Updating software can be confusing and time-consuming, particularly for employees that are not extremely knowledgeable about computers. Often, workers aren't sure what updates are necessary, and either ignore them to opt out of restarting their current projects or simply take part in every update and interrupt their daily work flow.

In fact, according to a new survey, 72 percent of information workers have found that their productivity was reduced by having to search for, install or update software on their computers.

"The whole experience of PC software is widely out of sync with how today's workers want to interact with their software. We have all become familiar with the instantaneous process of accessing apps on our mobile phones and now, we want that on our desktop computers," Michael Swindell, the senior vice president of product management and product marketing for software management firm, Embarcadero, said in a statement. "Today's workers spend too much time in the antiquated method of acquiring software and installing it on their PCs and maintaining licenses."

While the types of computers used vary from office-to-office, perhaps a large part of the problem is that after a few years, a computer's operating system can grow outdated. If the employee hasn't been updating software consistently, an outdated operating system can render a computer unable to support new browsers, complex PHP, Flash, video and other tools that employees may need.

Individuals and business owners can set up their computers to conduct automatic software updates weekly, after the employee has finished and logged out for the evening.

For further assistance with software or operating systems, business owners can contact a local computer and laptop repair center, such as PortableOne. Purchasing new software, the latest version of the operating system or a new computer may also be an option.