Sp2 And Other Updates Like Outlook Internet Explorer

I realize without sp2 you do not have acces to internet explore 7 and outlook, out of curiousity, i will be installing service pack 2 since my pc is now clean, my question is does it automatically come with internet explorer 7, will i lose anything from upgrading to 7.0 or should i stay with 6.0?? SAme for windows media and outlook express? Not sure about all this but i notice a friends computer and it looks totally different then my outdated one!

Hi Marco25, Internet Explorer 7.0 is not part of SP2. MS does "push" IE 7.0 if you allow the "Express" method for download and install of MS Updates. Depending upon your machine and your internet connection IE 7.0 can slow you way down, primarily because of the site-safety and content screening features of IE 7.0. If you're just now adopting SP2, you may want to continue running with the embedded IE 6.0 for a while, until you are comfortable that no peripheral Driver or Application conflicts crop up with SP2. (very unlikely, but take it slow) To avoid IE 7.0 from being "pushed" along with the well over 50 other critical updates and patches that you'll find waiting for you when you run MS Updates, Select - Custom - and Review downloads before installing. You'll go through a 3 part process, with Windows Genuine Advantage Validation coming first, then MS Installer 3.0, followed by the larger flood of specific security updates and patches. You can simply remove the checkmark/tick from in front of the IE 7.0 download and proceed with the others. Some folks will say that there is no longer anything wrong with IE 7.0 and encourage you to download and install it because of the new features. It's still a matter of choice. IE 6.0 continues to be fully supported with critical updates and patches. As for SP2, it's pretty much essential to install and also the follow-on updates and patches, just to make your machine more secure from internet threats. Good that you are taking that step.

Thanks for that, however what bugs me is that ie 6 does not work well on certain sites or forums, i get an error and the explorer needs to be shut down, with 7.0 as i use at work none of those problems are apparent. Also my bigger concern is updating to a different outlook express.

The difference between how your home computer has been handling certain websites and how the computer at work handles the same websites may be more influenced by the infections that your home computer has had, than that it is running IE 6 instead of 7. Now that you're clear of malware and will be installing SP2, you are free to select to install IE 7.0 and the associated Outlook express version, or stay with IE 6. Your choice. Best Regards

Thanks Doug, how crucial is it to backup my favorites and outlook express folders and addresses can it even be done? Despite the spyware my web page would shut give me the illegal send to microsoft error, when im typing on certain forums or viewing quicktime in my browser some flash applications, it was really weird, even after we removed infection i still get the errors, maybe even a reinstallation of ie6 would work, but i would just go with the latest. True that my friends ie 6 gives him no problems on the same pages i visit but he is still with windows 2000.