at research firm Gartner. 'Often, they discover that the downgrade process is complicated, if not impossible.'

When OldVersion.com was launched it offered 80 versions of 14 programs.{{cite news | first=Pamela LiCalzi | last=O'Connell |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/11/08/technology/online-diary.html |title=Online Diary - Oldies but Goodies |work=The New York Times |date=November 8, 2001 |url-access=subscription}}

By 2005, over 500 versions were posted.{{cite book| title=PCs: The Missing Manual |page=536 |author=Andy Rathbone |author-link=Andy Rathbone |publisher=Pogue Press |isbn= 0-596-10093-0 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NvYlz7YlCAwC&dq=oldversion.com&pg=PA536 |date= 2005-12-23}}

By 28 August 2007, this had grown to 2388 versions of 179 programs, in categories such as "graphics", "file-sharing", "security" and "enterprise".{{cite web | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070828202817/http://oldversion.com/ |archivedate=2007-08-28 |title=Oldversion.com as of 2007-08-28| work=oldversion.com |url=http://oldversion.com/}}{{cite web | first=Jennifer L. | last=DeLeo | url=https://uk.pcmag.com/guide/67669/old-software-versions-we-want-back |title=Old Software Versions We Want Back | work=PC Magazine |date=October 20, 2008 }} The site also carries 600+ versions of 35 Macintosh programs.[http://mac.oldversion.com Mac.OldVersion.com website]{{dead link|date=March 2025}} mac.oldversion.com. Retrieved 2010-07-04.{{fv|date=March 2025|reason=This link doesn't show that list of 35 programs; the number of versions can't be validated}}

In 2007, PC World labeled the site "a treasure trove ... of older-but-better software";{{cite news |url=https://www.pcworld.com/article/137703/article.html |title=Before They Spoiled the Software | first=Preston | last=Gralla | work=PC World |date=September 30, 2007}}

In 2005, National Review called OldVersion.com a "champion" for "software conservatives".{{cite news |title=Older Is Better: Software conservatives have a home in Oldversion.com |url=https://www.nationalreview.com/2005/03/older-better-rami-genauer/ | first=Rami | last=Genauer | work=National Review |date=March 28, 2005}}

According to Alexander Levine's own words, he has received threats from proprietary software developers for distributing old versions of web browsers, in particular, Internet Explorer which is difficult to support.{{Cite web |last=Levine |first=Alexander |date=January 15, 2012 |title=Why I'm willing to go to jail for running OldVersion.com |url=http://blog.oldversion.com/why-i-willing-to-go-to-jail-for-running-oldversion-com/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190406104815/http://blog.oldversion.com/why-i-willing-to-go-to-jail-for-running-oldversion-com/ |archive-date=April 6, 2019 |access-date=January 26, 2024 |website=OldVersion}}