A Reminder About Driver Updater Programs

A Reminder About Driver Updater Programs

Most are no better than malware – and many come bundled with malware.

Consider this a reminder from your old pals, TC & Darcy…

I don’t know how many times we’ve told you to avoid driver updater programs, but I was reminded again this morning as I was working on two different computers, owned by two different people, in two different parts of the world how important it is that you keep driver updater programs off of your PC.

Both of these people had were experiencing some serious Windows problems. And what do you think these two computers had in common? They both had driver updater programs installed.

So, we just wanted to remind you all to check your installed programs for any driver updater programs, and if you find one (or more) uninstall them before they start causing you big-time trouble.

Darcy and I have been using Windows since Windows 3.1 (yes, there was such a thing), and we can’t ever remember a time when driver updater programs were ever necessary. And we can tell you that Windows was pretty bad back in those days. Every time we got up in the morning, we held our breath until Windows booted. And back then you couldn’t leave your computer running because it would succumb to memory leaks. Those days are gone thank goodness.

We can tell you this as well. Driver updaters are popular. They are consistently among the most often downloaded programs. And they rank among the most useless programs you can install on your Windows computer.

I digress.

The two computers I referenced earlier, although located in different parts of the world and owned by two different people, both had problems that were caused by driver updater programs.  Many so-called “free” driver updater programs are “free” because they come bundled with malware and dubious freeware.  So, whether you “acquire” driver updater programs bundled with a freeware app or with malware you were tricked into installing – driver updater programs are bad news for your Windows computer

You don’t need third-party driver updater programs to tell you that you need a new driver. The only time you ever need to update a driver (or drivers) is if a hardware device (printer, sound card, etc.) is not working properly or the manufacturer recommends an update. Installing new drivers just because new drivers are available is unnecessary and often is a recipe for disaster.

If you have a hardware device that is not working properly, you can download the correct driver from the device’s manufacturer’s website. Just make sure you know the version of Windows you’re using and the name, model, and manufacturer of your printer or hardware device. Then go ahead and download and install the correct driver directly from the device manufacturer.

If you’re not having any problems with your hardware devices there’s no reason to update your drivers not even if new drivers become available.

Don’t be tempted to install a driver updater because you think it’s going to make your computer run better, run faster, or it’s going to make it easier for you to keep your drivers updated. Driver updaters are unnecessary, and many times can cause serious problems with your computer. Think of driver updaters as poison for your PC.

Remember these two nuggets of sage advice from both of us:

1. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
2. In the world of computer software, less is often more.

Be smart and leave driver updaters alone. And if you find one has sneaked onto your computer via those nefarious software bundles that are all too common these days — or you were tricked into installing a PUP or malware — uninstall the driver updater with much alacrity… we tells ya!

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