Monday, June 5, 2017

Creator's update to Win 10: aka Big Patch 2017

So I let Windows Update do the "Creators Update".  It is big and fat.  Took hours to download and more hours to install after download.  It fixed the power button on my HP laptop.  The last big patch, last summer, broke the button.  I had to keep my finger on the power button for the count of ten to make the laptop power down AND turn off the LED in the power button.   Granted a LED only draws 10 milliamps out of a battery rated for an amp-hour or more, but even 10 milliamps will run the battery down if you put the laptop on the shelf for a week or so.  Anyhow Win 10 Creator's update fixed the button that the last big patch broke.  
   And then Creators update broke HP 3D Driveguard.  That's an HP program that does an emergency hard drive head park should the internal accelerometer sense the laptop is taking a fall.  Sounds cool IF it is really fast enough to get the heads parked before the laptop hits the floor.  Net searching offered advice to uninstall HP 3D Driveguard and then download the latest version and reinstall.   Uninstall worked, but download and reinstall not so much.  My first reinstall crapped out with an error message about a bad file in the download.  I tried a second download from another site and it might have worked.  It never bothered to report success or failure.  HP 3D Driveguard does not show in Task Manager.  Neither do it's aliases, of which it has two.  So, either it hides from task manager or it isn't there at all. 
    A Creators Update puff piece on the 'Net  was vague about what all this updating buys you.  You get a 3D Paint program (whoopie) and a lot of stuff for gamers.  I don't draw with my computers and games are for kids.  
     Another productive year for the Micro$oft software weenies. 

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