Outlook has suddenly stopped downloading messages from the Hotmail server. As far as I can tell, the reason seems to be that TLS 1.0 and 1.1 are no longer supported. The solution, I gather, is to upgrade to TLS 1.2. The question is, how?!
Now that I've stopped spitting epithets at the computer, if anyone can give me any instructions in plain English as to how to achieve this, it would be very much appreciated. I'm running Windows 7 Ultimate.
Thank you.

Update: I've tried the only fix I can find anywhere online, which involves downloading a Windows update. The reason I long ago disabled automatic Windows updates is because they invariably cause more problems than they fix. I downloaded the update and found that alt + tab no longer worked, and neither did the Windows icon in the bottom left-hand corner of the taskbar. Okay, I thought, I'll finish sorting the e-mail problem and then fix the other stuff. Unfortunately, following the rest of the instructions to fix the e-mail problem didn't work in any case, and I found myself having to do a system restore to undo the damage the Windows update had done.
Anything that will fix the problem without creating worse in it's wake would be gratefully received. I can't be the only one who's come across this.