PC as in computer, not "politically correct"

Trying to download and install updates on kids computer running XP.
First off: NO geek peeps, I do not want to install Windows 8 or 9.1.138, or Unix, or spend $2K on a Mac.
Computers are for them to do homework and for me posting rubbish on seabreeze, I do not play Halo18 in 3D nor do I design bits for NASA. I object to spending $100 - $200 on something that worked just bloody fine last week or month.

So really - I just want to do the update. It tells me to download updates, it is SP3.5 I think, so I download the farker. Then it tells me to install so I click on that.

Then after 5mins of telling me it is doing it, then it says it could not.
There is no "why?" button or anything, no help, nothing. Then the little bubble coems up again asking me to download the update (which I have already done 30 farken times grrr ahhhhhrrgghhhhh)

On my computer, all updates worked fine. On the kid's computer (which used to be mine) it used to do updates just fine.

It has done this repeatedly for 3mths now (not just since they stopped supporting XP)

So... anyone...?


(Then as an aside, I want to put Office (Word, Excel and PictureIt Photo editor thing at a minimum ) on my computer but can't download them. Any ideas?)

On further thinking try this

Cassa said..
Try this www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/default.aspx

sorry but what it reckons it needs to download, does not appear on the lists on that page.

Plus, the dropdown box shows updates for IE, or Windows mobile, or Windows Live etc etc........... but nowhere do I see general O.S updates.
My PC tells me what I need and it don't work.
The Microsoft page lists heaps of updates for all manner of things and the forums and "help" may as well be in Farsi or Martian.

Maybe what I really need to ask is "where do i get the latest Windows for FREE with all the MS Office basic programs for FREEE?? - because I paid for the damn O.S so why should I have to pay again when they choose to redecorate?

Mark _australia said..


Trying to download and install updates on kids computer running XP.

XP isn't supported anymore mark , time to upgrade

dusta said..

Mark _australia said..





Trying to download and install updates on kids computer running XP.

XP isn't supported anymore mark , time to upgrade

I know it isn't
but this problem presented before it was unsupported.
Plus, it is the kid's computer for using basic educational websites and a bit of kidsafeGoogle for research. That's it.
So I just want it t work.

Kamikuza said..
Why do you need to update?

I dunno. I doubt I need to!!! But windows sends little message talking about the need to update for security, so I do. Then after doing that 10x in the last few years, suddenly it doesn't work.
So for me, it is like if Holden said "change your oil" and when i try they say "no you can't"
so I get all pissed off and ask why, but they won't tell me. Maybe oil is unavailable. Maybe it can only be done at a Holden dealer. But they won't say why, they just say "it didnt work"
That is why I find computers so farkin frustrating. Bloody geeks need to live in the real world.....

choco said..
disable auto update for starters

it is and always has been

to be clear - this computer always asked me if i wanted to download updates, and then if I wnated to install. Nothing has changed, it always used to ask me, then when I was ready I said yes.

Now with SP3.5 it asks me (like normal) so I say 'yes' and it does not work, every time, 10 or 20 times, over many months.



But interested in OpenOffice - will investigate thanks
EDIT: jsut looked and it says it works just like MS office. But I want to open a Word doc or Excel sheet that was emailed to me - will it?

^^ sorry that still means nothing to me. Looks like Windows with maroon taskbar ;-)

I want to

(1) update the kids PC as it prompts me too but it doesn't work


(2) on my PC running XP I would like to be able to open a word or excel doc but I can't as Office is not installed. That's it.
Will Ubuntu O.S work exactly like Office and enable me to open / edit those files?

Mark,

You can have a look at system event viewer in windows XP right after the update fails to see if any errors are logged. There might be an error message in there that you could google and find a solution.

To open/edit excel and word documents you can google "office starter" - it comes with basic excel and word applications and it's free.

Having said that, Ubuntu or Mint Linux is not a bad option to try. It has come a long way and it's pretty user friendly these days. Install is a breeze (way faster than XP, you don't need to bother with driver installations etc). Comes with all the software you need straight out of the box. FireFox for web browsing, LibreOffice for basic office functionality (it opens/edits MS word and excel files), various media players etc.

There are plenty of applications you can get from the App Market place. Most of them free.

And you can try it without installing it. Download it, burn to CD, boot from CD and choose the try option. It will run slower than it would if installed but you can see if you like it.

Ubuntu veeeeerrrrry secure
www.itnews.com.au/news/simple-ubuntu-1404-lock-screen-bypass-discovered-384036

Mark, the patch it wants you to install May be this one
www.itnews.com.au/News/384273,xp-included-in-urgent-internet-explorer-security-patch.aspx

Friends don't let friends use Internet Explorer. Make sure you have Firefox, chrome or other web browser installed and hide/delete all IE Icons.

Just another advocate for Ubuntu, although I think it might be out of Mark's capabilities to install it unguided. It would be good if he had a dual boot machine so that he could use Ubuntu and drop back to Windows when he got scared

I built a machine using Ubuntu 10.04LTS a while ago and it was meant to be a spare at my mother's place when my two nephews were there so they wouldn't fight over one computer.

Without any questions whatsoever the 9 year old started using it and figured out how to do everything including finding the game websites that they use to play games. I was very surprised, but kids being kids, they just play with it and figure it out.

can you say "download a cracked version of 7 and office and upgrade the whole show" on here?
u torrent and pirate bay. if you dont know how youtube it.

Just had a thought, if you're using telstra for internet, there may be a problem with ubuntu. Telstra seem to use there own protocols and you need to be able to run their program to use them. Of course you'll have great difficulty doing that on ubuntu.

d1 said..
Here is what Ubuntu with browser, Open Office, image editor looks like.
<a href=imgay.com/43vl0B8><img src=?1 title=Hosted by imgay.com />

Here's what a mans desktop look like...