when I run the update I am told it will uninstall poser and it's content before installing the update, where is the option to backup my settings???? let alone is this going to effect my runtime? if it removes that i'm going to be really annoyed.

When it says it will delete your old version of poser, it is talking about the program itself.

I suggest you follow this path as you go through

Click OK

Click YES

Click NO

Backing up of settings or using new settings will follow the last screen

( alternatively : you can use this script to open the preferences folder ( if you do not know how to find it ) and back them up manually )

your content will not be deleted.

The uninstall will not remove your content. Just the Poser programs.

Be certain, once the uninstall is complete, that you pay attention to the prompts and choose Use Existing Settings when installing the update.

Gltterati3D is right on the money with that post, you need to Use Existing Settings. If you don't uninstall first, you run the risk of adding corrected content to questionable content that already exist. You will have an unholy mess on your hands trying to sort out bad and good content. Trust me, you'll be fine with the advice from above.

You know, there doesn't seem to be any "one size fits all" way to install this update. None of this happened to me on my update. And only recently has a message been popping up telling me something either failed to load or can't be found. And even then, my Poser is still working the way it used to.