Windows 7 Windows Live Mail 2011 Installed but Windows Update Not Complete

[Jim S]

I applied a Windows Update the other day without realizing that I was doing a major update from Windows Live Mail to WLM 2011. The installation progress window stopped at about 50% complete and just stayed there. After doing some Googling about the update (KB2434419) I read that behind the progress window is another window which asks the user whether all Windows Live apps are to be installed and updated or just the ones that have already been installed. I had been using only Windows Live Mail, so I chose to update only that application to WLM 2011. The installation appeared to run successfully, and I have been using WLM 2011 for two days. It works fine, although I've had to get familiar with numerous changes to its appearance and user interface.

The Windows Update icon is still at the right end of my taskbar, however, and when I click on it, the progress window is still showing "Installing update 1 of 1" about 50% complete as if it does not realize that the installation of WLM 2011 finished two days ago! The only option in that window is a "Stop installation" button. I am afraid to click that button in case it initiates a rollback of the WLM 2011 installation. Why does Windows Update think that the installation isn't complete? How do I terminate the session of Windows Update and not disturb the WLM 2011 installation that completed two days ago? Do I dare kill the Windows Update process that is running?

I posted these questions on a Windows Live forum at social.answers.microsoft.com but have received no replies.

--Jim--

 

[Elmer]

I'd be highly tempted to kill it by turning off the Windows Update Service until I'd rebooted.

 

[Jim S]

I'd be highly tempted to kill it by turning off the Windows Update Service until I'd rebooted.

Elmer, thanks for the advice. I restarted the computer and got the "configuring Windows Updates" message on the way down and on the way back up. The WU icon on the taskbar showing 50% complete is gone. The Windows Live Mail 2011 is intact and working. All that is good. The only worrisome thing is that Windows Update history shows that the Windows Live Essentials 2011 installation failed. It didn't - WLM 2011 is present and working just fine.

--Jim--

 

[Elmer]

Glad to have helped.

The only worrisome thing is that Windows Update history shows that the Windows Live Essentials 2011 installation failed. It didn't - WLM 2011 is present and working just fine.

A way around that is to clear the update history. Then you don't have to look at, or worry about it!
I say that in jest but you can delete your update history.
GoTo C:\Windows\Software Distribution\ Data Store and delete the contents of that folder. This in no way affects the updates you have installed, it just clears the logs.

 

[fjgold]

One has to wonder why the folks that created the update would place a dialog box requiring user input under the main window.

 

[tanzanos]

Mine upgraded without a hitch but I regret having done so! MS should have warned us that windows live mail has gotten rid of classic menus and only has the extremely illogical and unfriendly Ribbon interface. Someone PLEASE HELP! I need to know if I uninstall and install windows live essentials 2009 will my contacts and e-mails be there? I can't work with this ribbon.

I have installed classic shell for win 7. Have installed classic menus for office 2007. But! For Windows live mail 2011 there are no 3rd party classic menus available.

Never in the history of computers, have so few (MS developers) made so many suffer.

My work has slowed down so much due to ribbon that I am exasperated. I spend too much time trying to find how to do things that with classic menus was a few seconds away simply because it is a logic based interface while Ribbon is just a fancy looking interface without any logic behind it!

Any help will be highly appreciated. (No I shall not try to move on. Computing is supposed to make life easier. The new GUI and Ribbon interfaces fail miserably in this area. Give me the choice so that I can get back to work and be productive).

 

[Elmer]

As posted elsewhere (I'm in lazy typing mode!)

I uninstalled 2011 and went back to 2009. All my stuff was still there. (SENTENCE REMOVED**)

N.B. My Live mail folders are stored at C:\Users\Elmer BeFuddled\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows Live Mail. You could always copy and back them up.

In case any of the on line downloads "disappear", I've uploaded the installer for Windows Live 2009 v14.0.8 I have to MediaFire.

Hope that helps.


**EDITED due to error pointed out by Jim S two posts down.

 

[Jim S]

I can't help you with rolling back to the previous version of Windows Live Mail, tanzanos, but I can tell you what I've done with the ribbon. I have pinned my frequently-used mail functions (seven of them at the moment) to the Quick Access Toolbar and then minimized the ribbon. That frees up space at the top of the window. You can click the Home, Folders, View or Accounts menu at any time to temporarily bring back the ribbon. Meanwhile, the functions I use most of the time are available with a single click of an icon in the QAT.

--Jim--

 

[Jim S]

The quote in the previous post is not completely true:

"Just remember it's a program to read your Hotmail, Yahoo, GMail etc. emails. Not an email program."

I am using Windows Live Mail only as a local email program and not to access any of my web-based mail accounts. I used Outlook Express in Windows XP and Windows Mail (not the same as WLM) in Windows Vista. When I learned that Windows 7 would not ship with an email client, I chose Windows Live Mail as a replacement for the previous programs. It does the job.

--Jim--

 

[tanzanos]

Someone is bound to come up with classic menus for windows live 2011! Ribbon is the most time wasting interface I have ever come across. What on earth are they smoking over at MS??????