Q: Why does Windows Vista ask my permission every time I want to install software?

A: Vista, like Windows XP before it, is a multiuser operating system (OS), meaning that each person using a shared PC can customize the experience. But when several people use one machine, somebody's got to be in charge -- an "administrator." And only administrators are permitted to change OS-level settings. To beef up security, Vista's new User Account Control (UAC) feature queries the administrator for permission when anyone wants to install or run a new piece of software. The idea, of course, is to help the computer owner prevent malicious or unintended software from being executed.

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It's not a bad idea, in theory, but it can lead to some aggravating situations, especially when you are prompted two or three times to give your permission before installing an application -- at least once to give your permission to grant administrator's access to the application, then again to grant the program permission to execute.

A Microsoft spokesman explained that the company is working on eliminating unnecessary UAC interactions when actions have a low security risk.

In the meantime, you can cut through some of the annoyance by letting trusted applications automatically execute "as administrator" simply by selecting that option in the right-click menu. Or, if your level of irritation overwhelms your need for computer security, you can just turn UAC off. Click the Vista icon in the lower left corner, type in "msconfig" and hit Enter to launch the msconfig.exe application. Then, select the "Disable User Account Control" option under the "Tools" tab and reboot.

Do this at your own peril. I find UAC to be clunky, but I've left it running on my own Vista machine for now. Sure, 99 percent of the time it means a superfluous click, but the one time it saves me from spyware, I'll be thankful.

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