Solved Safe To Install All Windows Updates?

[Barman58]

.Net framework, as Paul's above link says is a set of libraries that the developer can use to perform certain tasks rather than write a routine from scratch.

Windows was always designed as a modular operating system, Microsoft developers wrote a set of routines that provide a common look and feel to the application written by non Microsoft developers. Without this system the user experience would be a lot worse than it is, I started using computers before Windows and you would have a different Save dialog for each application you used so had to learn every application completely including things like Shortcut keys Etc.

The routines built into Windows are mainly stored in a set of executable programs that have the extension .DLL but when the Internet took off it was decided to provide an Add on system for developers to work with Microsoft's Internet Explorer and the related network functions. There was a "runtime " set of Downloadable routines that were optional, to load to use the special internet options.

Over time where the internet has become an essential part of computer use the .Net download is no longer optional, There is a version included with each release of the operating system that also has to work with older routines, this set is often updated during the lifetime of an OS so needs to be downloaded [Replacing the original]. There are also developers who use calls to this set of routines to help build a more modern look and feel to the applications Even where they are not needed.