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Don’t Update Day
Posted on May 14th, 2009 3 commentsApparently, it’s “Don’t Update Day” at BestMacs.
A big thanks to Molly and Jacob for posting articles regarding the 10.5.7 update and our policy to not do updates the day (or even the week) that they are released. In fact, Jacob’s advice is excellent: let us install the update (we’re brave) on our computers, check it out, and research it. We can be your guinea pigs! And then come back here to BestMacs.com to see if there’s anything to worry about.
This all reminded me of a similar article I wrote back in March of last year. I’ve copied it for you below.
It’s a typical work day when a dialog box pops up informing you that the software you are using has a new update, and asking if it’s OK to download and install it. Should you?
Before we answer that, remember we’re not talking about paid upgrades. Upgrades typically add a bunch of new features and usually have some money factored in. For example, getting the latest Mac OS X upgrade is a $129 purchase and adds 300 or so new features to your computer. Apple marketing calls it “adding a new Mac to your Mac” – and that’s pretty accurate.
What we are talking about is updates. Not something that takes Mac OS X 10.4 to 10.5, but rather from 10.5 to 10.5.1 or 10.5.2. Something you can just download and install for free. Lots of times you don’t even have to do that much.
It seems lately that more and more programs are offering to self-update. Mac OS X has always had its Software Update mechanism built-in. Microsoft Office since 2004 has had an auto-updater. The Adobe Creative Suite applications do too. And now more and more shareware and freeware goodies have a “check for updates” option in their preferences. With all these vendors including software update mechanisms, one would think that the answer to our “should you” question is an overwhelming “yes.”
Before we give in to what the software companies want for us, let’s make up our own minds. What’s the point of a free update? Usually it’s for one or a combination of three things:
1. Fixes a bug or design flaw. It’s just not possible these days for a software maker to completely test their product and ensure it to be bug free before it goes to market. There are too many variables and not enough time to test them all. So they release it to the world with most if not all of the easily replicable bugs weeded out (at least we hope). But invariably the first wave of people to get the product are going to find something wrong. This is why, when Leopard was released last fall, we told most of our clients to wait. And sure enough, not long after, we had 10.5.1: a free update to fix a slew of problems with 10.5.0. Many times this cycle continues for a while – 10.5.2 fixed over 130 discovered bugs. If that seems high, try running Windows.
2. Adds features. Most of the time new features are the hallmark of a paid upgrade. But sometimes, a developer will add new features by way of an update to make the existing package more attractive to would-be buyers or to please those who already bought. Often this is the course of a small shareware developer – who genuinely cares about their product and doesn’t want to rake the people who buy it over the coals. But sometimes the big boys do it too – take iPhone 1.1.3 for example. Lots of new features, free to existing iPhone owners.
3. Adds security. One might consider that a security hole is a design flaw, but I separate it out here because the product may otherwise be perfectly functional to the person who uses it. However, it has some flawed code that would allow a potential attacker to do something nasty. You may have seen a “Security Update” show up in Mac OS X’s Software Update system.
All of this sounds really great, right? It’s starting to look like a no-brainer: free, fixes problems, improves security, adds features. What’s not to love?
Well then let’s go back to your typical workday – that dialog box asks if its OK to download and install. You say yes. And in the middle of installation, it locks up and crashes. Uh-oh. Or maybe it downloads and installs just fine, but then the update breaks something else. In other words, the update creates a new problem that you did not have before. The iPhone 1.1.3 update for example, was everything an update could be – except all of a sudden people’s perfectly good iPhones started dropping calls on a frequent-enough-to-be-annoying basis. Bugs as a result of an update will likely happen to a lot of people – enough that it was easy to find the issue reported online.
It gets worse – if an update does break something, it’s not always an easy endeavor to remove the update and go back to the old version. A lot of times it means clean installing or restoring from backups. Sometimes, as in the case with the iPhone update – there is no going back. What’s the fix in those cases? Wait for the next update and hope that takes care of it. (I haven’t had a single dropped call since applying iPhone 1.1.4.)
Remember the old adage: “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” It certainly applies here.
The only sticky point in my mind is those security updates – they have been known to break stuff. But not applying them could be opening you up to an exploit. Which is it: security or update? For me it comes down to risk assessment – is there a higher likelihood that someone will take advantage of an exploit on my computer or a higher likelihood that the update is going to screw something up. More often than not, I come down on the side of it being an update. Why wait for an attacker when I can break it myself by installing the patch? Usually research tells the tale – I’ll wait a week or so for the reports to surface online and see if the update appears to be “safe.”
My advice is simple: if everything is working OK, turn off the software update mechanisms and just roll with what you have. If you are experiencing trouble with a program, applying an available update is a valid and often successful troubleshooting step. If your computer really ought to have an update that it’s missing, my technicians and I will be able to spot that and we can assist you with the update so you don’t have to worry about it crashing on you. But updates for the sake of updates is many times inviting trouble that you didn’t have before.
1 responses to “Don’t Update Day”
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So is it safe to update to 10.5.7 yet?
[Reply]
brian Reply:
June 5th, 2009 at 8:20 pmAnne,
We have a joke over here that Leopard updates are like Star Trek movies: The even numbered ones are good, the odd numbered ones stink.
I think Jacob has installed 10.5.7 on his MacBookPro with no trouble. I have not installed it at this point (didn’t want it to interfere with the MacBook Air Experiment).
However, I just looked at a couple of resources and there is still an awful lot of chatter about 10.5.7 problems that look to me like legitimate bugs and not just someone who needs to have their Mac looked at. That’s the distinction – like any bug, some people will see it, many others won’t. But there’s a lot of consistency in these reports. The most disturbing to me is a number of sleep issues post-update. Lots of iCal complaints too. I think there’s enough there for me to want to wait till 10.5.8.[Reply]
Steve Bradt Reply:
June 8th, 2009 at 7:21 amBrian,
I guess I should have paid more attention to the Do Not Update principles. I recently installed iTunes 8.2 with the end result that I was unable to update my iPod anymore. It would get anywhere from 10 to 700 files into the update and lock up. Tried everything I could think of and finally uninstalled 8.2 and went back to 8.01.
[Reply]
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Anne M Bracker June 3rd, 2009 at 14:18