Member Avatar for IntegratedTweak

It's been over a year now since XP has died and i'm feeling guilty about it.

I am very lucky to still have my 3 copies which are in the original cases with unused product keys, so I decided to install it on a desktop that i've been given from someone. To my surprise I can actually play DOS Games again, but does anyone else miss or like XP still? I've seen that airports still use them a lot and the OP is still popular in such a way. Microsoft still doesn't know that there are still users out there that are using XP on their old machines.

So what do you think?

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A few practical facts and options to complement the thread.

Windows XP reached official end of support on April 8, 2014; after that date Microsoft stopped issuing security updates for the product. (learn.microsoft.com)

Running an unsupported OS carries real, ongoing risk because newly disclosed Windows vulnerabilities will not be patched for XP. For systems that must stay on XP for hardware or software reasons, common hardening steps are recommended: remove or block Internet access where possible, place the machine behind a modern router/firewall or gateway appliance, run only a least-privilege account for daily tasks, disable unused network services, maintain offline backups, and preserve the installation media and product keys. The Microsoft Security team has explained how unpatched code quickly becomes a persistent attack vector after end of support. (microsoft.com)

For play of classic DOS-era games, using an emulator like DOSBox is usually safer and more flexible than keeping an old XP box connected to modern networks. DOSBox runs on current Windows, macOS, and Linux hosts and reproduces legacy hardware behavior much more reliably than a hand-maintained vintage PC. (dosbox.com)

When legacy peripherals (TV tuners, scanners, etc.) are the reason XP persists, a practical compromise is a dedicated, isolated XP virtual machine on a maintained host: enable USB passthrough only for that VM, take a snapshot of a known-good image, and keep the VM off the open web unless absolutely required. VirtualBox, VMware and similar products document snapshot and device-passthrough workflows for exactly this use. For older hardware that can be repurposed, lightweight Linux flavors (Xfce/LXQt-based spins like Lubuntu/Xubuntu) often run acceptably on constrained machines while leaving the option to host a frozen XP VM for the one device or app that needs it. (docs.oracle.com)

A middle path acknowledges the nostalgia describes and the practicality and raise: keep original media and a backed-up, offline VM snapshot for legacy tasks, route day-to-day work to a supported OS or a lightweight Linux install, and avoid exposing XP to the public Internet.

Recommended Answers

All 15 Replies

Member Avatar for nullptr

I Installed Windows 7 and happily buried XP. Don't miss it at all.

Member Avatar for IntegratedTweak

I see I guess XP is gone for good then?

Member Avatar for rubberman

I only run Windows on my Linux system in a virtual machine. I have a licensed copy of Windows 7, but it refuses to allow me to register it with MS which results in degraded operations. I also have XP and will install that in another VM - never had a problem with that. I think that part of the problem with Win7 is that it requires access to the BIOS flash data area to store encrypted keys, but VirtualBox doesn't support that "feature". XP isn't so picky... :-) Truth be told, I rarely have need to run Windows any longer. LibreOffice is a great substitute for MS Office (and cheap at twice the price - $0.00), and the only time I need Windows is for some more advanced scanner functions than xsane gives me on Linux. I can still access those in the Win7 VM however, so it isn't much of an issue.

Member Avatar for IntegratedTweak

I used to have a VM until my PC played up one day.

Member Avatar for Reverend Jim

I still have XP running on an old (really old) IBM Thinkpad. I need XP because there are no newer drivers for my Plextor TV Tuner. Other than that I don't miss it. I still have an XP virtual machine if the need arises.

Member Avatar for IntegratedTweak

Yeah well I had to bring an old machine back to life it was over 7 years old. Still works all I need to do now is put an OS on the system. I could choose to opt for XP, but there is a way to turn it into a hackintosh since it supports intel chips.

Member Avatar for rubberman

@Tweak - try Linux. Cheap at twice the price, has good user interfaces, and most of the software you could want. A lot of Windows software will work in the Wine environment. I run my Sparx Enterprise Architect that way (an advanced UML software design/modeling tool).

Member Avatar for IntegratedTweak

Thanks Rubberman for the suggestion!

I've already put XP on it, but i'm going to dual boot and put linux on it.

Member Avatar for jwenting

only ever installed XP because my Win2K installation got corrupted and upgrading to XP was the only way to get the machine back without losing all my data.
Couldn't wait to upgrade it to Vista when that was released.

Member Avatar for Ripster

No, I don't miss XP. I don't see why people miss the "old things". Newer versions are more advanced and designed to replace the old. You should crave new things and stop mourning over the old. It's in the past. Learn to appreciate the better package which is Windows 10.

Edited by Ripster
Member Avatar for Reverend Jim

I don't see why people miss the "old things".

I'm hoping I'll be missed when I'm gone.

Newer versions are more advanced and designed to replace the old.

Just like my two sons.

You should crave new things and stop mourning over the old.

On this I disagree. This is why Apple is making obscene amouunts of money. They have convinced the public that they "gotta have" the latest and greatest iPhone, etc. Remember two things:

  1. Just because it's old doesn't mean it's bad (or good, depending).
  2. Just because it's new doesn't mean it's better.
Member Avatar for IntegratedTweak

And to remind you guys that the Iphone 6 when it first came out some of the phones would bend in your pockets.

Member Avatar for jwenting

Just because it's new doesn't mean it's better.

true, but in this case it's definitely the case... While XP isn't AS bad as Windows ME (which came before it, so newer was better there...) anything that came after was superior (though Vista may not have been the best choise if your hardware was marginal).

Member Avatar for Member #201682

I still have XP and love it. But I use Windows 8.1 more due to better protection & internet speed.

Member Avatar for Reverend Jim

I'm only still using XP on an old Thinkpad because I have peripherals that are not supported on anything newer. I'm actually thinking of just replacing XP with Linux. It will probably run better on the limited RAM.

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