Silverlight vs Flash browser plugins

A Guy · 14 Sep 2013

Silverlight and Bing toolbar are offered often by WU as marsmimar mentioned. I have never had either, by MS sure wants me too

I hide the update, but apparently when they have a new version, they are so kind as to offer it again

A Guy

bawldiggle · 15 Sep 2013

@ Gary (post #6)
With the passage of time and contributions by others -- I have changed my mind on Silverlight.
I will retain it but with the Firefox Plugin set to "Never Activate"
IF ever needed I can simply "activate" although it will probaly need a truck load of updates.
A hit or miss decision! Only time will tell.
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@marsmimar (post #7)
Windows Update - Hide or Restore Hidden Updates ... another treasure.
Windows updates on WinXP have always raised my anxiety levels.
More than once windows or features or settings went pear-shaped after an XP update.
Your suggestion has given me back my right to control updates in Win7
... and to think about 14 months ago I loathed Win7

Thank you :)
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@ A Guy (post #11)
LOL ... MS = benevolence.

theveterans · 15 Sep 2013

@ GaryGhost2

I use Silverlight since I'm subscribed to cable TV. Their online services which allows you to watch live TV or Video on Demand on any browser requires Silverlight. Silverlight IMO isn't that bad and I think it's far less targeted by bad guys than Flash. The problem with Silverlight is that it uses a lot more CPU than flash and this makes the fan on my laptop spin faster.

bawldiggle · 16 Sep 2013

Thanks "theveterans" :)
I have decided to retain Silverlight although I have the plugin disabled in Firefox.
Just realised I was able to watch some streamed TV today even with Silverlight disabled?

My brain is starting to hurt !!

theveterans · 16 Sep 2013

Hmm. I guess it means your streaming TV service uses html5 instead of Silverlight. Well, Netflix (streaming service) already transitioned from Silverlight to HTML 5 when Windows 8.1 comes (source: Netflix switches from Silverlight to HTML5 in Windows 8.1, reduces CPU usage dramatically | ExtremeTech) I do hope they do the same for Windows 7 when IE 11 is RTMed.