Windows XP SP3 hits Windows Update, Vista SP1 makes a comeback
At last the moment you've been waiting for. Microsoft wants to hit your version of Windows with an update, and this time you don't have to go rummaging around the internet to find it: just fire up Windows Update and let Microsoft do all the work. After a few false starts XP users get the much-anticipated SP3 update, which promises speed boosts and some of the fancy security features found in Vista. If you're a Vista user you're also in luck, since Microsoft has restarted its Vista SP1 distribution after some compatibility problems with Microsoft Dynamics RMS. Sounds like a party.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Microsoft kicked up a bit of a stir recently, when it began what appeared to be a practice of updating files on individuals' computers even when they had turned off the automatic update feature in Windows XP and Vista. That first came to light courtesy of the folks at the "Windows Secrets" newsletter, which found that nine files in XP and Vista were changed on or after August 24th, with no notification of the changes in Windows whatsoever. That was later confirmed by ZDNET's Hardware 2.0 blog, which tracked down the affected files and also pinpointed the update date as August 24th. Now, Microsoft has come out and explained itself, saying that the updates weren't really updates for Windows, but rather updates for Windows Update itself, which apparently didn't merit a notification. The company does admit that it could have been more "transparent" about the matter, however, and says it's now "looking at the best way to clarify" the behavior of Windows Update.



















