Honestly, this is one of those "omg can microsoft really be that stupid" kinda things. I have no idea what possessed them to do this. Whats even more completely mind blowing is the fact that programs (unsaved) cant even stop the process once started and starting is even automatic. This has been responsible for countless hours of work lost (especialliy considering the average shutdown on my computer is about 45 minutes). I had a 3d rendering for a client that auto update killed. I lost the time (4.5 days) of rendering time, and I lost the client. If I could I would sue Microsoft for the losses but i'm sure I could not afford it. Windows 7 is better than xp imho but its still a pos. Unfortunately the tools I need exist only on PC so i'm kinda screwed (i have traditionally been a mac user). None the less, you can do as some others have posted but for the unknowing (like I was) you can shake your fist in helpless rage and have all your words land on deaf ears. It's a miserable new world out there. We really are all just numbers in the end. Sadly the numbers just don't matter... like the post above, we are all just sheep. I tried to file a complaint to microsoft and after 25 minutes of looking on their site for anywhere I could get an email, name, tel number or whatever (more wasted time) i gave up.