how does uninstalling a software work? Why is it so quick, when installing takes longer?
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Uninstallation deletes files from disk and entries from the registry which instruct some files to be called in specific situations, such as when a document file is opened or a peripheral device is connected.
Deletion can be faster because the space freed up is marked as free but not immediately cleared out. It can be reused later as needed. Often some registry entries are left behind to avoid deleting settings that the user might want to keep, and it could be too hard to track all settings and unambiguously associate them with this program. This has created a market for 3rd party programs that aim to provide a more thorough uninstallation.
The speed of installation and uninstallation is influenced by the number of operations done. Many small files sometimes found in software ported from linux would take longer than larger packs.
Installation can be further slowed down if the application runs a more complicated code to tailor the files to the specific system. For example, a game might convert textures from one color format to another. This is a bigger job for the processor than direct extraction.
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