Windows XP - End of Support

[Gordon]

Is this just another cynical attempt by the Evil Empire to make us give them more money or is there substance to it? Is an additional firewall enough? Having used Vista and 7 on other machines I'm not inclined to upgrade this XP machine unless I really have to.

http://money.aol.co.uk/2014/03/07/upgrade-or-risk-being-hacked-windows-xp-users-warned

How's that!! Sorry, too much hurry to get out. Thanks to mercia, below, for fix too.

[Bryn]

Do you think you could tweak that URL so that it works, please?

[mercia]

http://money.aol.co.uk/2014/03/07/upgrade-or-risk-being-hacked-windows-xp-users-warned/

[Old Grumpy]

Is this just another cynical attempt by the Evil Empire to make us give them more money or is there substance to it? [URL]http://money.aol.co.uk/2014/03/07/upgrade-or-risk-being-hacked-windows-xp-users-warned/[URL]

Probably both! Why they can't just carry on issuing updates to XP, I don't know (other than for the reason you've outlined!). I am very happy with XP. I do not look forward to upgrading to Windows 8, based on discussion thereof on this and other sites. I will have to get a new computer to do so anyway, I expect, due to the feeble capacity of my current (?2007) machine.

OG

[Bryn]

I still use XP on one laptop to run much used legacy software, such a Audio DVD Creator, which will not run under later versions of Windows. It will now get permanently disconnected from the Internet.

[johnb]

I do not look forward to upgrading to Windows 8

There is a plentiful supply of Windows 7 PCs/Laptops as long as you are willing to avoid consumer retail outlets such as PC World. (The Windows 7 is pre-installed through the downgrade rights of Windows 8.)

[Quarky]

Probably both! Why they can't just carry on issuing updates to XP, I don't know (other than for the reason you've outlined!). I am very happy with XP. I do not look forward to upgrading to Windows 8, based on discussion thereof on this and other sites. I will have to get a new computer to do so anyway, I expect, due to the feeble capacity of my current (?2007) machine.

OG

I'm basically in the same boat with my business PC.

I have been advised to upgrade to Windows 7, avoiding Windows 8. A new PC will be desirable, with I5 processor and solid state storage.

Could keep on with XP,but virus risks become greater over the course of time. What about Linux? Fine for the nerd, but in a real business world, I need connectivity, and I'm locked into Microsoft.

[Mr Pee]

Without getting too technical, what is the problem with Windows 8? I am getting a new computer end of March/ early April and it has Windows 8 pre-installed.

[Frances_iom]

... Fine for the nerd, but in a real business world, I need connectivity, and I'm locked into Microsoft.

go speak to Munich - havn't realised that they were incommunicado - suggest contact one of the Linux support businesses eg Red Hat - Linux can support most needs in terms of office communication etc - there may well be software that is MS specific but win8 breaks a fair amount of compatibility will older software anyway as well as drivers for older but still functional equipment (eg scanners, specialised hardware) -

[rauschwerk]

Without getting too technical, what is the problem with Windows 8? I am getting a new computer end of March/ early April and it has Windows 8 pre-installed.

My problem is that three bits of software, all vitally important to me, won't run under Windows 8. On these I keep track of my household finances, catalogue all my recorded music and score music. I have therefore bought a used laptop with XP on it.

[Pegleg]

I'm basically in the same boat with my business PC.

I have been advised to upgrade to Windows 7, avoiding Windows 8. A new PC will be desirable, with I5 processor and solid state storage.

Could keep on with XP,but virus risks become greater over the course of time. What about Linux? Fine for the nerd, but in a real business world, I need connectivity, and I'm locked into Microsoft.

Whether you see the end of XP as a threat or opportunity, depends on your outlook, But, I suppose the demise of XP will cause a lot of people to abandon the “If it ain't broke, don't fix it” axiom.

For the business user, sole trader or otherwise, data, applications and reliability are paramount, so it's easy to see how folk get locked into MS. If your PC is old enough to have come with XP then it's likely you should have planned to replace the hardware irrespective of using a newer operating system. Those who have a case to use applications that run on newer technology would have done so anyway.

But if you are only now thinking about replacing a “business PC” that runs XP, you've left it very late in the day to investigate alternatives and plan for the migration. You would know better than me if you could treat the PC as a depreciating asset whose cost can be offset as a business expense in any cost/benefit analysis, and whether you simply wish to carry on as is as far as software applications are concerned. Then there's all the support issues, etc., etc.

Without knowing the spec of your current “business PC” and the applications you run, I wouldn't like to say if either an i5 processor or solid state storage are really necessary, but I would question it. Perhaps it's an obvious statement, but the better you understand your current and future computing needs the more likely you are to avoid either over or under specification of any hardware purchase.

If Linux came pre-installed on a PC, would you still regard it as only for "nerds"?

[Pegleg]

My problem is that three bits of software, all vitally important to me, won't run under Windows 8. On these I keep track of my household finances, catalogue all my recorded music and score music. I have therefore bought a used laptop with XP on it.

A pragmatic decision that works in the short term. But personally I would investigate the possibility of storing such vital data in a format that's not reliant on specific software. Some form of SQL database maybe?

[johnb]

Sorry for banging on about the wide availability of "business" grade computers with Windows 7 Pro preinstalled (through the downgrade rights of Windows 8). Windows 7 Pro has an XP mode BUT updates for the XP mode will cease at the same time as those for XP, so that isn't really much use.

However, of all the software I had that ran on an XP machine there has only been one package that I had initial problems installing on Windows 7 - that was Quicken which I use for my household finances. Even so, I eventually worked out how to install Quicken on Windows 7 and it since then it has worked perfectly.

(If anyone has had difficulties installing Quicken on Windows 7 let me know and I will explain my method.)

[Quarky]

Whether you see the end of XP as a threat or opportunity, depends on your outlook, But, I suppose the demise of XP will cause a lot of people to abandon the “If it ain't broke, don't fix it” axiom.

For the business user, sole trader or otherwise, data, applications and reliability are paramount, so it's easy to see how folk get locked into MS.

If Linux came pre-installed on a PC, would you still regard it as only for "nerds"?

Thanks Pegleg. I tend to wear two different hats in the world of computers. One, my business user hat, which appears securely locked to Microsoft.

The other is the amateur computer enthusiast (nerd!) hat, which sees Linux as a great opportunity to get to grips with all matters computing.

However wearing my business user hat, can I afford to trust that green horn nerd that enjoys playing around with Linux?

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

I still use RISCOS. A computer that is 19 years old with a 45 MHZ processor still runs faster than Windows for most everyday applications. I do have a more recent machine, a mere 11 years old, that leaves Windows at the post in virtually all applications.
But I'm no flat-earther, and use a work PC laptop (with XP) plus the most up to date iMac.