Re: Windows xp (Home Edition) updates. Yes or no???

Loring Hutchinson wrote: 
I have a P4 system with Win XP (home Ed). I use a  2 way satellite for
Internet access and I have his and her computers networked using
network cards and  Wingate software. So far I have not chosen to click
on the little popup window that appears on my desktop and says updates
are available. I have had this system for about 14 months. I would
really appreciate some knowledgeable inputs on the pros and cons of
downloading rhese updates. I have pretty good firewall protection with
the Earthlink satellite system and I use Norton ( a new one)
regularlly. The satellit systems modems, (one transmit and one
receive) seem to be very sensitive to changes,   Comments please??



Due to the nearly infinite number of possible combinations of hardware, device drivers, and applications on any given PC, it's impossible to guarantee that all patches will be 100% harmless. In a very small number of cases, patches and hotfixes can cause conflicts or other problems. So, as with all changes to an OS, caution is advised.

All "Critical" updates should be installed. These address serious issues that can affect a large number of computers. There will be only rare occasions when a Critical update will not apply. Of special importance are those that address security vulnerabilities. If people had installed the available critical updates in July of 2003, the Blaster and Welchia worms would not have spread throughout the Internet the following month. In the unlikely event that problems do develop, you can always use the Control Panel's Add/Remove Programs applet or a System Restore Point to uninstall the troublesome hotfix.

    For the "Recommended" updates, simply study the information
provided to see if these updates apply in your specific situation.  If
they don't apply, or you're not experiencing the problem(s) addressed,
you needn't install them.  For instance, I have no use for WinXP's
MovieMaker, so I ignore any updates to it.  Again, in the unlikely
event that problems do develop, you can always use the Control Panel's
Add/Remove Programs applet or a System Restore Point to uninstall the
troublesome hotfix.

    In general, though, I've found it best not to download the
"Driver" updates from Windows Update, unless they're for a hardware
device originally manufactured by Microsoft.  Device drivers provided
by each component's manufacturer's web site are likely to perform
better and offer more features than will the watered-down, "generic"
drivers that those manufacturers provide to Microsoft for distribution
via Windows Update.



--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:
http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on having both at once. - RAH
.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Windows XP auto updates stinks!!
    ... a dialog keeps coming up - every few minutes - asking "Do you want to restart the PC". ... I can see it happening once, the first time you ever used the OS and installed updates, but if you made the same mistake more than once, it's definitely no one's fault but your own. ... Well, as it was never a good idea to let updates install automatically, anyway, this is all to the good. ... Due to the nearly infinite number of possible combinations of hardware, device drivers, and applications on any given PC, it's impossible to guarantee that all patches will be 100% harmless. ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.general)
  • Re: Install all Upgrades???
    ... hardware, device drivers, and applications on any given PC, it's ... impossible to guarantee that all patches will be 100% harmless. ... provided to see if these updates apply in your specific situation. ... > Is it usful or even necessary to use the upgrades and if yes would ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.general)
  • Re: patch
    ... hardware, device drivers, and applications on any given PC, it's ... impossible to guarantee that all patches will be 100% harmless. ... provided to see if these updates apply in your specific situation. ... unless they're for a hardware ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.security_admin)
  • Re: 81 Critical Updates!
    ... Although Norton Internet Security is current, it appears that neither Windows XP nor MS Office have ever been updated. ... I download ALL of these at once or should I install them in batches, say 10 updates at a time? ... Due to the nearly infinite number of possible combinations of hardware, device drivers, and applications on any given PC, it's impossible to guarantee that all patches will be 100% harmless. ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.general)
  • Re: Windows Update
    ... I really don't like to see people use the Automatic Updates, unless they take precautions to ensure that no patches get installed without the user's express permission, given only after he/she has researched each individual patch to ensure that it applies and is necessary. ... Due to the nearly infinite number of possible combinations of hardware, device drivers, and applications on any given PC, it's impossible to guarantee that all patches will be 100% harmless. ... If they don't apply, or you're not experiencing the problemaddressed, you needn't install them. ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.general)
Loading