diff --git a/packages/ludic.update/latest.ludic b/packages/ludic.update/latest.ludic
index bd7b0415..23d2ee28 100644
--- a/packages/ludic.update/latest.ludic
+++ b/packages/ludic.update/latest.ludic
@@ -37,8 +37,12 @@ export function update_latest(update_st: UpdateState) -> string { return update_
 export function update_shown(update_st: UpdateState) -> bool { return update_st.update__ask == UPDATE_NEWER or update_st.update__ask == UPDATE_CURRENT }
 export function update_fresh(update_st: UpdateState) -> bool { return update_st.update__ask == UPDATE_NEWER }
 
-# the notes in the language the game asked for (update_notes_for), else English, else none
-export function update_notes(update_st: UpdateState, lang: string) -> []string { return update_st.update__notes_list }
+# the notes update_notes_for last kept, for that language (else English); none for a language it was
+# not asked for - a question makes nothing, so it cannot fill them itself
+export function update_notes(update_st: UpdateState, lang: string) -> []string {
+  if lang != update_st.update__notes_lang { return update_st.update__notes_none }
+  return update_st.update__notes_list
+}
 
 # the notes kept for this language: filled when the version or the language changes, so the panel
 # reading them every frame makes nothing
diff --git a/packages/ludic.update/state.ludic b/packages/ludic.update/state.ludic
index e425d4b9..86fbe25c 100644
--- a/packages/ludic.update/state.ludic
+++ b/packages/ludic.update/state.ludic
@@ -59,6 +59,7 @@ export state UpdateState {
   update__installed: bool = false            # worked out when configured: the panel asks every frame
   @max(256) update__notes_list: []string = new []string   # the notes in the language last asked, kept
   update__notes_lang: string = ""
+  update__notes_none: []string = new []string   # update_notes for a language not kept: always empty, never pushed to
   update__notes_of: string = ""              # ... for this version
   update__cfg: UpdateConfig = new UpdateConfig
   update__state: int = 0
diff --git a/packages/ludic.update/tests/update_test.ludic b/packages/ludic.update/tests/update_test.ludic
index 2dfa30b4..d5b82137 100644
--- a/packages/ludic.update/tests/update_test.ludic
+++ b/packages/ludic.update/tests/update_test.ludic
@@ -63,6 +63,12 @@ program UpdateTest {
     System.run("rm -rf '" + dir() + "'")
     Fs.mkdir(dir())
     Fs.mkdir(pkgs())
+    configure(update_st, root)
+    update_reset(update_st)
+  }
+  # whether this copy was installed is worked out when the updater is configured, so a test that
+  # changes the disk or the executable's place configures again
+  function configure(update_st: mut UpdateState, root: bool) -> void {
     let c = new UpdateConfig
     c.feed = "http://feed"
     c.app_id = "Game"
@@ -71,7 +77,6 @@ program UpdateTest {
     c.packages = pkgs()
     c.scratch = hashf()
     update_config(update_st, c)
-    update_reset(update_st)
   }
 
   function asset(ty: string, ver: string, size: int) -> string {
@@ -116,8 +121,11 @@ program UpdateTest {
     update_check_tick(update_st, false)
     expect(update_fresh(update_st))
     expect(update_latest(update_st) == "1.2.0")
+    update_notes_for(update_st, "tr")                  # the game's tick keeps them for its language
     expect_eq(len(update_notes(update_st, "tr")), 1)
-    expect_eq(len(update_notes(update_st, "de")), 2)
+    expect_eq(len(update_notes(update_st, "de")), 0)   # not kept for German yet
+    update_notes_for(update_st, "de")
+    expect_eq(len(update_notes(update_st, "de")), 2)   # no German: English
   }
 
   test "the version being played is shown only when asked" (update_st: mut UpdateState, update_test_st: mut UpdateTestState) {
@@ -175,8 +183,10 @@ program UpdateTest {
     Fs.mkdir(dir() + "/Game.app/Contents")
     Fs.mkdir(dir() + "/Game.app/Contents/MacOS")
     Fs.write_text(dir() + "/Game.app/Contents/MacOS/UpdateMac", "x")
+    configure(update_st, false)
     expect(update_installed(update_st))
     update_test_st.exe = "/private/var/folders/x/AppTranslocation/y/Game.app/Contents/MacOS/Game"
+    configure(update_st, false)
     expect(not update_installed(update_st))
   }