Keep Your PC Up-to-Date 

     Have you ever been sitting at your PC at home and noticed the little notification bubble coming from your task bar informing you of Windows updates?  Perhaps you have never seen this kind of notification.  Did you ever wonder how your PC knew about the Daylight Savings Time change?  It is simple really.  Microsoft provides a free, online service which will update your computer automatically.

     Historically, Microsoft has provided updates for Windows operating systems, Microsoft Office applications, Internet Explorer, etc.  Just about everything Microsoft makes has an online update available for it.  And until recently, most of these update mechanisms have been separate.  But in the last year or two, Microsoft has gathered all these various updates into “Microsoft Updates.”  Microsoft Updates presents a central online location to update almost all of your Microsoft operating systems and software.  You may still update individual components if desired, such as performing “Windows Updates” without updating Microsoft Office.

     Updating your PC is quite simple.  Open Internet Explorer and select the “Tools” pull down menu.  Select the “Windows Update” option.  This will take you to the Microsoft Updates web page.  The site will automatically evaluate your Microsoft computer software and suggest updates.  You will have the option to do “Express” updates or “Custom” updates.  In most cases, running the Express updates is sufficient.  The page will also provide an option to provide Microsoft updates automatically.  This will allow the updates to be downloaded and processes mostly behind the scenes without much intervention from you.

     For more information or if you have questions about Windows updates, please visit http://update.microsoft.com.