Configuring updates:

After a busy couple of weeks followed by my summer holiday, it is back to writing my blog. This time Windows Update is the subject of my wrath. When Microsoft released the concept of Automatic Windows Updates it all made good sense, but now I'm not so sure! With Windows Vista these updates are always applied both before a shutdown and after a reboot, making the restart process a lot longer. And they always seem to need a reboot which nags away at you until you feel forced to go away and have at least one cup of coffee.

Over the last few months this seems to be the normal mode of operation now. I timed a mid-specced, modern PC with this month's updates and it took 6¼ minutes to shutdown and 3¼ minutes to reboot making a total on almost 10 minutes. And as I type this, it is nagging away again saying that it needs to reboot again. I find this obtrusive and takes the control of the tool away from the user. And it is not just Windows but every application you have and some you don't want, are all asking to be updated.

I'm an engineer who believes that 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it' so why should I continually be changing a proven software configuration with some updates that could cause the thing to fail? Security I hear you say. Are we really sure that leaving an unpatched computer on the Internet with a good a security suite on it will really fall victim to a piece of malware? I see many computers that never install updates and aren't completely ridden with viruses, worms, etc.

I upgraded the memory in the PC and I have to wait many minutes while the thing shuts down and restarts and no option to avoid it. I'm seriously considering turning off Automatic Updates and relying on a three or six month 'grab 'em all and install once' option.