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Microsoft Update - Usage Overview
Originally Published: July 14,
2005
Once Microsoft Update has completed
installing, you can see from the screen capture below there
really isn't anything vastly different from the old Windows
Update interface. The [ Express ] and [ Custom ] buttons are
present to get you started on updating the system. Options
are listed on the left hand side of the interface and the
right side contains a reminder of how Automatic Updates is
currently configured.
Clicking the [ Express ]
button still yields nothing different from the previous
Windows Update. If there were any new updates available they
would be listed along with an option to go ahead and begin
the installation. Since there aren't any updates, clicking
the [ Microsoft Update Home ] link returns you to the main
Microsoft Update interface. Remember that the [ Express ]
button only deals with high priority updates.
Clicking the [ Custom ]
button takes you to the area where the advantages of
Microsoft Update over Windows Update become apparent. Notice
in the capture below I've highlighted in red the section
where the types of updates are selected. The High Priority,
Software, and Hardware updates under Select by Type haven't
changed, but the Select by Product section is new to
Microsoft Update. You can see that the option is available
to select updates for the Windows XP Family of products or
Office 2003 products. Obviously, if you don't have Office
2003 installed then it won't be listed, but you get the
idea. Unlike Windows Update that dealt strictly with the
Windows XP Family, Microsoft Update expands the update
options from this single interface rather than having to
visit the individual update sites that are product specific.
The downside to the Select
by Product area is that not many products are supported. In
the Microsoft Update FAQ section Microsoft states, "In
addition to Windows updates, the Microsoft Update website
offers updates for some Microsoft products, including
Microsoft Office 2003, Office XP, Microsoft Exchange Server,
and Microsoft SQL Server. Typically, only updates for the
latest version of each product are offered." That's too bad
because Microsoft Update really is pretty convenient, but
hopefully the list of supported products will grow over
time.
Using the [ Review Your
Update History ] link it's a simple matter to go back
through and see what updates have been installed. I'd like
to see the ability to remove updates incorporated right into
Microsoft Update rather than have to navigate to Add and
Remove Programs in Control Panel strictly as a matter of
convenience. It would make it more of a "one stop shop" for
controlling the updates.
In an effort to keep the user interface clean and prevent
updates you don't want from being displayed each time you
acess Microsoft Update, users have the ability to hide
updates that have been declined. Using the [ Restore Hidden
Updates ] link will display a list of the hidden updates and
allow them to be restored to the available update list.
Accessing the [ Change Settings ] link you are able to
change the language used to view Microsoft Update and also
force Microsoft Update to show Beta products and their
related updates.
Also included in the [ Change Settings ] link is the ability
to uninstall Microsoft Update and return to using the
standard Windows Update. I don't know why this was tucked
away in [ Change Settings ] rather than have a separate link
prominently displayed on the main user interface window, but
the ability to uninstall it was included. Uninstalling also
removes the [ Microsoft Update ] link that was installed in
the upper section of Start > All Programs during the Windows
Update installation process.
The [ FAQ ] and [ Get Help and Support ] links are worth a
read through as they provide a bit more in depth information
and additional links if you run into an issue that isn't
readily solvable. A link to Troubleshooters is also in the
Help and Support section.
The final link [ Use Administrator Options ] covers the
updating process for networks and also has links to
alternative sources for obtaining updates.
The Bottom Line Microsoft
Update offers a clean, efficient interface for keeping the
system current and up to date. Other than the fact it offers
the ability to select updates by product rather than just
for the XP operating system family, there really isn't any
great benefit over Windows Update. I used it for the latest
round of 'Second Tuesday' updates and it worked just as I
expected. Over time I hope it will evolve a bit more to
include more supported applications and a few features I
mentioned in the article, but for now it does what it's
intended to do with no problems.
Microsoft Update
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Microsoft Update - Installing |
