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Ever had your browser default homepage taken over without your knowledge? It happens more often than you think and with the latest edition of Windows Live Essentials Wave 4 there is now a utility that helps you protect that homepage default setting.

The Microsoft Default Manager is a very straightforward utility that you can find on your Start Menu by clicking the Start Orb and typing in Microsoft Default:

microsoftdefaultmanaherstartmenuentry

Hit the Return key or click on that entry to get the one window utility opened up on your screen

microsoftdefaultmanager

Under the Default Manager list click that first check box if you want to keep your default search engine and enable default search protection.  That means to keep it from being changed and don’t worry your not picking Bing at this point to be your default. When you click that check box it will turn on the next check box for you and check it so you will be told of any changes that are made to your default search engine.  You can turn that off if you like but then that kind of defeats the purpose of the utility.

The next part of the dialog box is your opportunity to participate in the Improvement Program for this utility.  Up to you which you choose of course.

When you click the OK button you will get another dialog box:

microsoftdefaultmanageroptionboxaftersetup

At this point you confirm your selection of default search engine, which for me is Google, or you can select Bing which is being recommended by the Default Manager.  The check box below those entries is to turn off other programs suggesting changes to your search provider.  That will lock down your default search engine choice and any future notifications should only come if there is an attempt to change your default search engine.

So with all this talk of search engines and defaults – what is your choice for a search engine?