Windows 8.1 May Update Apps in Background

[exfileme]

No more manual installs in Windows Store.

Windows 8.1 May Update Apps in Background : Read more

 

[drwho1]

this is not a good idea, it will lead to unwanted/unneeded Bloatware to be installed.

 

[AndreT]

I play online games and I do not want my computer to just start randomly taking up bandwidth when I have no control over it doing so. Users better be able to turn this 'feature' off. More reason to stay with Win 7 I guess.

 

[kickmyjiminy]

For me, all background updates mean is that it will do it at the most inconvenient time possible, like loading a game, trying to write an email, or work. I always set it to ask to do something first, not to just automatically do it.

 

[InvalidError]

Yay, more background stuff causing "phantom" HDD activity, as if Win8 wasn't already annoying enough with that.
I really miss the Win9x days where you could still choose at install-time how much bloatware you wanted and where to put it.

 

[stevejnb]

Not sure I like this for reasons already mentioned by others. It'll be fine for 90% of the people out there but for that 10% that do bandwidth sensitive things or actually want to select what they want to update this is meh. Updates that break programs are at an all time high - bad time to make updates just happen.
I'd like to assume there will be an option to have this not happen, but, I guess time will tell.

 

[weierstrass]

Get Linux, don't care.

 

[Wamphryi]

I would be surprised if there was not an option to download updates on demand just like there is now. Auto updates would work very well when contemplating the security requirements for groups of users. Do not forget that many third part applications download and install updates in the background. Normally you have to switch those features off. So if you have Win 7 it will be happening anyway.

 

[shafe88]

Wouldn't it be easier and more convenient for the app it's self to notify the user that their is an update when you first start the app and give the user the option to update or not right from the program. So simple to just let the app notify the person that their is an update, when their is an update a simple box pops up letting the person their is an update to the app, and ask the user if they want to update now.

 

[shafe88]

"Get Linux, don't care. " Something easier for most users "stick with WIn7" simple as that.

 

[shafe88]

"Get Linux, don't care. " Something easier for most users "stick with WIn7" simple as that.

 

[shafe88]

"Get Linux, don't care. " Something easier for most users "stick with WIn7" simple as that.

 

[shafe88]

"Get Linux, don't care. " Something easier for most users "stick with WIn7" simple as that.

 

[shafe88]

"Get Linux, don't care. " Something easier for most users "stick with WIn7" simple as that.

 

[shafe88]

"Get Linux, don't care. " Something easier for most users "stick with WIn7" simple as that.

 

[shafe88]

"Get Linux, don't care. " Something easier for most users "stick with WIn7" simple as that.

 

[shafe88]

"Get Linux, don't care. " Something easier for most users "stick with WIn7" simple as that.

 

[shafe88]

"Get Linux, don't care. " Something easier for most users "stick with WIn7" simple as that.

 

[shafe88]

What the hell's up with the new comment section.

 

[anxiousinfusion]

Most consumer internet services aren't even remotely fast enough to support this feature for families. QoS is going to become a hot trend on Google searches.

 

[erraticfocus]

Wouldn't it be easier and more convenient for the app it's self to notify the user that their is an update when you first start the app...

I'm fine with the auto update kind of behavior, as long as I can turn it off.

Your solution seems more elegant though and I hope that is how they end up going about it.

 

[dragonx47]

Note that it says 'will allow', not 'will force'. I'm sure you'll be allowed to turn it off if you want to, just like you can shut off Windows Updates if you want to.

 

[Lemuel Nolasco]

Whatever, I just simply love Windows 8.

 

[Matsushima]

This is just another example of why Windows 7 is still the best OS there is. Apart from being already a 'walled garden' platform, this will make the user be in even less control. This new feature will take up memory and internet speed, and will wreak all sorts of havoc. This like that feature in Vista where the applications you frequently open are saved in the DRAM and therefore will load faster, but only ended up eating precious memory space and slowing the system down.

 

[HavocX]

This is just another example of why Windows 7 is still the best OS there is. Apart from being already a 'walled garden' platform, this will make the user be in even less control. This new feature will take up memory and internet speed, and will wreak all sorts of havoc. This like that feature in Vista where the applications you frequently open are saved in the DRAM and therefore will load faster, but only ended up eating precious memory space and slowing the system down.

This feature is still in Windows 7 (and 8). The memory used for it is just reported differently in 7 and beyond. And it works great, unused RAM is wasted RAM!

You also missed that 8.1 "will allow" automatic updating of Metro apps. This is no different from allowing Windows Update to install patches for Office on Windows 7.