Support may be ending on April 8, but people are still in love with Windows XP which is arguably one of the most durable and stable operating systems that Microsoft has released.
As a result of XP’s age (13 years), Microsoft is finally shutting down widespread support for the OS, even though it is more popular than Windows 8 and 8.1 combined. Recent statistics show that although Windows 7 is still the most popular OS across all platforms, XP is holding strong in second place.
Without support, members of the security field agree that XP will be less secure than it currently is, though as of writing, it is already susceptible to attacks. As malicious software has gotten more advanced, XP has not been optimal for quite a while and a lack of support will only make things worse for its users.
Governments and other organizations around the world have signed deals with Microsoft to extend support for the OS. The UK paid more than $9 million in order to extend support for its XP machines and other governments including the Dutch paid Microsoft.
Although upgrading is what Microsoft has promoted as the best option, many people are still unhappy with Windows 8.1 and would rather stick with XP which has a good track record in many ways.
Security concerns will likely lead to XP’s final demise, though its continued popularity at this point shows that it will not die out just because Microsoft pulls support tomorrow.
Effectively, every vulnerability discovered after 8 April will become a zero-day vulnerability – that is, one for which there is and never will be, a patch, – Dave Emm, researcher, Kaspersky
Microsoft has encouraged people to tell their friends and family about the newer versions of Windows, yet there is obviously a good reason why governments are continuing to rely on the OS for their work and are refusing to upgrade.
Question – Will the lack of support kill of XP and would you still use it without support?
Summary: Microsoft will officially end support for Windows XP on April 8. XP remains the second most popular operating system and is ahead of Windows 8/8.1.
image credit: manageprojectsonsharepoint