Having a single program scan your computer for software updates is built into both Mac OS X and Linux. In fact, most Mac and Linux users probably don’t think much of this luxury until they try to update a Windows machine. I have dozens of software titles installed that constantly need updated and this is how I do it.

As I’m sure some of you know, Filehippo is a website that allows you to download free software. They have an excellent selection of software and everything is easy to find. If you aren’t sure what a certain program is, not only does Filehippo have a description but it also has screenshots of the program. Another great feature of this site is it offers older versions of all of its software, as well as the newest version. Therefore, if you ever have a compatibility problem with a new software release, you can merely download an older version known to work with your system.

If this wasn’t good enough, Filehippo also offers a FREE Update Checker. This program will scan “default” installation locations for software and then check the filehippo website to see if your version is out of date. The update scan only takes a matter of seconds. Once completed, it will open your default browser with a list of software that is out-of-date as well as any beta versions that are currently available.

One of the best features of the FREE Update Checker is that it runs as an executable. Therefore, this makes the program portable and allows you to run it from any computer via a flash drive.

The newest version of the update checker has a few options which the older versions did not have. For example, now you have the option of having the update checker run when you start Windows. You can also specify your default web browser, how you connect to the internet, as well as any custom locations where you have software installed.

The only downside of the FREE Update Checker from Filehippo is it only checks free software available from their website. While I do not know of any free software that they do not have available, it would be nice if it checked for updates for paid software.

How do you keep your computer up-to-date (Windows, Linux or Mac)? Let us know in the comments!

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Written by Eric

 

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