How to Manually Perform software Updates and tips for making Macbook better

Question

Hi. So recently my internet was really slow. I figured the problem out and now is working well. Although the youtube site does not allow me to view entire videos.
Well...i was told that since my macbook is turned off at night, it cant perform software updates between 3am-6am...so how can i do these manually? or how can i change the update time to sometime in the evening?
I heard these software updates are suppose to make the macbook run and perform better. what other things can i do to accomplish that?
(Laymans terms, im new to the mac world)

Answer 1

Select Software Update from the Apple menu. Or download the standalone updaters from Apple's download site - http://www.apple.com/support/downloads/. Or simply set the Check for Updates option in Software Update to whatever frequency you prefer. SU will notify you when updates are available.
Why reward points?(Quoted from Discussions Terms of Use.)
The reward system helps to increase community participation. When a community member gives you (or another member) a reward for providing helpful advice or a solution to their question, your accumulated points will increase your status level within the community.
Members may reward you with 5 points if they deem that your reply is helpful and 10 points if you post a solution to their issue. Likewise, when you mark a reply as Helpful or Solved in your own created topic, you will be awarding the respondent with the same point values.