this post was submitted on 09 Sep 2023
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"via Windows Update" - key piece of info missing from the headline "for some reason".
Yeah, I don't see a need for Windows update to do any 3rd party stuff.
Why not? We essentially have this in the Linux world and it’s great. You have a package manager that pulls from your distro’s repositories and it’s filled with all kinds of software, although most drivers come packaged with the kernel. Most stuff is completely plug and play. You end up with one click (or command) software installations for just about everything so you’re not hunting around the internet and downloading installers. Everything you need, including dependencies, gets pulled in and it stays up to date without every app bundling it’s own updater. It’s super convenient.
Because Microsoft manages Windows update, it's not like a package manager in Linux.
I don't want Microsoft telling me when I should update an Epson printer driver.
Windows update is a package manager. It's hot garbage (obviously) but its job is indeed to manage packages and their updates.
Drivers and other HW-related tools have been distributed via Windows Update for years now and it's generally a good thing. Before M$ did this you had to plug in driver DVDs or scour the internet for drivers (ugh).
So you want Epson to provide you with a separately application which runs in the background to tell you when to update? Why split the responsibility?
Because Microsoft has no more business managing Epson applications than Epson does, I dunno, Kensington or Belkin.
It's not like Microsoft would be managing them, just providing the repository. I really fail to see how having N+1 separate application update mechanisms (possibly running in the background) would be better than having a central one. Sure, it's managed by Microsoft but if you have a problem with that I'm not sure what you're doing using Windows in the first place
Out of all the things to hate Microsoft for, removing the need to manage your own print drivers seems like a weird hill to die on
If they were just drivers, I'd agree with you. I was looking into the Lexmark and HP continuous ink services recently, and one of them, Lexmark I think, wanted the ability to update the firmware in your printer to stop you from being able to use third party inks or toners.
Along with that, I've had issues in the past where a faulty driver crashed the Windows Update service. Trying to update the driver through Windows would take me to Windows Update to install the missing update before it would let me update the driver. If I couldn't get the driver from the manufacturer's website, I would have been stuck.
Well, you could think of Microsoft as your distro. Generally, if they’re telling you to upgrade a driver, you should do it. At a minimum, everyone should be automatically installing security updates. This is one of the most important services an operating system vendor provides.
If you don’t trust them to do that or you don’t like their update frequency, maybe consider a different operating system. In the Linux world, we have some choices as far as release cadence and update policy. You can do rolling, 6 month, 2 year LTS, etc. Some are bleeding edge and others use “proven” software and remain very stable until the next major release.
The thing is, on Linux you can see exactly what an update brings, and you can also block individual packages from updating. I doubt you'll get the same courtesy with Windows updates, it's all or nothing.