The program installs itself on your computer and places an icon on your desktop. After loading FS2004 minimize the sim and then double click the weather program. It begins to download the weather into your sim as you follow the prompts. When it finishes it will show you the conditions at the airport where you are currently sitting. Then minimize the weather window and then re maximize FS2004. You will then see a message that the weather has loaded. This message disappears. Then you should be ready to fly. I use the static weather during the prompts. Otherwise it loads weather constantly which slows down your sim. The real weather doesn't change this often as I am a real world pilot. Hope this helps. After you finish flying, minimize fS2004 once again and close the weather program first and then bring FS2004 back up and then close flight sim.