Manufacturers frequently update their drivers to fix problems and take advantage of operating system features. These drivers are usually available from the manufacturers’ Web sites; Microsoft also maintains driver files for many devices on its Web sites.

Downloaded driver files are typically compressed into a self-executing file that needs to be extracted to use the driver. Read the manufacturer’s instructions that are usually included with the drivers. The ReadMe file will tell you how to install the updated driver.

Device Manager can also be used for update existing drivers. Follow these guidelines to install updated drivers:

1. From the Device Manager, double-click the type of device you want to update or change.

2. Click the Driver tab.
3. Click Update Driver to open the Hardware Update Wizard, as shown in
4. Accept the default option, Install the Software Automatically. Choose the Install from a List or Specific Location option if you have the updated driver so you can indicate the file location. Click Next.
5. Windows searches for an updated driver and instructs you if an updated driver has been found. Install the updated driver and click Finish.

[tags]windows,microsoft,xp,diana huggins,driver update,self-executing[/tags]