You don't have to be a business and shell out $$$$ to keep your MS OS
updated.

I have Microsoft XP Home on my desktop and have had other Microsoft
operating systems.  I regularly receive notifications from Microsoft
that updates are available for download.  Not as email, but via the
operating system which checks for these and then notifies me.  I then am
able to hook into MS and download the update with a click on the update
icon in my tray and then install it.   This lets me have these updates
which fix the seemingly interminable series of holes in the OS as soon
as they are available.  I almost always download them and install within
36 or so hours of receiving notice that they are available.

I don't pay any fee for this.  I just have the system set up to check
for the updates.  If I don't download the update, the OS keeps reminding
me periodically that it is available.  Similarly if I download it and
forget to install it right away, I get occasional reminders to do this.
Most of the updates are for holes in Internet Explorer and Outlook,
neither of which I use.  I use Netscape because so many virus writers go
after the MS products.  I update because I still want the MS OS to be as
current and protected from "attack" as possible.

The updates have been available from MS website for free for earlier
operating systems also.

Sam

--
Sam Walters
Baltimore, MD

89 Syncro GL
85 Westy Weekender
84 Vanagon, original owner, soon to be retired, just too many problems

All incoming and outgoing email scanned by
automatically updated copy of Norton AntiVirus.