Dear LPG,

I was helping my friend to update a programme (or app) on her laptop the other day when I remembered something that happens again and again when computer software companies offer updates, and I wanted to pass this little bit of information on so that anyone who is not yet aware of it can become just a little more enlightened.

There are bits of software that have to be updated or else your PC or Lap top gets left behind because of the rate at which the technology that allows us to access the internet changes.   Most of the apps concerned are free to us computer users, because if we cannot access the information the people who are trying to advertise and sell us all their products and services via the internet would not get their message across. 

So although it is accepted that once you have broadband, most of the internet is more or less free, the reason we don’t have to pay for so much of it is because the advertisers who are fighting for our attention are paying the big money…

But back to those companies who are offering their software to us for free. While we are trying to download the software that we really need from them, they are aware that we just want to get the thing done as quickly as possible.  They know that  many of us don’t really read the small print or check the details. 

So they get a bit sneaky and often trick us into ending up with programmes and apps that we really don’t need.  As we go through the motions and allow our PCs and Laptops to ‘run’ the programmes that we really need we will come across the odd question inviting us to try another programme or service.  These questions usually have a box that has to be ticked before they can send you the unwanted software, but the sneaky bit is that they tick the boxes for you and if you don’t want their extra offerings you have to reject them by unticking the questions’ option boxes.

So, remember to check the option boxes, even if you are not interested in what they are offering, because they often already have the ticks in.

KT, Beckenham