my gvm has crashed on me a lot too and i blame it on a faulty installation (can't read/can't connect to gvm errors, etc). it is really frustrating especially if each app has its own activation password/key and is composed of several pdb/prc files! but i think i have found a stable way of installing apps without using hotsync. here's how i did it.

format memory (64mb)
install one app
run any app (most crucial step! with an app running in the background there seems to be NO errors during install/uninstall)
go back to gvm WITHOUT closing the running app
install from file, select next prc/pdb file, install everything!
go back to emulator, hit home to refresh icons

just remember to open any app before you install something.

now my app list (17 apps) doesn't get erased anymore. dunno why but it seems to be more stable such that even if an app crashes the emulator, the list isn't corrupted and i can safely install/uninstall anything i want.