RANT warning: $@#$#$#@% Windows Update crap.

[WNG]

I HATE Windows!! Specifically the lousy Update interface.

That stupid and annoying pop-up Reminding you to restart Windows to complete the update process. Every couple minutes.
It causes so much damage!!!!!
I lost all my running apps and a long write-up I was working on when I went to click on something and just that moment the @#$@$ pop up appears and the click get directed to its Restart button.
I'm sure this has happened to others out there.
Any of the experienced and talented members here know of a fix to kill that damn silly reminder once and for all?

Man I hate Microsoft. I will dance in the streets the day MS goes bankrupt. There isn't one product that isn't lame, bloated, poorly coded crap.
May they paint themselves into a DRM/gaming corner and become insignificant.
RANT off.

[Maxxarcade]

Re: RANT warning: $@#$#$#@% Windows Update crap.

If it weren't for the huge software base on Windows, I'd likely be using Ubuntu. I at least need full support for Quicktime though.

[Harvey]

Re: RANT warning: $@#$#$#@% Windows Update crap.

Any of the experienced and talented members here know of a fix to kill that damn silly reminder once and for all?

Turn off auto update, just check manually every month.

I've had a similar issue with Windows and the file download dialog; after spending a couple of hours downloading it pops up the 'copying' dialog to copy the file from the temp Internet folder to where you want it to be saved.

.. many times I've been typing away and it pops up the window just as I type a 'C' and... arrrrrrrrrrrrrgh - it cancels!!! BAS%^"£%^"£%D!!!!!!

[Topcat]

Re: RANT warning: $@#$#$#@% Windows Update crap.

That's why I always have automatic updates disabled.... Winblows doesn't do anything unless I tell it to...

[stretch0069]

Re: RANT warning: $@#$#$#@% Windows Update crap.

That's why I always have automatic updates disabled.... Winblows doesn't do anything unless I tell it to...

and then sometimes it doesn't do it....or do it the right way......or it takes an incredibly long time to do...or.....oh cripes, i could go on and on and on and .......





One day.......ONE day.....I'll finally migrate over to Linux. The day is fast approaching. I've pretty much stopped playing games on the PC. Only use it for research and posting here for y'all to laugh at.

[Tom41]

Re: RANT warning: $@#$#$#@% Windows Update crap.

What I find rather annoying is that when the 'must restart' dialog comes up, the option to 'restart later' is grayed out! There's also a countdown timer showing when your computer will automatically restart.

If you're in the middle of something and have just gone away from your computer to do something, you might find when you get back that it's restarted and you'll have lost everything. Imagine also if it was like that on a server that a lot of people were using at the time!

Perhaps it's because I use limited accounts to log onto XP? I do this to help stop malware installing itself in the background, and reduce the capability for system-wide damage by drive-by install pages.
I've accidentally cancelled downloads before like Harvey said, as well.

[davmax]

Re: RANT warning: $@#$#$#@% Windows Update crap.

I really am surprised by all the negative comments. I and the 30+ home users I support have no such problems. Most of those users do not fiddle with their systems, that could be a good reason. Myself, well I keep a very tight system, well protected by Kaspersky Internet Security, registry tuned with Registry First Aid, cleaned with Ccleaner and hard drive backups for quick recovery should I screw the system messing about.

For many years now XP has supported many in a very adequate and friendly way. Updates on my system are set to Auto and have never corrupted anything. The only slight interference occurs at Shutdown where updating will occur and the user is warned not to remove power during this updating process.

My experience over the last fifteen years of checking out Windows compliants over a wider user base is that the most common cause has been the user corrupting or allowing corruption of Windows. Often by installing free badly coded software or software that does not match the hardware, sometimes silly things like installing Win 98 drivers into XP.

[Spacedye69]

Re: RANT warning: $@#$#$#@% Windows Update crap.

I always set Update to notify, then download and install them when I am prepared to restart is necessary. 90% of the problems I have with Windows is because of their large software/driver base. Software engineering is at an all time low. The operating system is stable. Its the software and hardware vendors that need to learn how to program. One bad driver and your hole installation can be hosed.

Install things one at a time, see how it runs for a while, and always set recovery points.

[WNG]

Re: RANT warning: $@#$#$#@% Windows Update crap.

davmax,

Supporting 30+ home users can be a task in itself given their scope of computing knowledge, but many home users are not pushing their systems and configurations to their limits either.

My personal XP system is also very tightly controlled. XP has come a long way toward stability compared to the days before SP-2. But my rant is purely a Microsoft Windows internal shortcoming, not a third party driver or app. Not a user's poking around where he or she shouldn't be. It's simply the nature of what Windows Update deems as manual mode.
I leave my system running 24/7, likely others here also do. I may at any time require the system to complete a task ie. compile, simulation, design verification test runs, or simply typing away on a specification doc.
Like Spacedye69, Udpate is set to notify when updates are made available, but manual intervention for download and launch is selected.
Sadly, not all descriptions show which updates require restart. If there is a critical update, you'd want it, launch it.
But the typical Windows annoyance creeps in when a restart is required. After selection of restart later, it persists in reminding you every x minutes by popping an active window over your work. There is that small chance when you're pressing your mouse button on what you thought was your active app, but is actually the pop up.
'God' help you if that coincidentally was the spot as the Restart button.
Strike 1.
And the Restart is highlighted too, not the Later button as it should be.
You could be hitting the ENTER key for line breaks and suddenly, you hit Restart!
That's 2 strikes.
Given that a user's environment could have been vital at that time, no verification window is coded to double check the selection too.
3 strikes, you're out!

For a manual mode, it simply nags and nags, unlike a Linux update.
This is an inherent Windows problem, of assuming its user base are morons.
They should rename it to Russian Roulette mode.
My rant is specifically targeted at this poor code. And my release of steam is for losing all my work on a mouse click that went errant.

I've had to push 2k and then XP in automated test environments at work in my past. It revealed many shortcomings, produced a lot of headaches.
So, my opinion isn't as high as your's for their OS.

[toastygoodness]

Re: RANT warning: $@#$#$#@% Windows Update crap.

isn't there asetting in windows explorer where you can switch it so nothing makes itself the active window?

[Per Hansson]

Re: RANT warning: $@#$#$#@% Windows Update crap.

I've had allot of experience with setting up Windows Update Servers

All of the aspects of the windows update agent can be controlled nowdays (wasn't so when the windows update server was at version 1.0 )

Here is a copy paste from; http://www.windowsnetworking.com/art...ate-Part2.html

All keys he talk about are under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\windows\Windows Update
They are case sensitive and should be DWORD values.

Have you ever applied an update to a server and then had Windows prompt you to reboot the server at a time that just wasn’t convenient? Personally, I’ve always found it annoying that Windows Update keeps prompting you to reboot your server every few minutes while you are trying to work. You can however change the reminder frequency. To do so, simply create a registry key named RebootRelaunchTimeout. The value that you assign to this registry key should reflect the number of minutes that you want Windows to wait between reminders. For example, if you wanted a reminder every half hour, then you would set the value to 30. You can set the RebootRelaunchTimeout registry key to use any positive integer from 1 to 1440.

Of course you also have the option of getting rid of reboot reminders completely. To do so, create a registry key named RebootRelaunchTimeoutEnabled, and set the value to 0. If you decide later that you want to re-enable reboot reminders then just change this key’s value to 1.

[Per Hansson]

Re: RANT warning: $@#$#$#@% Windows Update crap.

Yo Momma!

Ok, under here, stupid forum garbaging my post :P

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Windows Update\AU

EDIT; Ok, Yo Mamma x2!

Try fucking this one up;

[acstech]

Re: RANT warning: $@#$#$#@% Windows Update crap.

What I dont like is what I call the "uninstallable update". This is the one that always tries to install when I shut down the computer, but never installs. So when I restart, "updates are ready for your computer." Annoying. Plus, there's always now that stupid little yellow shield icon in my tray. There needs to be an option to skip updates like that, or have it detect a failed installation and not retry it every time.

OBTW,

"Security Update for Flash Player (KB913433)"

[Spacedye69]

Re: RANT warning: $@#$#$#@% Windows Update crap.

On the MS update site, you can tick updates that you want to remove from your list of updates. That helps a little. I would also like a fix for the "update that never installs".

[WNG]

Re: RANT warning: $@#$#$#@% Windows Update crap.

Per, you're my hero!
Thanks.


I also have had that annoying update that can't install, and returns time and again, even if you select not to install and not to be notified(skip).

[Per Hansson]

Re: RANT warning: $@#$#$#@% Windows Update crap.

Aww, in my pic above, there isn't supposed to be a space in the name WindowsUpdate

MS has a whole page somewhere that describes what all settings does...

Also check out www.wsus.info