Hey Bob, thanks for the quick and helpful reply. So, it looks as though all is not lost. I think that I will have no problem loading the installation media onto a flash drive. However, I'm a little shaky on just how to get the updates to work. From what I read on your referenced links, once the installation media is loaded onto the flash drive, I then place the drive in the computer, but now my anxiety increases. If I have to mess with the booting of the drive, I may have a problem and I'm not really sure how to handle the rest of the FD loading.
I have looked at this HP link on loading a recovery drive and I'm assuming that it would be the same for loading the installation media...Yes or No? However, the video instructions are for a system recovery and I don't want to send my computer back to its original state, I just want to add files that will allow me to install updates??? But, as I view the video, it appears to me that in order to be able to restore updating, I will have to do a Windows system recovery that will take the computer back to its original state...Yes or No??? Obviously, I may be confused and hope that you can continue to put me onto the right path. Thanks again for your help.