Who Got Caught Disabling Windows Update? - Comments Page 3

Boy, I am with the group, that wants to install, at their own risk. I have done both ways, automatic and do not install, without my approval.

I can't tell you, how many times, that I have had to re-install games, because, of the automatic updates!!! Right now, I have about 6 games, where I need to insert the CD, to activate them, again!!! I have it set, for automatic, to see if, I can get the Windows 10 icon, in the taskbar and it hasn't worked. Oh, it worked on my Hubby's computer, but, not mine. I DO have a Genuine Windows 7 Professional 64-Bit OS, yet, the Windows Update does not seem to recognize it.

I am going back to ... Update, when I give approval.

I felt I had to chime in *on behalf* of customers who don't read geek newsletters or understand the first thing about their computers. Think guys, how those customers outnumber you, by the thousands. Most don't understand anything, they just want their computer to work so they can play on Facebook and watch funny cat videos. Meanwhile their updates have been turned off and all kinds of nasties are helping themselves to these vulnerable people and their computers.
Now, YOU GUYS know what you're doing and that's why there's the option "let me choose". But for the vast majority of computer users, they are better served by the auto Updates. Then, if their kids or tech says 'hey, pops, there's a better driver I can download for you", then THEY "can choose" (like you get to choose) for themselves. But do you guys really think that it was perfectly OK for Samsung to do what they did? It was egregious.
No, I'm not a computer geek, and neither am I a MS groupie. But I'm not a novice either. I read HowToGeek.com and BobRankin, but most, if not all of my friends and colleages have no idea any of this is even going on.

@Nightwish_Fan --- You are correct, Newbies or Non-Savvy Computer users must have the automatic updates, from Microsoft, for their protection. I fully agree, with you.

Sometimes, I forget, that not everyone knows much about computers or even, knows how to fix anything, on a computer.
When I did a fair amount of repairing PCs for family or friends, I always made sure, that Window Updates were always set to automatic, for their own protection. Most of them, would never remember, to check for MS Updates and to download them or install them. It is/was just as hard to get them to remember to update their A/V programs, if, they were using a FREE version of an A/V program, that didn't have automatic updates. I started using Avast!'s FREE version, for that very reason ... It has had automatic updates, since, the beginning or for a lot of years.

Thanks for the reminder, about what Samsung has been doing, that is totally wrong, for their consumers. It looks like HP does this, to business PCs ... NOT good, either. I do realize, that BIG business has an IT Department, but, what about the Home Office business or just a Small Business??? They need protection, too, don't they?

I'm on Windows 7 (for now, while I learn Linux) and like others, go with the "ask me" option after each time it auto updated, PUPS rode in with them. It took too many times of cleaning out garbage that I decided to learn Linux.

Dear Bob,
You are naively stuoid and blind about windows updates. Read your reader's comments and WAKE UP. To blindly install every update that the criminals at Redmond send out is an act of sheer stupidity. Relinquishing control of your own PC to a gang that has issue patches for their patches ad infinitum, is purely asinine, especially when you coax your reader to do it.

EDITOR'S NOTE: You are welcome to your opinion, but I won't be changing mine. Without automatic software updates, we'd have tens of millions of impossibly corrupted computers spewing spam, spreading viruses, and attacking others via sprawling botnets.

Sure, there will be some glitches caused by updates, but these are quite rare in the big picture. How many users are savvy (or interested) enough to examine each software update that's offered, and do the research required to determine if it might cause an issue with their computer?

Unless you are an expert in computer security, networking, mass storage devices, font management, print spooling, device drivers, and a dozen other specialties, you're just going to be guessing most of the time. Automatic updates have a huge upside, and a small downside for a tiny percentage of users.

Auto update - no way. I had it set that way, but every time it updated I had MAJOR problems and would need to restore. I prefer to have it alert me and I choose what I want to download.

I turn auto updates off because it never fails... any time it's enabled, my computer has nothing but problems to the point of having to re-install Windows. This past month I neglected to turn it off on a new computer before I went online to download my firewall and anti-virus and before I could stop it, it started downloading several hundred updates, security patches, drivers, etc. I stupidly decided to give MS another chance (my bad!!) and left it on. My new computer slowed to a crawl and BSD, freezing and random reboots began to occur. It was also downloading updates several times a day. I ended up wiping the HHD of a one week old computer, reinstalled the OS and once again set updates to "never". With a good firewall and anti-virus, my computer runs fast and clean and I've never had any problems with updates turned off; only when it's turned on.