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Am I Running XP?


Eldorado

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Believe it or not, friends there's a website for folks who don't know which Operating System they are on.

'If you're wondering who is still running Windows XP in this day and age, given that support for the OS is ending soon, the answer is it might be YOU! Or at least, so Microsoft suspects.

But fear not: Redmond has stepped up its outreach program with a new website that's designed to get to the bottom of this mystery, once and for all.'

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/03/14/am_i_running_xp/

:)

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Yeah well in this day and age I am running XP and have no desire to "upgrade" to Windows 7 or whatever. Too expensive for me and I don't trust Linux either.

I have too many programs that I'd have to dump because many do not run on Linux.

Granted I said something similar when I had win 98 however many programs I wanted to use needed better hardware so that is what I did and installed XP. So far XP has been very stable and I have not had any "Blue Screen of Death" thingees.

Just because Win 7 is new doesn't mean much to me. I don't wish to upgrade then come to realize that none of my hardware will work therefore forcing me to spend money I don't have to build a new computer.

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We still have it here at work, but when we move, we'll be upgrading everything. I just hope not to Windoze 8. I hate it.

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Yeah well in this day and age I am running XP and have no desire to "upgrade" to Windows 7 or whatever. Too expensive for me and I don't trust Linux either.

I have too many programs that I'd have to dump because many do not run on Linux.

...

My advise is to backup your files regularly. Also there may be non-Microsoft antivirus solutions that may still work for Win XP after the support ends. This could still be cheaper than buying new hardware.

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well my dads brothers wifes brothers father in laws brother is still using windows 95

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Viva la resistance!

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Yeah well in this day and age I am running XP and have no desire to "upgrade" to Windows 7 or whatever. Too expensive for me and I don't trust Linux either.

I have too many programs that I'd have to dump because many do not run on Linux.

Granted I said something similar when I had win 98 however many programs I wanted to use needed better hardware so that is what I did and installed XP. So far XP has been very stable and I have not had any "Blue Screen of Death" thingees.

Just because Win 7 is new doesn't mean much to me. I don't wish to upgrade then come to realize that none of my hardware will work therefore forcing me to spend money I don't have to build a new computer.

Just be aware that you are at risk of many new zero day threats that the bad guys are supposedly holding for the day support ends (April 8th) and your security suite may not protect you from one or all of those threats. Windows XP was released in 2001 when the internet was just taking off (remember dial-up) and it really wasn't designed for the world we live in today, the constantly connected state of most computers and is very vulnerable to modern threats.

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Seems like some of you are missing the gist of the article. No-one is saying using XP is bad. What is funny, and quite alarming, is that some folks have no idea which Operating System they are using. Despite the screen telling them every time they start their computer.

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Seems like some of you are missing the gist of the article. No-one is saying using XP is bad. What is funny, and quite alarming, is that some folks have no idea which Operating System they are using. Despite the screen telling them every time they start their computer.

I know it sounds sad but I bet 60% of my customers don't know what version of Windows they are running. They don't understand what a browser is and a bunch are still sending money to AOL.

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My main machine is running 7, my side piece is running Linux and my leisurely laptop is running 8. I really hate 8. It's driven me to drinking....more than I already consume! My life is in shambles.

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My main machine is running 7, my side piece is running Linux and my leisurely laptop is running 8. I really hate 8. It's driven me to drinking....more than I already consume! My life is in shambles.

:w00t: I hear ya. Did you download the update to 8.1yet? Patch it up to date and the the 8.1 update will show up in the store. Download it and PM me and I'll give you he three clicks that turn 8 sort of into 7. Another update is coming on April 8 that basically turns 8.1 into Windows 7 so hang in there as it really is a good OS

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Seems like some of you are missing the gist of the article. No-one is saying using XP is bad. What is funny, and quite alarming, is that some folks have no idea which Operating System they are using. Despite the screen telling them every time they start their computer.

Many people simply do not care about these things. They just want to have a computer to browse the web and check their mails. An ''operating system'' is a technical term and as long as the PC is turning on and remains functional, I suppose it's what most of these people want.

Yeah well in this day and age I am running XP and have no desire to "upgrade" to Windows 7 or whatever. Too expensive for me and I don't trust Linux either.

I have too many programs that I'd have to dump because many do not run on Linux.

Granted I said something similar when I had win 98 however many programs I wanted to use needed better hardware so that is what I did and installed XP. So far XP has been very stable and I have not had any "Blue Screen of Death" thingees.

Just because Win 7 is new doesn't mean much to me. I don't wish to upgrade then come to realize that none of my hardware will work therefore forcing me to spend money I don't have to build a new computer.

According to this article, you may perhaps not need to pay for upgrading. Microsoft is apparrently considering to offer a free upgrade of Windows 8.1 With Bing.

http://www.pcworld.c...-with-bing.html

As for Linux, as far as I know, you need to find alternative open-source packages. Instead of Office, it is LibreOffice, to replace Windows Media player you can use VLC or Brasero ect. Some use a program called ''Wine'' to run Windows applications such as the popular Itunes and things like that on Linux.

Anyway, the relevance of Linux concerning these XP machines is that many of them simply cannot upgrade to Windows 7 or 8 and have good performances. In the Linux world, you have quite a few ''lightweight'' distributions intended for older hardwares.

Edited by sam_comm
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I have a windows 7 machine...this one happens to be XP pro...and I have a cad station still running on win 2k pro...it works...don't fix that which is not broken!

Edit to add...the cad station is not "online"...and it is so easy to work on

Edited by Jeremiah65
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Windows XP was released in 2001 when the internet was just taking off (remember dial-up) and it really wasn't designed for the world we live in today, the constantly connected state of most computers and is very vulnerable to modern threats.

Actually I am using high speed internet, not dial up and win XP service pack 3 has the drivers that allow high speed too and so far it has worked quite well for me. In fact all the anti virus programs I have work far better BECAUSE I have XP. Windows 98 kept crashing when I used early versions of AVG that were supposed to run, at that time, on win 98.

No operating system, regardless of whether it is windows, linux or so forth, is going to be 100 percent secure nor will all the anti-virus and anti-malware programs grant 100% protection.

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Actually I am using high speed internet, not dial up and win XP service pack 3 has the drivers that allow high speed too and so far it has worked quite well for me. In fact all the anti virus programs I have work far better BECAUSE I have XP. Windows 98 kept crashing when I used early versions of AVG that were supposed to run, at that time, on win 98.

No operating system, regardless of whether it is windows, linux or so forth, is going to be 100 percent secure nor will all the anti-virus and anti-malware programs grant 100% protection.

Of course XP works on-line, it was designed from the start to go online, that wasn't the point I was trying to make. XP is an archaic OS that is full of vulnerabilities and is far less secure than 7. That is a fact http://www.cnet.com/news/report-windows-7-almost-five-times-more-secure-than-xp/ Saying that every OS is vulnerable is stating the obvious, saying that you are sticking with XP because every OS is vulnerable is sticking your head in the sand but it is your head and you can stick anywhere you please. It is like saying I am bringing a bow and arrow to the war because it shoots just like a gun and every weapon runs out of ammunition anyways.

I personally couldn't care less what OS you use nor do I care if your system is hijacked. I was merely passing on information that XP users may find valuable, especially if they have sensitive info on their computers. This is a big deal and people reading this should realize that the above person's attitude is the wrong one if you spend a lot of time on-line. You will get hit and you may not even know that a rootkit or a worm has taken up residence in your system and is busily sending your info to a remote server or making you part of its botnet team.

Are all OSes vulnerable? Yes, absolutely and that includes Apple's OS. Are some OSes far more vulnerable than others? Yes, absolutely. OSes introduced 14 years ago were not designed from the ground up to face the sophisticated security threat

Your antivirus working better on XP than 98 is irrelevant because, in all likelihood, you are using security software that was never designed for 98. I only mention it because it serves to make a point for others. After support for XP goes away, many software developers will stop work on XP versions. As time passes the newer and better designed security suites and such will no longer work on XP.

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I use Ubuntu in one of my old machines and it works like a charm.

I believe that upgrading from XP to any newer version is mostly for security reasons and better drivers for your hardware. Some companies never released drivers for Windows 7 (Sony Handycam for instance) and the XP drivers do not work in W7, W8, so I can't plug my camera anymore but at least I had chicken (?).

Anyway good luck upgrading.

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I use Ubuntu in one of my old machines and it works like a charm.

I believe that upgrading from XP to any newer version is mostly for security reasons and better drivers for your hardware. Some companies never released drivers for Windows 7 (Sony Handycam for instance) and the XP drivers do not work in W7, W8, so I can't plug my camera anymore but at least I had chicken (?).

Anyway good luck upgrading.

Ubuntu works great and doesn't require a lot of horsepower to run well. Also it is very intuitive and easy to figure out. It's secure as well since the bad guys aren't hunting it. Have you tried running the Handycam software in compatibility mode? Also, if you upgrade to Pro you get XP mode which allows you to boot up XP inside 7 to run legacy software like Handycam.

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My parents have two computers still running XP. On the fence about helping them upgrade by buying new oS licenses. Might give Ubuntu a go for them because it's probably the most user friendly Linux out there. Although Microsoft vouched antivirus support for MSE until 2015 and other main antivirus companies vouched support until 2016 for xp. So I think it should be ok. After all I assume most of the vulnerabilities were taken care of. Other future vulnerabilities would be the result of software independent of the OS.

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Last year Win7 topped XP in world wide usage statistics. I think XP survived more than enough, its a good OS. But be certain that the operating difference between Win7 and XP is huge (7 and 8 not so much). Some old software can perform even better on 7 than XP

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My parents have two computers still running XP. On the fence about helping them upgrade by buying new oS licenses. Might give Ubuntu a go for them because it's probably the most user friendly Linux out there. Although Microsoft vouched antivirus support for MSE until 2015 and other main antivirus companies vouched support until 2016 for xp. So I think it should be ok. After all I assume most of the vulnerabilities were taken care of. Other future vulnerabilities would be the result of software independent of the OS.

The big fear is that the bad guys have been storing up zero days for the 8th. These are smart gus saying this so I tend to listen. MS is offering deals on new computers and Windows 8 which is due for another big update in early April to make it more user friendly. http://www.microsoft...D_NULL_LEARN_xp

I'm just letting folks know. I moved away from XP years ago and 7 is an absolutely amazing OS. I like 8 even better but MS screwed up badly with the GUI. Very badly.

Edited by Merc14
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Malwarebytes is promising lifetime support for XP users and a powerful, heirostics based anti-mlaware program. Malwaebytes makes agreat product, is pretty inexpensive ($25) and will run happily right alongside your present security suite

http://www.pcworld.com/article/2110009/a-thin-lifeline-for-xp-users-new-malwarebytes-suite-will-support-the-older-os.html

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It's not the end of the world if one does stick with XP for some times past April 8th. The Mozilla Foundation, Google and Opera have announced that XP will still be supported for their browsers at least a year after the support is ended. Avast Antivirus will also extend it's support for a minimum of 3 years.

So with a secure browser and antivirus software up-to-date while remaining vigilant online, the threats are far less likely to burst into your computer.

Ubuntu works great and doesn't require a lot of horsepower to run well. Also it is very intuitive and easy to figure out. It's secure as well since the bad guys aren't hunting it. Have you tried running the Handycam software in compatibility mode? Also, if you upgrade to Pro you get XP mode which allows you to boot up XP inside 7 to run legacy software like Handycam.

That depend, a lot of XP machines still in function have around 1GB-2GB RAM and Ubuntu, which is not considered a lightweight Linux distro, might not work that great for multitasking on older hardwares in comparison with XP. I would suggest to use Xubuntu or Lubuntu instead, which are designed to be less ressources hungry.

Edited by sam_comm
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I am ready for an experiment, I have a quad core running on XP, I am going to install open source Clamwin Anti Virus on it, a system monitoring software and don't disconnect it from the net... lets see how long it takes before the evil-doers take over my machine....

My bet is:It will take quite a while...

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I am ready for an experiment, I have a quad core running on XP, I am going to install open source Clamwin Anti Virus on it, a system monitoring software and don't disconnect it from the net... lets see how long it takes before the evil-doers take over my machine....

My bet is:It will take quite a while...

Start the experiment on April 9th and let us know what happens. I for one, would be interested in the results.. I am going to do the same thing only use Microsoft Security Essentials, thanks for the idea..

Edited by Merc14
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