Slashdot Mirror
Windows XP Update Library On a CD
KrispyKofta sends us to APC Magazine for a writeup on Project Dakota, a one-man effort to provide all Windows XP SP2 updates on one downloadable CD. It's poor man's XP SP3, but even when SP3 is out, the project will continue to offer a CD that will install all patches offline. "When was the last time you installed a fresh copy of Windows XP SP2? The process is still straightforward and relatively quick... but then you think 'I'll just make sure the patches are up to date,' and proceed to stare in horror at the 100+ security updates and critical fixes that Windows Update or WSUS demands you install. And it takes forever. A better option which we've just discovered is the innovative work of Alek Patsouris... it's a self-contained boot CD which contains all the necessary updates to automatically patch a Windows XP SP2 system with all the patches available at the CD's build time."
Does Microsoft allow third parties to distribute official patches? If not, this sounds like a copyright violation.
Uhm...
1. In any reasonable well designed system wouldn't the patches be, ya know, signed?
2. Any third party software that you run could tamper with your system. Kinda sounds like a flimsy excuse used by someone who doesn't want to state their real reasons.
For me it's not about trusting the update source, it's about having a copy of the updates ready for install on a computer when time is an issue. Not everyone has the bandwidth to suck down 270 Meg service packs... yet. I used Autopatcher frequently when I was an on site PC tech since it saved a lot of time for my clients.
Mod me down with all of your hatred, and your journey towards the dark side will be complete!