It gets worse10 reasons why not to updateWhat you should know about updates before ever proceeding blindly to do them. One is always optimistic that things will get better but very often things actually get worse. So here are a few tips to consider before proceeding. Don't do updates:
1. If you don't like change Today's world seems to have lost sight of what the customer needs and expects or wants. Most updates are not reversible which means you can't go back to the previous working situation, especially in the Google world. Generally an update starts a chain reaction where it is not fully compatible with something else. This means being forced to update something else, and so on. The concept of updates is also an issue because the original product was designed and tested fully before being released. Its firmware/software is generally sound. However someone else may be assigned to make an update or add a feature without knowing or realising what the product is currently doing and may only test that change, not realising it breaks something else. As you can't go back they have to fix the update quickly (which is another source of problem to locate what went wrong quickly, how to fix it and fully test it) or release an untested fix and it goes downhill from there. With cost cutting many companies now pass updates directly to the users to test. The supplier may only do the basic tests and leave users to do the rest for them. Many updates are now just beta or even alpha releases. Somewhere also the concept of upward compatibility has been lost. A lot of the problems come from marketing where they try and make something you don't want, or need, or will use, in order for it to look sexy or modern to get you to buy an upgrade in order to get your money. It's not about trying to ensure what you have will continue working. Without new features, security scare tactics or "no longer supported" issues are used to force people to update. Essentially this is product abandonment forcing users to migrate by not providing support. It was probably Google who introduced the term "deprecation", in other words forced incompatibility. This concept and not being able to go back are at the heart of the majority of problems which makes updating generally a bad idea for users, developers and manufacturers alike. It is totally alien to progress and upward compatibility. Add into the mix that you can't get good support anymore and you are left on your own, you can't go back, to go forward could mean updating almost everything you own and may be re-mortgaging your house to pay for all the changes, simply because a supplier has decided to change things. In most cases updates are voluntary but are usually on by default, but turning off the default can be a major challenge, especially with Microsoft, who even go so far as to turn on the settings you have chosen to turn off without you knowing. Essentially suppliers can deny how you use something, they will
decide for you and override what you have defined, or stop you defining
it. The biggest mistake when something stops behaving as it should, is to assume it needs an update to fix it. It is rarely the case, problems are more likely environmental, network or elsewhere. occasionally mild corruptions in existing components, that are easily fixed with a restart in many cases, which of course has to be done in the correct manner. In the "Store" world the worst mistake is to uninstall something in the hope that it will fix the problem when you reinstall it. It can easily happen there is no longer a version available to install on your device, so not only can you not install it again but any device that depends on the software being installed is no longer usable So when someone, no matter who tells you to delete something and reinstall it, don't do it blindly, until you have checked this is a viable option first. No one knows your situation better than you. To safeguard your programs, apps, firmware, etc. the first option is to turn Off any automatic updates for anything. This ensures that you don't unexpectedly find a completely different and unfamiliar situation when you run a program and starts an immediate panic recovery situation, that you are not prepared for, or may be even unable to carry out. There can also be a very important hidden "Gotcha" which not updating can avoid. If you have auto updates On, this would normally mean the latest version for your device is already installed. However some suppliers stop updating for old devices and you may see a more recent version in the store that applies only to a later model only. So if a bug has been introduced in the latest version for your device even if you can reinstall it you will still get the same version and same bug, which will probably never get corrected for your device. It makes sense to keep updates Off once you have a working version to avoid this risk. What you may see in the store is the latest version available from a certain OS level for the device. What you may not see is if there is an older version and if there is, it's latest release level. Some unscrupulous suppliers force an update before you can go into a program and not only do you end up having to accept things you aren't in agreement with, and worse it can happen when trying to use the program and you aren't able to install it immediately, no network, not enough battery, or time, etc., which means you may no longer be able to make payment or do something that is needed to be done urgently. Software novice suppliers, like car manufacturers, who haven't mastered the update process fully yet, may just install a new version and in so doing remove your configurations and settings, it turns into simply installing a fresh copy. The problem is those lost settings may have been established over a long period of time and not easily replicated. The additional problem with that is the interface is possibly also primitive. If you are in a multi lingual environment and the system switches to some other default language it can be very difficult to get it back to a language you recognise to make any setup at all. To make matters worse it may happen just before you need to use the car, or other apps on phones or PCs too. For essentially commercial reasons many suppliers no longer care about users, but only about revenue. They employ novice developers who have no knowledge of the traditional backup your system before update concept and restore back if it is not working as desired.. The same suppliers generally also have very poor support which compounds the problem, just when help is essential. Plan to do updates, make sure you know what is changing, how it will affect you and your equipment, research the consequences before embarking on it. Do the process in a reasoned manner, not because someone says it's the thing to do or you feel you may be missing out on the very latest features [odds are if it has been working fine you are unlikely to need those features]. Make sure that the supplier provides good support should you need it, bearing in mind that good resolution or assistance is getting quite are these days. Very often a ticket will be made and then nothing actually gets done. Ironically many security programs are the most invasive attackers of all [not the actual attacks they propose to defend] in forcing you to do things, that may make things worse for you or stop good programs working properly or at all and forcing you to buy new versions by scaring you, you will be unprotected otherwise! In some cases they can even stop you using your device unless you pay or remove them. |