text: if i update my computer on microsoft.com, is it gonna slowdown my computer?can i remove them if i dont like em   yes you can, but you should exactly know what you are doing. see microsoft website for info on each one.   normally the only updates you really need are "critical updates". the others can be removed safely.   look for "autopatcher". it is a collection of all patches for xp, 2000, or 2003. and gives you the option to do install or not whatever you like.   i have two win xps installed on my pc. one with full patches and an antivirus installed, which obviously is slow, and i use for normal works including web browsing. another one without any of these junks, which is so fast, and i use for my serious off-line tasks (it is a minixp installation).