Microsoft Gets Pushy: QFE1 Appears in Auto Update
Windows Live Essentials 2011 users may not realize the solution to their program problems is already sitting in their Windows update box.
This update, called QFE1 (Quick Fix Engineering), addresses the top quality-related issues that impact most Windows Live Essentials users. While the update has been available for download since December, Microsoft has continued to receive complaints that would be solved if the update were installed.
Windows Essentials was launched just last fall as a bundle of free programs designed to add new functionality to email and instant messaging. It includes Messenger, the second most popular app behind Farmville on Facebook; Photo Gallery and Moviemaker with editing and sharing capabilities; Sync Mesh to share documents between computers and other Internet-connected devices, similar to Dropbox; a blogging tool, as well email management and parental controls .
Rather than leave it up to customers, Microsoft has pushed the optional update to all Vista and Windows 7 users. If Auto Update is turned on, the fix should be activated the next time a computer is rebooted.
Here’s what the update will fix, according to a blog post from Arthur de Haan, Microsoft's vice president for Windows Live Test and Systems Engineering:
1. In Messenger, we fixed a couple of issues where in some cases you could not re-establish video calls or file sharing activities after losing your network connection. Also, sometimes your status messages and display picture were not synchronizing correctly between PCs, so you’d see a notification that changes made would not be seen on other computers. We also made various performance and stability improvements.
2. In Photo Gallery, we made a design change so that geotagging no longer overwrites GPS coordinates in image files.
3. We corrected various problems with language translation.
You can check to see if you have QFE1 installed by looking at the version number in the About menu option for Messenger or Windows Live Photo Gallery. If your version number is 15.4.3508.1109, you’ve already got the update. If you’re running version 15.4.3502.0922, it’s time to update.
Here’s how to update
Click on the Microsoft Start button and select Control Panel. Under Security, choose “Check for updates.” You should see “1 optional update is available” and when you click this link, you’ll see the Windows Live Essentials 2011 listing along with a description. Click to install. As with most updates, you should reboot your computer after installation to activate the fixes.
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