Clean Install

[Miamiensis]

I am planning to do a clean install (erase-install Lion, install all the applications, redo preferences etc...) since I have been carrying a lot of overhead from previous installations, applications etc. I have time machine backup and superduper bootable disks for the current system ( that is 10.7.3 Lion). Rather than going thru this time-consuming project, are there any suggestions that I could follow by the community? Thanks

[dnanian]

My honest suggestion - don't do this. A clean install is very time consuming. You'll have to literally reinstall everything. You'll have to create new accounts. You'll have to copy back things with Finder (user things, not application things) by hand. It's going to take a lot of time.

Do you really think this is something that you must do?

[Miamiensis]

More I dig in to the specifics of the system more I find customizations- that were done years ago and were carried from old OS to the new... I am not decided 100% to go forward with this kinda installation, as you say it will be enormously time consuming. So, may be I should ask a different question: what would be the second best solution to a clean install, as described above?

[dnanian]

Uninstall applications you're not using, pretty much, if you must. I'm not sure how the "customizations" you had made before might be harming you...

[Miamiensis]

Gotcha! I will uninstall and/or delete some of the files and not mess with it! I am planning to get a new iMac ( that is as soon as the new model comes out) and wanted to have fresh start!

Thanks

[astrodog]

I'll add my 2c - because I did a clean reinstall of Lion earlier this year.... took probably an afternoon and an evening to do 99% of it - I found it well worth it to be honest, certainly fixed an irritating bug I couldn't solve otherwise (external drives losing contact with Finder)....
I didn't find it that much of a chore, just a good spring clean out really! After 3 or 4 laptop purchases and migration assistants a lot of detritus collects.... :)