[lug] Windows XP End-of-Life: April 8, 2014

[Glenn Murray]

I think Lori makes a good point.

For me, WinXP represents the maturation of the desktop interface.  It
wasn't more stable for me than Win2K (which was loads more stable than
95/98/Me), but it was much prettier, and for desktop work mostly did the
job.  I think most improvements in desktop user interfaces since then, in
all OSs, have been marginal.

Its longevity is pretty amazing.  Before virtual machines became popular I
was usually on dual-boot desktops, so I often compared XP to my current
Linux distro, and there were several, while WinXP remained a constant,
warts and all.  I still run it in VirtualBox on my desktop, for Netflix.

I think I've always preferred Linux because of its open-source ecosystem,
server-side capabilities,  and UNIX more than its excellence as a user
interface.  I'd have to say now, grudgingly, that Microsoft got some things
right with WinXP, and its longevity is proof of that.

Cheers,
Glenn



On Mon, Apr 7, 2014 at 7:45 PM, Bear Giles <bgiles at coyotesong.com> wrote:

> You're assuming that's a good thing. You can make an strong argument that
> it's actually 'enabling' behavior that has caused significant social harm.
> Companies don't want to deal with updating software and aren't aware, or
> don't care, that they've become botnets or worse. I don't have much
> sympathy for them since I see maintaining software as part of the cost of
> doing business.
>
> (Note: I'm not saying you need to update every application every year. But
> you have a serious problem if your business still depends on software that
> requires an 11-year-old OS to run. What's their main way to reach customers
> - a kiosk in Second Life? A custom MySpace page?)
>
> I know it's more complex with consumers since there are many people who
> can't afford to replace their ancient computers. I don't have an easy
> answer for them but I don't think they're a tail that can wag the rest of
> the dog.
>
>
> On Mon, Apr 7, 2014 at 6:26 PM, Lori R <lightningrose at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> On 04/07/2014 01:05 PM, Donald wrote:
>>
>> > On 4/7/2014 12:52 PM, Jeffrey S. Haemer wrote:
>> >
>> >> But then again, maybe not.
>> >> <
>> http://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2014/04/not-dead-yet-dutch-british-governments-pay-to-keep-windows-xp-alive/>
>>
>>  >>
>> > "Not dead yet: Dutch, British governments pay to keep Windows XP alive"
>> >
>> > With the history of B. Gates, wouldn't you think that this was the plan
>> ?
>>
>> Win-XP was released in Oct 2001.
>>
>> How many Linux distros have had 12+ year support?
>>
>> Lori Reed
>> http://www.Lightning-Rose.com
>> http://som3000.sourceforge.net
>>
>>
>> On Mon, Apr 7, 2014 at 1:05 PM, Donald <donvukovic at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>>  On 4/7/2014 12:52 PM, Jeffrey S. Haemer wrote:
>>>
>>> But then again, maybe not.<http://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2014/04/not-dead-yet-dutch-british-governments-pay-to-keep-windows-xp-alive/>
>>>
>>>
>>> "Not dead yet: Dutch, British governments pay to keep Windows XP alive"
>>>
>>> With the history of B. Gates, wouldn't you think that this was the plan ?
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
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>
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