Posted on 06/04/2008 8:01:01 AM PDT by Mike Fieschko
Microsoft has given another lease of life to Windows XP only days before PC makers have to stop selling it.
Windows XP reaches its end of life on 30 June but Microsoft has now said it can continue being sold until June 2010 but only on cheap desktops.
The decision follows one made in April to extend the life of XP on low cost laptops until the same date.
It comes as Dell, HP and Lenovo exploit loopholes in Microsoft's licensing terms to keep putting XP on machines.
Growing market
In an announcement at the Computex trade show in Taiwan, Microsoft said the decision was prompted by customers asking for the software to be put on low cost desktops.
Industry experts believe the decision is also motivated by the fact that low cost machines cannot run Windows Vista - the newest version of the operating system.
They also say that many of the low cost laptops run Linux - an open source rival to Microsoft's operating system.
Low cost laptops, such as the Asus Eee PC, have proved hugely popular. Research firm IDC predicts that sales of ultra low-cost notebooks, will reach nine million units in 2012.
The extension Microsoft granted to XP for these low cost laptops, or netbooks, covered machines that have no more than 1GB of RAM; a hard drive up to 80GB in size; a processor running no faster than 1GHz; a screen no larger than 10.2in (25cm) and no touch screen.
So far Microsoft has laid down no specifications for the low cost desktops, called nettops, but it said it was working with 20 PC makers on these machines.
The terms of Microsoft's licensing arrangements with PC makers dictate that they must stop offering XP as an option on new machines after 30 June.
Many PC makers have flouted this cut off by shipping machines running certain versions of Vista with a "downgrade license" that lets customers revert to the older operating system.
"The last Windows computer you will ever need!"And you know they were RIGHT!
It was indeed the last pre-loaded Windows computer I will ever buy!(All my Win machines these days are VMware VMs, using my existing licenses. The old hardware is long gone.)
LMAO!!!
The same way that Windows users do it. Buy hardware that is supported by the operating system.
The fact that most Linux distros will install and run on most hardware is a bonus. Just like with Windows, if you want to ensure compatibility, make sure that the hardware you buy is actually supported by your distro of choice.
Now you know that Mac owners can install the OS themselves, right in the privacy of their own home...
Win 2K - still the winner.
[steve@armada7800 ~]$
[steve@armada7800 ~]$ uname -r
2.6.24.4-desktop586-3mnb
[steve@armada7800 ~]$
Running on a 1999 Compaq Armada 7800 laptop, still used daily for browsing (400 Mhz). Try THAT with Vista!
Apple Breaks 20 per cent barrier in the US and ten per cent barrier worldwide
Not really. Apple doesn't really compete in the low-end marketplace that is targeted by this.
I'm not surprised by this move at all, as it is basically an admission that Microsoft has no other way to compete on the low-end (what would have been considered to be fairly powerful machines just a few years ago). Vista is a resource-hungry pig that doesn't fit the needs of many people. The ASUS eeePC is targeting a growing marketplace that microsoft has only now realized they can't just abandon to their competitors. Once consumers realize there is a viable alternative to Windows, Microsoft's cash cow will slowly starve.
-Found our wireless network right away; no problems getting online
-Installed our old Lexmark inkjet printer driver; no problems
-Installed Open Office (free) software; no problems
-Installed our digital camera driver; no problems
My wife uses the computer for e-mail, desktop publishing, instant messaging, digital photo management, watching online video, etc. -- and she loves it. I've used it on several occasions, and it seems to work great.
I was initially concerned about getting it (due to the horror stories I had heard about Vista) -- but to date I am very happy with the purchase.
Get rid of that damned DRM anchor in the performance of new microprocessors, or forget my ever going to VISTA.
The very idea of having to get Microshaft's "permission" to change hardware components on MY computer makes me bristle. Just thinking about it!
Me too.
I am happy that you are happy with your Vista. For me, and the programs I run, it just is not working for me. I find it very unstable. I am totally unhappy with it. Each to their own. Glad it is working well for you.
LilyBean
A billion Chinese with Linus vs 300 million Americans with Windows........
and let's not even talk about the 'free' Windows the Chinese use..
Question: I have a customer’s machine coming in for maintenance and software install and one of the requests that I fielded was whether or not I could swap out Vista for XP. Any suggestions on how to do this short of having to buy it (assuming I can find a copy)? It is, after all, a “downgrade” -and he just can not work with Linux (gets totally frustrated with it).
All you people who use manufactured computers are a bunch of useless parasites anyway. I built my own computer from a pine cone, three rubber bands and some of my own skin, and I run it with software that I wrote myself using only 4 lines of code.
Hmph. Lightweights. You all disgust me.
/self-important geek mode
LOL!! Brilliant!!!
Yeah! And I stuffed a jet engine into my Yugo. I don't understand why you loosers don't just build your cars from scratch like me.
Honestly though, your post is what gets received often by people who want to switch away from Windows, when what they should be told is:
Trying to put a Linux distro on your hardware might work. No guarantees. Most people won't have a problem. However, if you want to make a break into the Linux world you need to do one of two things:
1. Do some research and be prepared for problems.
Not all hardware is created equal. Windows crashes a lot because Microsoft lets you install Windows on junk hardware. So, there's a lot of junk hardware out there. Linux is more careful. The downside is that your computer may have issues running Linux. The upside is that if your hardware is okay under Linux it will last a very long time and give you few problems.
If you're not willing to put up with possible problems with your existing hardware then:
2. Buy a computer that is known to run Linux well.
Dell has a couple. So does IBM (Now Lenovo). System76 has some too.
If you buy a Pentium II 45o at a yard sale and try to run Vista on it you're going to be in for a lot of trouble. That's because you can't just grab some random hardware then expect your OS of choice to work flawlessly.
Windows XP, service pack 3, just installed for me in 40 minutes with no problems whatsoever.
Not permission, provision. Say you want to load Photoshop, version 5.5. You tell MS and they tell you that you need to get MS programs w,x,y, and z, so that Photoshop will run.
And only them, no other crap.
You say “yes”, either buying w,x,y, and z or getting them free, and you install them before installing Photoshop. Only Microsoft could tell you if both everything will work, and will work *well* on your system, ahead of time.
Alternatively, Photoshop might say on the box that it requires a list of system features to run, so you need to get them first.
As far as DRM goes, most home users don’t want it, but corporations have to have it for liability reasons. And this goes to system configuration in the first place.
Only Microsoft has the knowledge base, or could have the knowledge base, to maximize computer performance with not just their, but other vendor’s software as well. Just the stuff you want, nothing extra. Especially DRM.
And if you are setting up you computer for the first time, before you have any data files at all, would you find it troubling that it works at maximum efficiency?
After that point, it is no longer Microsoft’s business what you do with your computer. But let’s say a year down the road, and you get Photoshop 9.3. Either Adobe or Microsoft would give you the information for a clean uninstall of 5.5, and then an *ideal* install of 9.3.
In the process, they tell you that your scanner and video card could be replaced, and if you slapped on another gigabyte of memory you would get much better performance.
Your choice to take their advice.
Ha! Microshaft loses to market forces! The little OS that could wins! XP lives on!
On Ubuntu, replace the -generic kernel with the -server kernel and you should fix the problem.
Notice too that this is an OS installation problem. I suspect that if users had to install Windows from media rather than buying their computers with it pre-installed they'd have just as much if not more difficulty as you did with Linux. It's worth the effort to set up Linux, trust me! :)
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