If you can live with the memory limitations, which aren't that bad, but which do exist, and are reachable, you can live without cloning.

But for most users, who are not disciplined about how many programs they install and really don't want to be, the way to escape is thru cloning. If you have a smallish band of favorite programs and are willing to keep culling the herd to match the limited amount of pasturage you have, you don't need to clone.

I like to experiment and try everything, so for me, cloning is a must.