Py

Very interesting article! It says that in order to use the longest range (and "best") modes of the HARM, an additional targeting pod is needed. For the F/A-18 that's a "TAS" pod (Targeting Avionics System). There's mention of it on the F/A-18C in 1996 so hopefully we will get it later in DCS, though I've heard no mention of it so far...

DCS checks for updates on startup (once a day), if you say yes to the update then it will update everything. Note that most of the fortnightly updates are for the Open Beta version, they are much less frequent for the stable version. I recommend using the open beta if you are flying the hornet. :)