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Please note, as of April 16th, 2010, the current version of Adobe Reader is 9.32.

Adobe Reader is a popular free PDF file viewing program.  Many people need this program installed on their computer to view PDF files which are used for forms, software manuals, and other documents.  Adobe releases updates to this program that have new features, or to patch security holes.  When you install Adobe Reader 9, it also installs a program that will periodically check for updates.  If it finds one, you may see the following displayed in your Windows taskbar.

Adobe Reader - Taskbar Update

If you want to manually check for an update, you can open Adobe Reader, click on Help, then ‘Check for Updates’.

Adobe Reader - Check for Updates

If you are not running the latest version, you should see a screen similar to the following, it may prompt you to ‘Download‘ first.  If not, simply click on ‘Install.’  If you still have Adobe Reader open, then close it at this time.  If you are running Windows 7, the User Account Control box may appear.

Adobe Reader Updater - Click on 'Download' or 'Install'

When completed, you will see a box asking you to reboot your computer.  Close out any other programs you have open, and then click on ‘Restart Now.’

Adobe Reader Update - Click on 'Restart Now'

After your computer is done rebooting, you can check to see which version of Adobe Reader is currently installed by clicking on Help, then ‘About Adobe Reader 9′.  A red box will appear listing the version you are currently running.

Adobe Reader - About

Please note, as of April 16th, 2010, the current version of Adobe Reader is 9.32.

Adobe Reader is a popular free PDF file viewing program.  Many people need this program installed on their computer to view PDF files which are used for forms, software manuals, and other documents.  Adobe Reader used to be called Adobe Acrobat until version 6 was released.  Today, the Acrobat label just applies to the paid versions of the program which allow you to also create your own professional PDF documents.  Other programs such as: Microsoft Office, OpenOffice, and PDF Creator allow you to create basic PDF files.  If you want to create forms for online distribution, you may want to look into the full featured Adobe Acrobat.  But enough about the history, let’s look into how you can get Adobe Reader!

First, let’s find out if you have Adobe Reader already installed:

1. Click on the ‘Start‘ button in Windows XP, which is just the Windows logo in Vista and Windows 7.
2. Then click on ‘Control Panel‘.
3. If you are using Windows XP, click on ‘Add or Remove Programs‘.  If you are using Windows Vista or 7, click on ‘Programs and Features‘
4. Look for Adobe Reader.  If your version is older than 9, then we can continue.  If you see Adobe Reader 9 or higher, then you just need to update Adobe Reader, which is a different article.  If it lists multiple older versions, uninstall them all.  (If you see Adobe Acrobat Standard or Professional, leave it installed!  That’s the paid version!)
5. If you did have to uninstall an older version, restart your computer before continuing.

You can download the Adobe Reader from the Adobe Reader website.  Notice that there is a link to also install McAfee Security Scan, or Google Toolbar.  I would recommend against installing it by removing the check mark so it is clear, as in the picture below. The Adobe Reader website looks like this as of April 16, 2010.

Adobe Reader - Website

When you click download, you may receive a notice at the top of the website depending on which Internet Browser you are using, Windows Internet Explorer,or Mozilla Firefox.

Windows Internet Explorer - Adobe Toolbar

Mozilla Firefox - Adobe Toolbar

In either case, if you disregard that message and look below, you see the message: “Thank you. Your download will start automatically.  If it does not start, click here to download.”  Go ahead and click the ‘click here to download’ link.  You will a box asking you where you want to save the file.  Once again, the box is different depending on if you are using Windows Internet Explorer, or Mozilla Firefox.  Select Save, and wait for the file to download.

Windows Internet Explorer - Download Adobe

Mozilla Firefox - Download Adobe

If you are running Windows XP, the file probably saved to your Desktop.  If you are using Windows 7, it probably saved to your Downloads folder, which you can access by clicking on the Windows Start Orb, then ‘Downloads’.  It should look similar to the icon below.  If you are running Windows XP, you will not see the Windows Shield overlaid on it, that is a Windows 7 feature informing you that you will need Administrative rights to install the program.  Double-click to start the installation.  if you are running Windows 7, the User Account Control box will ask you to confirm your action.

Adobe Reader Setup File

You will first see the Adobe Setup start processing, then see a prompt asking you where you want to install Adobe Reader, click on ‘Next‘.  It will then ask if you are ready to install, click on the ‘Install’ button to continue.

Adobe Reader - Setup Processing

Adobe Reader - Setup Folder - Click on 'Next'

Adobe Reader - Setup - Click on 'Install'

You will Adobe Reader Setup start to install, depending on the speed of your computer, this can take up to several minutes.  When finished, click on the ‘Finish’ button and you’re done with the installation!

Adobe Reader - Installing

Adobe Reader - Setup - Click 'Finish'

On your desktop, you will now see the Adobe Reader icon, and PDF files will either look like icon on the right, or a mini-preview of the document, with the Adobe Reader icon overlaid on the preview in the right bottom side.  The first time you open Adobe Reader you will be asked to read and accept the license agreement.

Adobe Reader - Icons

You’re done installing Adobe Reader!  Now you will want to update it to the latest version, to do, please see the Updating Adobe Reader article.

Update: On April 15th, 2010, Sun released Java 6 Update 20.  This update patched a security hole in previous versions of Java.

Java is installed on many people’s computers to allow them to run programs in their Internet Browser, (Mozilla Firefox, Internet Explorer, etc…) or other programs on their computer that are written in the Java computer language.  This article covers the 32-bit edition of Java.  Most users, even if they use a 64-bit edition of Windows, use 32-bit Java. If you have both the 32 & 64 bit editions of Java installed on your computer, you will have to do the following twice, once for each edition.  More information about 64-bit Java is available at the Java website.

Like most applications, it has the ability to update itself to patch security holes, or improve various features of itself.  You can access and control when Java does this by it’s icon in the Control Panel.  If you do not see the Java icon listed, you may have change the ‘View by:’ settings to Large Icons in Windows 7, or ‘Switch to Classic View’ in Windows XP.

Java (32-bit) in Windows 7

Java Control Panel Icon in Windows XP

If you double-click on the icon, you will see the Java Control Panel appear.  You will see several tabs across the top: General, Update, Java, Security, and Advanced.  Click on the ‘Update’ tab to change settings on when Java will check for an update to itself.

Java Control Panel - Update Tab

Clicking on the ‘Advanced…’ button will allow you to set how often Java will check for an update.  Clicking on the ‘Update Now’ button at the bottom will check and see if you have the latest version immediately.  If you don’t have the latest version, you will see a notification pop up on your Windows taskbar.  You may recall having seen it before when Java has wanted to update in the past.  If you click on it, the Java Update screen will appear.  Click on ‘Install’ to proceed with the update.

Java Notification in Taskbar

Java Update Available

After clicking ‘Install’ on the Java Update screen, the actual setup installation will begin, click ‘Install’ again.

Java Setup 1

Then an offer will appear, usually in the form of asking you to install a toolbar into your Internet Browser.  I don’t recommend installing any search toolbars into your browser, as too many will slow your browser down, and they change your search defaults when you may not want them too.  If you don’t want to change your browser search settings, click the check box so that it is clear before proceeding. Click on ‘Next >’ to continue.

Java Setup - Yahoo NOT selected

Java Setup - Carbonite IS selected

If you launched the update process though the Control Panel, it will ask you to close it down.  If you started it through the Taskbar, or closed it out already, it will not display the following.  Click through the prompts ‘Clost Programs and Continue’ and ‘OK’, then Java will commence installing.

Java Setup - Close Programs

The process should only take a couple minutes, then the completion screen will show up.  Click ‘Close’ and you’re done!

Windows 7 is now out, and many users are wondering if they should upgrade their current version of Windows or not.

If you are running Windows Vista, you will probably like many of the improvements made in Windows 7.  The user interface is refined, streamlined, and seems more responsive to what you as the user are trying to accomplish.  There were a lot of improvements that happened underneath the hood in the change from Windows XP to Vista.  Windows 7 makes the end user experience better by eliminating odd hold-overs from previous versions of Windows.  Some features such as Outlook Express/Windows Mail, Messenger, and Movie Maker were even removed as part of the core operating system.  But fear not, you can now download the newest versions of these apps at Windows Live Essentials.

However, if you are running Windows XP, you cannot directly upgrade to Windows 7.  Only users of Windows Vista will be able to upgrade their system without having to reload their entire computer.  This is a limitation of Windows 7 itself, but for good reason.  If you computer is old enough that is currently running Windows XP, it most likely doesn’t have enough computing power to run Windows 7 smoothly enough to give you a good experience.  If you bought your computer recently, but decided to stay with XP instead of Vista, you can still migrate to Windows 7, but there will be some additional work involved.

Microsoft has developed some tools that will help you in this experience.  First of all, is the Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor. It can help you decide if your computer is a good candidate for upgrading.  The Upgrade Advisor does require that you already have the .NET Framework v2.0 installed to run it.  If you don’t, you will be asked if you want the Advisor to install it, or you can download it for yourself from Microsoft.

Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor - Screenshot 1

Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor - Screenshot 2

Once you review the results of the Upgrade Advisor, you will know what issues need to be addressed before you upgrade.  Some printers may no longer be supported on Windows 7.  Some of your older programs will not run on Windows 7.  If you have a program that was developed for older 16bit versions of Windows, they will not run in Windows 7 64bit mode.  Make sure you have all of the install discs for any programs that you want to continue using, even if you are just upgrading from Vista to Windows 7.  Some problems may arise in which the easiest solution is to reinstall the application.

Remember, you should always back up your documents.  And when moving from one version of Windows to another, this is even more important.  Make sure you have all your documents and photos backed up to a USB Flash Drive or DVD-R before you start upgrading.

Have questions or need assistance in upgrading or deciding to upgrade?  Give Allen Computer Tech a call at: (405) 816-1747.

Allen Computer Tech specializing in on-site Home and Small Business computer repair for the Oklahoma City Metro area.  Josh Allen has been building and repairing computers as a hobby since the 1990s, and started professionally at a local computer store in 2001.

Service Calls are billed at $60 a hour with an one hour minimum.  After the first hour, billing is rounded to the nearest quarter hour.  So if your call lasts 65 minutes, you will only be billed $60.  If your call lasts 72 minutes, you will be billed $75.  Calls outside Oklahoma City will be charged a $10 trip fee.

Give us a call at (405) 816-1747 and talk about your computer needs!