Application Won't Install or Uninstall

Question

This concerns a photo viewing program, Nikon View NX, latest version 1.1.0, but I'm wondering if the problem is with the OS.
I had View NX 1.1.0 installed yesterday but it was running terribly, not responding to mouse clicks, running slow, triggering commands that I had not clicked, so I tried to uninstall it. The uninstaller would not operate: it kept quitting each time I would click on it. This seems to be a common issue with this program that the uninstaller will not open.
So I simply dragged the View NX folder to the trash and deleted it.
I then tried to reinstall a new download of View NX 1.1.0, but the installer will not install it. Each time I click on the .dmg file and then click on the install file, it asks for password, I put that in (I actually don't use a password so it's left blank) and then click okay, and the VISE X installer then QUITS without further ado.
I successfully re-installed an old copy of View NX 1.0 today but now it will not uninstall either. Uninstaller keeps quitting suddenly when I click on the uninstall button. However, this older version of the app. appears to be working okay.
I have "repaired permissions," restarted the computer, re-downloaded the new 1.1.0 version a couple of times, etc.
Nothing works.
Is this a VISE X problem or what? Any help would be appreciated.

Answer 1

Are you running OS X 10.3.9 or later? That is a system requirement for the software according to Nikon.
Uninstalling Software: The Basics
Most OS X applications are completely self-contained "packages" that can be uninstalled by simply dragging the application to the Trash. Most applications create preference files which are stored in the /Home/Library/Preferences/ folder. Although they do nothing once you delete the associated application, they do take up some disk space. If you want you can located them in the above location and delete them, too.
Some applications may install an uninstaller program that can be used to remove the application. In some cases the uninstaller may be part of the application's installer, and is invoked by clicking on a Customize button that will appear during the install process.
Some applications may install components in the /Home/Library/Applications Support/ folder. You can also check there to see if the application has created a folder. You can also delete the folder that's in the Applications Support folder. Again, they don't do anything but take up disk space once the application is trashed.
Some applications may install a startupitem or a Log In item. Startupitems are usually installed in the /Library/StartupItems/ folder and less often in the /Home/Library/StartupItems/ folder. Log In Items are set in the Accounts preferences. Open System Preferences, click on the Accounts icon, then click on the LogIn Items tab. Locate the item in the list for the application you want to remove and click on the "-" button to delete it from the list.
If an application installs any other files the best way to track them down is to do a Finder search using the application name or the developer name as the search term.
There are also several shareware utilities that can uninstall applications:
AppZapper
CleanApp
Yank
SuperPop
Uninstaller
Spring Cleaning
Look for them at VersionTracker or MacUpdate.
For more information visit The XLab FAQs and read the FAQ on removing software.