Method and apparatus for managing and automatically updating software programs

A method for automatically updating software programs on a computer, comprising the steps of:

• storing an updated version of a program at a designated location in a memory that is accessible to the computer;
• initiating the launching of a program that is stored in memory of the computer;
• activating a software management module in response to said initiating step, and prior to actually launching the program, wherein said module carries out the steps of:
• selecting and launching one version of the program that is stored in the memory of the computer;
• detecting whether a version of the program is stored in the designated location;
• and
• downloading to the computer the version that is stored at the designated location.

A system for automatically updating software programs stored on a computer, comprising:

• a first memory location that is accessible to the computer, for storing updated versions of software programs;
• a second memory location for storing one or more versions of software programs to be executed on the computer;
• and
• a logic module stored in said second memory location, said logic module including means for launching a version of a software program stored in said second memory location, means for detecting whether an updated version of the launched program is stored in said first memory location, and means for downloading an updated version from said first memory location to said second memory location.

A computer-readable storage medium having stored therein an application management program which executes the steps of:

• selecting and launching one version from among plural versions of an application program;
• detecting whether another version of the application program is present in a memory that is accessible to said management program;
• determining whether a detected version of the application program is more recent than the launched version of the application program;
• and
• copying a more recent version of the program to memory of a computer on which said application management program is running.

A software module stored in memory of a computer for monitoring an application program executed on the computer, comprising:

• means for receiving an instruction to launch an application program on the computer;
• means responsive to said instruction for generating a command to launch a version of the application program stored in memory associated with the computer;
• means for recording data relating to the operation of the launched program;
• and
• means for uploading the recorded data to a central location that is accessible to a plurality of computers.