Is XP finished. Should we get rid of our desktop with XP. Keep hearing it will not be protected any more.What does it mean?

Question

Is XP finished. Should we get rid of our desktop with XP. Keep hearing it will not be protected any more.What does it mean?

Answer 1

It's not just security updates that are done it's all updates, Microsoft is no longer updating the product in any way or providing technical support for it either.



I understand your hesitation in not wanting to get rid of it, XP was an awesome version of the program. Having used every form of Windows all the way back to the first Windows 95, I would recommend that your next choice should be to purchase Windows 7. It is very similar to XP and it is far more stable than XP, for reasons that are techie and you won't even care about so I won't explain lol.



Vista was bad, it took a lot of resources and, well just nasty on multiple levels. Windows 8 is the new OS but personally it drives me up the wall with its efforts to keep me from controlling my system, and the fact that everything is app based ... I despise it and if you are coming from XP I can almost guarantee that you will despise it too lol.



If you want to keep the actual computer then you could always wipe the hard drive and install a purchased copy of Windows 7, that would work in theory, however, if it is an XP machine then chances are that the hardware in it would never be able to properly run any operating system after XP without some serious issues. XP is from back in the day when 512MB of RAM was considered high, and while you could and may have increased the RAM at some point beyond that, the chances are that it made no difference in performance because the other key components like the motherboard, CPU and graphics cards are so out-dated that they can't handle higher specs.



So all that speak to tell you that your best option is to simply make a decision, recycle the old machines and if you just need a system to do basic things on like surfing the internet and/or doing documents, you could easily have a custom machine built for extremely cheap. Most people assume a custom built is more expensive but in fact it's a lot cheaper than buying a pre-made computer in the store. A good place to shop is Memory Express, very helpful, best prices with a price match+ guarantee, plus they provide excellent warranties on any system you choose to build.

Answer 2

XP is no longer kept up to date by Microsoft... It means that there will be no more patches for security vulnerabilities and it will become more easily for malware, viruses and hackers to exploit. It ALSO means that software engineers will no longer make software that needs to be compatible with XP so you will eventually no longer find any software that will work on it. In short... at some point in the future it wil reach a point where it will simply no longer function either in the respect of being compromized by malware/viruses or simply not being able to connect or communicate with updated or modern software. Should you get rid of it?... I would certainly recommend it. Be wary of Windows 8 (in any form) this too has some serious flaws... I would recommend Windows 7, Apple, or a version of Linux... of course Linux would be the cheaper way to go as many of its distributions are totally free (like Ubuntu) and also much more secure that Windows.

Answer 3

Windows XP is over 10 years old. Buy a new computer with modern hardware and an up-to-date operating system. That will solve the issue of your OS not being supported by Microsoft anymore. Chances are you're on a 32-bit machine using XP on a single core processor unless you got one that has the 64-bit version of XP and purposely looked for a dual core processor; do yourself a favor and buy something new.

Answer 4

Windows XP is outdated and no more security fixes will be released by Microsoft, which means your computer will be vulnerable to hackers. I got rid of XP a long time ago. You must do it too. You can use a recent version of Microsoft Operating System like Windows 7 or 8. Or you can use linux distros like 'ubuntu' or 'linux mint' which are easy to use.

Answer 5

Basically there will be no more security updates.

Usually updates protect against ongoing, evolving or new security threats.

Now however, if someone works out how to break into XP remotely, Microsoft will not fix that problem, and evetryone will quickly learn how to do it.

Answer 6

Personally I think microsoft are trying a con (yet again)

They are trying to get everyone with XP to buy THEIR latest version of software , but unfortunately for them there is a very large customer base who already have XP

when push comes to shove and those customers start thinking about a new OS they are going to think



I have 2 options

Pay yet again for a new microsoft OS (cos they have already paid for XP or bought it preinstalled) when there is no guarantee MS wont do the same with the new software in a few years time, so there is a good chance I will have to pay YET AGAIN for an even newer OS



OR

get a free version of linux and never have to pay for an OS again OR have to pay for MS user software.



And a LOT of those users are going to go for linux

and why not?

Its free, a lot of user software is available and is free AND it can input/output in MS format

(why ANYBODY pays for WIndows office of any version I'll never know, when there is openoffice available for free which does more, and can input/output in MS format)



If the worst comes to the worst. or you really dont like it, then all you have to do is wipe the hard drive, THEN buy the latest OS from MS and install it



Worst you can lose is a bit of time (cos you can download free versions of linux ready to burn to disc then install)

Best thing that can happen is you dont have to pay MS for a new OS EVER, and you get an OS and software for free.



(I have 2 pcs with XP pro installed both of which are primarily used for internet work

If MS think I am going to buy WIN "anything" to install on them when I can get linux for free they live in fantasy land

These days I try to buy pcs without any os installed (cos they tend to be a lot cheaper- then I install linux on them.

I NEVER buy MS software of any sort)





just some info for "amanda"



the first "windows" was 3.0, then 3.1 then win95

Answer 7

I have two desktops, and two laptops that are using XP.

I am going to use them as long as possible. I saw somewhere that Microsoft decided to keep issuing security

updates after they realized that so many people were still using XP.

Answer 8

If you really like XP, there are Linux distros that look and act a lot like it but are much MUCH safer, and get updated.



Then again, there are Linux distros that look much spiffier, but you can change that after you get one. Oh yes, it will run on your machine even if Windows 7 or 8 can't.



http://www.whylinuxisbetter.net/

http://nfp.freehostia.com/jims-intro-to-linux.html

http://www.zorin-os.com/

http://www.linuxmint.com/

http://www.ubuntu.com/

http://www.makeuseof.com/pages/best-linux-distributions

http://www.distrowatch.com/

Answer 9

you don't have to get rid of the whole computer. all you have to do is install a new copy of windows 7, or any other more recent version like vista, if it is unused.



in a word, upgrade your windows.



no more xp updates means your computer will be vulnerable to cyber attacks and viruses, trackers, malware and such.