The Software Update Process...
from the Developer's Perspective

Yet another approach is to distribute the software update as a patch. A patch is a small file that contains only the differences between two versions of a file. Distributing software patches can drastically decrease the size of the update package. In our Cookbook application example, the size of the patch file would probably be under 300KB, roughly 3% the size of the incremental update.

However, patching applications come with their share of inconveniences as well. They typically force developers to deal with awkward command line interfaces, sometimes even requiring them to learn a specific scripting language. These tools do not allow for much customization and constrain developers to use a predefined user interface, breaking the look-and-feel of their application.

The patching process in itself is not intuitive to software users, because the program used to apply patches is external to the application. They may have difficulties applying the patch and require additional support. This would further increase support costs, and would counteract the benefits of releasing a software update.

Regardless of which approach developers choose to release updates, users need to be notified when a software update becomes available. Issuing a software update is beneficial only if users actually download and install it. If users continue to use outdated versions of the software, the developers will continue to be swarmed with support requests regarding issues that have already been resolved.

Next: How can FlashUpdate help?

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No programming required
FlashUpdate does not require any programming knowledge. Unlike most application deployment solutions, FlashUpdate does not require you to learn any complicated installation scripts or to remember obscure programming syntax. Creating and managing software updates with FlashUpdate is a quick and painless process.

Extensive compatibility
FlashUpdate is a stand-alone application that does not require the use of any separate development tools. Consequently, you may use FlashUpdate to provide updates for any type of Windows-based application, regardless of the programming language that was used to develop it.