The VAR Guy has read some rather misleading headlines about Windows XP in recent weeks. While thousands — perhaps millions — of customers try to avoid Windows Vista, a myth about Windows XP seems to be spreading rapidly. And frankly, the XP myth is false. Here’s the scoop from The VAR Guy.
Alas, check out the following headlines about users moving back to XP or sticking with XP…
- “For the Love of XP,” InformationWeek, April 28
- “Steve Ballmer Gives New Hope to Those Who Love Windows XP,” eFluxMedia, April 24
- “Readers Still Love XP,” Notebooks.com, March 25
Sure, some people certainly love XP. But for the vast majority of folks, all this “XP Love” is a myth.
Simply put, The VAR Guy believes Windows XP is the lesser of two evils.
Think of it this way: Do you love going to the dentist to get a filling — if it means you don’t have to get root canal? In this case, XP is the filling you learn to live with because you don’t want all the deeper pain associated with Vista migrations. But that doesn’t mean you love XP.
Or does it?
Has the world forgotten about all of XP’s service pack and security headaches? Or is XP so mature now that people actually like the operating system?
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Indeed, it’s only because XP is a known quantity that has already been made to work.
The entire myth of “people love XP” is based upon the fact that they haven’t tried Linux.
Resistance to adapting Vista arises from the new interface structure and the hardware requirements. Confusion over the multiple versions of Vista available doesn’t help either. With the current economy putting a cap on both business and consumer decisions, it’s easy to understand why current owners of XP want it extended and are deferring moving to new hardware and software. Migrations are always hard - the controversy surrounding Vista’s capabilities and compatibilities make it easy for potential buyers to wait.
I agree completely. It seems like a panic reaction against Vista and XP comes as the big rescuer. However, I have the perception that more people are getting curious about Linux because of this. Not everyone is in love with XP. I’m seeing more and more newbies posting in forums asking for help on how to migrate from XP to Linux.
Carlos @3: You’ve got a point. The VAR Guy himself now runs Mac OS X and Ubuntu Linux because he wanted new options. But he continues to run XP on one system because of a Web conference company that requires XP for its guest speaker system.
The VAR Guy would love to hear from more XP fans, though. Are there folks who really “love” XP? Did you always love XP or did it grow on you, and why?
I hate Vista. It certainly doesn’t meet any of my requirements.
My company deals with programming of many different machine control systems and the manufacturers sell the tools to programme these machines at extortionate prices £2000 per license. Changing from XP to Vista requires all of these tools to be replaced at vast expense to the company so we just won’t do it, we will stick with XP.
In fairness, if the tools were available for Linux we wouldn’t use XP either.
its funny you should say that.. i’m not a big fan of conspiracy theories usually, but there is certainly some self-censorship going on in those articles. when MS sales are down, noone dares mention linux. when people dont want vista, noone dares mention linux. when theres a huge IIS botnet, noone dares mention it only occurs on MS soft. go figure!
funny, and certainly mostly true, paper.
Who express their Love to XP ? mainly people afraid of change.
Myself being a *nix enthousiast, I cope with XP and Vista … and I appreciate Vista much more - on an OS point of view. Criticism I hear about it are mostly the same as the one against real operating system, which tends to proove that microsoft is on its way to provide a serious OS in a near future.
(all that said without speaking about licenses foolishness ans so forth)
There is really only one reason to love XP: compatibility. The interface is sqalid and ugly, the features are limited, the security is lacking, and the stability is unacceptable. Look at most MS users’ gripes about Vista and you’ll find compatibility at the heart of most of them. Basically all of the avowed Windows users I know (who would never consider running OSX or Linux) are sticking to XP because Vista breaks their software or hardware.
Which essentially demonstrates that the operating system is becoming a commodity. Nobody cares so much about features, they just need a vehicle for their software and hardware. Which is ultimately good news for FOSS if it can become a platform for the SW & HW that people want to run.
Alan: Your line about an operating system becoming “a vehicle for [users] software and hardware” caught my eye. I think it’s right on target. I find myself living online in web-based applications (Google Apps, Online blog software, etc.) most of my day. Mac OS X and Ubuntu do the job for me there.
I actually don’t mind XP. I work more and more in a minimal Linux setup at home (I can dual boot), but I work exclusively in XP at work. To say XP isn’t stable, well I don’t buy that because I have more issues with Linux than I have had with XP I would have to say. Also, you have to ‘pimp’ your XP out to maximize pleasure. Virtual desktops? Well, take a look as virtuawin.sf.net. Very good stuff. Better alt-tab task switcher? Take a look at TaskswitchXP. There are all sorts of great open source apps to make XP a pretty darn good desktop.
I am not saying it is perfect, but I have gotten to the point where I have a pretty nice XP desktop that allows me to be productive and do some pretty cool stuff.
Why does the Var Guy talk about himself in the third person? Does he not realise the first person is available when talking about oneself? The Curious Guy is puzzled.
Curious: Jimmy loves The VAR Guy. And The VAR Guy loved “the show about nothing.” If you follow, you now know why our resident blogger talks in the third person.
I did actually meet someone who said that they specifically love XP. I was thinking “What on earth is there to love about Windows XP?”
Here we go again. Now CRN is reporting that users have grown to “love” XP. Really? Isn’t it more of a matter of users sticking with the problem they know rather than installing the problem they don’t know?
It is indeed a little sad to see people desperately clinging to such an old OS. To overcome their fears, Ubuntu now offers the opportunity to install Ubunbu from within Windows. This can be done with http://wubi-installer.org/
It’s not for the “love of XP”, it’s for the “love of productivity”. Vista is an enormous leap backward in user productivity.
It’s not “Love of XP” nor is it so much “Love of productivity”… It’s loathing of Vista.
Back in 1996 Apple was smart enough to realize that it’s new “Copland” Operating System was not up to snuff and had enough common sense to abort it’s development/release and seek out the basis of a new direction for a System 7 replacement. Namely NeXT and Steve Jobs.
Ballmer, Gates & Co. pressed on ahead and the result has been what we’ve seen.
The bad news for Ballmer & Co. is that there aren’t any apparent NeXT-ean easy buys out there and they are going to have to divine a way out of the corner they are in on their own.
If Vista is any indication, it will be a very bumpy ride for Window’s users.
The smart money is on Uncle Fester not being up to the task at hand.
– Hano
Actaully, I bet MS takes their Windows core and breaks it out from the rest, and then allows one to add on to this core, kind of like Linux, but still using their core kernel, etc. Allows for modularity/headless servers/low-power computing/etc. MS has seen their sanfu in regards to Vista. I am telling you, from a productivity standpoint, XP can be made to rock. But you need to know what tools are available to get you their. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy Linux as well, but I am a fanboy of none.
Eric: You are correct in that MSFT will rework Windows into components. If you recall, the original Windows NT had a pretty tight kernel. And then Microsoft kept layering on services and, well, we’re stuck with Vista now. But they will get back to the kernel and software components.
For all the times that Microsoft have blustered about “we’re betting the company on “, Windows 7 truly is shaping up to be a “blow-THIS-one-and-we-die” epic of a proportion rarely seen since the demise of Osborne or WordPerfect. (WordPerfect being the better analogy, on reflection, since they borked numerous opportunities to counter [ironically]Microsoft.) If Windows 7 is more reminiscent of Vista and ME than 95 or 3.1, then look for MSFT in the pink sheets shortly thereafter. People are waking up to the idea that replacing every PC you own with one that’s twice as powerful to do the same job half as well isn’t very good value for money. Back in those long-ago days before it achieved true world domineering, it was on the ‘value’ side of that particular comparison. How times have changed. ‘Microsoft quality’ has come to displace ‘military intelligence’ and ‘bureaucratic efficiency’ as an oxymoronic cultural touchstone known to millions.
The T-rex has already been shot, apparently with a 155mm shell to the head… now our task becomes a) making sure the carcass doesn’t fall on top of us, and b) finding another Big Thing to carry our business along.
People prefer XP over Vista for a lot of reasons, as an IT Professional, here are some of the reasons I’ve heard people say they want XP over Vista:
1.) Performance(as in speed) in XP is perceived to be better and certainly requires less-beefy hardware. This is my #1 issue with Vista personally, a new Operating System should be TWICE AS FAST as the previous one in my opinion.
2.) System hangs and crashes - users have reported their Vista machines “locking up” or “hanging” when trying to perform normal tasks.
3.) GUI has RADICALLY changed, and the USER CANNOT change it back to a similar state as the previous version. This makes for a lot of User time being wasted just to get used to the new interface, and for what? So it can change again in the next release? This is ONE of the biggest problems I have with the way Microsoft does software.. On a whim, they RADICALLY change the GUI in their products and then take away MY CHOICE to switch it back or at least fully customize it myself. Linux lets the user customize their environment to their heart’s desire, and there are even entirely different desktop packages that could be chosen for user preference. LINUX IS ABOUT CHOICE.
3.) Driver headaches, especially with older printers. If users can’t print, the value of Vista is practically nill.
4.) Software headaches, although the problems are diminishing, there are still a lot of applications(even games) out there that don’t work with Vista.
5.) There is no real Killer-App in Vista that is worth the headache to switch from XP.
6.)(this one is sort of my own) Cost, why pay $300 dollars for Vista when you can download Ubuntu Linux(distrowatch.com), install Beryl for fancy GUI effects, and a universe of free software to do everything imaginable, All without a single “Windows Genuine Disadvantage” prompt! You can also copy any Linux and/or open source program onto a CD and have your kids share it with all their friends (and they won’t be breaking the law! Note: I suggest you explain the difference between proprietary software and Open Source to your kids so they aren’t breaking the law unknowingly).
I love XP and always have, except in the beginning but that can be attributed to it’s newness. I have 3 PC’s all running it, 2 of which are XP home and 1 XP pro. Face it, there are users who love it, they just aren’t as vocal as those with less popular operating systems.
I also have some experience with Linux and now have Ubuntu running on a laptop and it doesn’t cut it as an average home users OS. If it works then it’s usable but if something goes wrong, which it can and will, then it’s beyond most people’s expertise to fix it. Ubuntu (gutsy, I haven’t tried hardy yet) can be very unstable and has crashed regularly on a few PC’s I’ve played with.
I’ve also played with Vista, not enough to comment but it made me not want to let go of my XP just yet. I can’t defend Vista, but XP has been a trooper for me.
Add me to the list of XP lovers…..and to the list of Vista haters. I have always looked forward to Microsoft’s newest release….and I started my computer career with Windows Dos 3.1. That should give you a clue as to my age. So I eagerly anticpated a great experience with Vista. Yep, I hate it. I really wanted to like it. I tried to like it. I used it, and was determined to like it. Didn’t work. I hate it….will probably always hate it, and I am back using XP. Yep, I love XP. I’d give up sex before I’d give up XP.
@Marty: The VAR Guy hopes your mate doesn’t read that last line…
As computers are progressing we should be able to do more with less and vista is asking for more and giving us less Xp is just the best of the bad bunch and linux I feel is the right way to go if it is good enough for the chaps at google it must be good so for now I will start helping people move back to xp from vista and then xp and linux and then dump xp all together vista is rubbish. you need at least 1gig ram just to get started.How is that moving forward to truly move forward we should be able to do more with less gigs not do more with more gigs that is really just standing still. And with visa going backwards.some times we get to a point where every thing gets over complicated. and then you have to start from fresh.