GEEKNOTE: In addition to the voters of New Port Richey having the opportunity to choose a new mayor (I’m running for the post), an even bigger event is scheduled… Windows XP finally joins the ranks of unsupported operating systems.
Windows XP came onto the scene in 2001 and marked a sea change in the underlying architecture of Microsoft’s consumer operating systems. Windows 1 through Windows 98 and even the much maligned Windows ME all ran on top of an MS-DOS foundation that had its start back with the original IBM PC in 1981. Microsoft had developed a parallel OS for business use called Windows NT. Windows XP took the Windows NT file system and other advanced features and incorporated them into a mainstream OS for everyone. Early XP machines were sold with as little as 128k of memory and few were sold with over 1gb of memory.
Previous consumer versions of Windows rode on top of DOS. XP let you run some things in a DOS environment within Windows. This was a critical difference with major implications.
Windows Vista arrived in 2007 with some fancy enhancements to how our screens looked (eg. the Aero Glass Interface), but took so much extra horsepower to do it right that older machines simply stunk when upgraded. Vista still had the same underpinnings as Windows XP.
Windows Vista arrived and landed with a resounding “thud”. Microsoft worked mightily to fix the issues, but recognized the damaged nature of the name and so released the fixed version as Windows 7 rather than Windows Vista, Second Edition.
When Windows XP arrived, everything was 32 bit, as it had been for years. A 32 bit architecture provides for a maximum of 4gb of addressable memory and half a gb of memory typically gets used for memory mapped uses, such as video displays. PC hardware in 2001 was designed to use 32 bits. Microsoft later released a 64 bit version of XP, but almost nobody every saw it.
Vista came out in both 32 and 64 bit versions. By 2007, most computer hardware was designed to run a 64 bit OS, eliminating the 4gb memory limit.
By the time Windows 7 arrived in 2009, most new systems were shipping with the 64 bit versions of the OS.
Microsoft stumbled again in 2012 with the release of Windows 8, once again looking for flash over substance and redesigning everything to work like a touch screen tablet or smart phone. Corporate users stayed away in droves. Consumers often found that they needed to completely relearn how to use a personal computer when they went to a big box store and purchased a Windows 8 machine because that was all that was being sold.
Microsoft is slowly making changes to Windows 8 to make it more user friendly on a conventional desktop, but they aren’t quite there yet. (Windows 8.1 is the current release.)
So with XP support ending on April 8th and the XP systems still in service becoming an even bigger target to cyber criminals than they already are, what should someone with an XP system do? My recommendation is to buy a new Windows 7 system.
Microsoft suggests upgrading from Windows XP to Windows 8. I believe this is a VERY bad idea because the hardware on an old XP system is simply NOT going to run Windows 8 (or Windows 7 for that matter) in an acceptable fashion.
I believe that you should look at replacing your Windows XP desktop or notebook with a Windows 7 system. Although not exactly the same, the general look and feel of a Windows 7 system is close enough to that of Windows XP that you’ll adjust quickly. A modern 64 bit Windows 7 system will come with 4gb of memory and is likely expandable to 16gb or more if you ever need more memory.
We offer brand new name brand Windows 7 systems starting at about $500, with custom systems starting at just over $800.
If you spend $200 purchasing a copy of Windows 8.1 and paid someone a couple of hundred dollars to install it on your old hardware and transfer your data across, you’d have spent almost as much as a new system and you would STILL have old hardware. With processing power continuing to double every 18 months or so, how much do you REALLY want to put into an 8 or 10 year old system?
Upgrading simply does not make any sense.
Feel free to give me a call at the store (847-2424) if you have any questions. Because of the aforementioned election, I’m going to be out of the office all day Tuesday, but will be back bright and early on Wednesday, April 9th. Of course, if you are coming to the New Port Richey Recreation and Aquatic Center to vote in the election, I will see you there.
Rob Marlowe
Senior Geek
Gulfcoast Networking
(references to the mayoral campaign should be considered a Political advertisement paid for and approved by Robert C Marlowe, non-partisan, for Mayor of New Port Richey.)
Hi Rob, I have two computers; 1 XP and one 7. Both are working well. Shoild I retire my XP and use only the system 7? I use the XP for my book writing but could use the system 7 instead. .Is it feasible to have two separate sysem 7 operating systems? My XP is kind of an old friend.
Also, When is the election? I thought the response in the Sunday Times by the “other candidate” was weak. Roger
I wouldn’t let the XP machine touch the Internet from here on out. If you are writing on it and keep your files backed up, the XP box should be fine.
Rob,
I disagree with your advice (which others are also offering) to get rid of XP because support is running out. I would say your advice is primarily based on your desire to sell new systems.
XP can continue to operate a computer for many years without support. Most of the vunerabilities have probably already been fixed, and hackers will probably spend most of their time trying to hack the newer systems.
I still have two XP systems here that I plan to keep indefinitely. There are programs I have and use that will NOT run on 7. Others have also reported that after updating to Windows 7 they had to purchase new versions of some software because the old ones would not work. This is an additional expense you do not mention.
For people that are using computers primarily for email and web surfing XP will probably be good enough for years to come.
Bill,
While we sell computers, it is not our primary business and, quite frankly, the margin on a sub-$500 new system is pretty thin. If I were writing with the income potential, I’d be recommending folks keep their XP machines indefinitely. I’d make more by continuing to clean up the XP machines that are becoming impossible to secure properly.
The issue is that new flaws discovered with Vista, Win7, and Win8 may well be in areas of the code base that dates back to XP. I think we can safely assume that the bad guys will reverse engineer the patches and then craft new attacks. To the extent that the flaws are in the common code base, XP systems will be exposed.
Retail sales of Windows XP ended almost six years ago and systems with XP preinstalled ended almost four years ago. A four year old machine is now long enough in the tooth that it ought to be replaced with something faster if it breaks.
I built my home Vista machine in 2007. It has a Core 2 processor. There have now been four generations of the i3 – i5 – i7 series processors since my system was “state of the art”. I’ll likely replace it later this year simply because the hardware has improved so much in the last seven years that I can have a faster system that costs less to run. Many of the XP boxes I see are SIGNIFICANTLY older… some as much as a dozen years old!
Anyone who puts an XP system online for web surfing and email is playing Russian roulette with their personal data.