Windows XP End of Life Approaching

[Kiriakos GR]

Re: Windows XP End of Life Approaching

they can't really deny its use by legitimate license holders.

They have or trying to force a fee of 100$ per by phone activation.
Is it a fact ? They wanted to see how the customers will react? I do not know.

[Topcat]

Re: Windows XP End of Life Approaching

I really don't think activation will be a problem....that opens a serious legal issue, denying someone use of a product they paid for..... While MS may no longer have to support it, they can't really deny its use by legitimate license holders.

[Sparkey55]

Re: Windows XP End of Life Approaching

I read that the online activation will no longer work, but phone activation will continue regardless. I do not know how true this is though.....

I have converted most of my computers to windows XP Pro OEM editions. Should not be much problems with activation ahter the cut-off date.

[Topcat]

Re: Windows XP End of Life Approaching

I remember someone saying that XP won't activate anymore after support ends. Is that true? If it is, I know of a laptop with a really small and slow hard drive that I'll have to upgrade before support ends. Even if it ends up not running XP, that 15GB 4200RPM hard drive needs to go.

I read that the online activation will no longer work, but phone activation will continue regardless. I do not know how true this is though.....

[lti]

Re: Windows XP End of Life Approaching

I remember someone saying that XP won't activate anymore after support ends. Is that true? If it is, I know of a laptop with a really small and slow hard drive that I'll have to upgrade before support ends. Even if it ends up not running XP, that 15GB 4200RPM hard drive needs to go.

[Evil Lurker]

Re: Windows XP End of Life Approaching

Meh, even though XP is still an awesome and useful OS it has been eclipsed by Win7.

Time to let it die.

[Kiriakos GR]

Re: Windows XP End of Life Approaching

"Dumbphones" aren't really as freeing as former-PC users think they are.

I did a major upgrade recently from a Sony Ericson V600 to K800i with 3.2Mp camera plus auto-focus !!
Deleted all GPRS profiles in it, and now it is disarmed and useful. LOL

If every device looks similar to PC computing, life would be far more boring.

[TELVM]

Re: Windows XP End of Life Approaching

... does anyone else hate that retarded Taskbar grouping feature in Windows XP, Vista, and 7 besides me?
Yesterday I was helping a friend of mine with a lab, so I told him we needed to open a bunch of data sheets on the computer to make things easier. We were using his laptop (he has Windows 7 and Aero enabled). The thing is, after opening so many data sheets, the stupid crap starts to group them together, and then finding what you need starts to take a lot of time and takes a lot more clicks than needed. It's especially annoying when you're doing this 5 in the morning without having gotten any sleep and knowing a project is due (in this case, his project was due... I did mine last semester and passed easily).

Right click on W7 taskbar => Properties => Taskbar Buttons : Never Combine

I can live with the grouping, but what I can't stand is the miniature views popping up everytime you accidentally hover over the taskbar icons in W7 . So I use this little program to disable the popping up until you click on. Does the same on the 'Show Desktop' button.

[Heihachi_73]

Re: Windows XP End of Life Approaching

Linux sounds better every time I hear about Windows 8 and "Metro". As for Macs, iPhones and iPads, leave those for the click-everything idiots already out there, leave desktop computers to people who know how to use them.

That said, the biggest rort of the computing world is still mobile phones. Charging umpteen dollars with download plans ranging from a few hundred megabytes to 1-2 gigs, while being charged extra for each megabyte over, really? Are we in 1994? Also, why are still being charged money for sending/receiving tiny, 160 byte SMS text messages? We (PC users) never had to pay a cent to send someone a message through MSN/ICQ/AIM/IRC or anything else. I don't think I will even have a mobile phone by 2050. People are brain-dead, clueless sheep, and the mobile phone market knows they can get away with murder. Phone companies would charge you for pressing each number/button on the keypad if they could.

[kaboom]

Re: Windows XP End of Life Approaching

Back when ME and vista flopped, MS overwhelmingly controlled the marketshare. That isn't the case today, so I say again...MS discontinuing Win7 to the OEM's for preloads was a massive shot in the foot for MS.

You better believe it. Though they act otherwise, almost more arrogant than they were back then, except maybe for IE.

People have been "saving up" for this since WinME. Yes, smartphones aren't for everyone, but just look at how people have left, not computers, but microsoft.

It's not going to be crapple who capitalizes here, they're acting like a DRM'ed, closed, late 90's MS. Besides, they've already got the "phoney tablet" market with their $800+ "eye-pads." Sorry, I haven't been punched in the face lately...


So, who does that leave?
(Hint: "The Sergey [sp] problem.")

[Topcat]

Re: Windows XP End of Life Approaching

was a reference to the M$ pricing/forcing problem. They keep pushing garbage, because it's '98 and no other options exist. "Of course they'll pay us $750 for M$ Offi$e. What are they gonna do, use ClarisWorks?" (In it's defense, CW wasn't as bad as some say.) And FrontPageExpressOfDoom- the only way to, um, author anything! Quaint and cute- FrontPageExpress. More like ScriptKiddieExpress. And IE- da best browsah in d world!

Get off it, microsoft. You aren't the only game in town anymore. You didn't get it with Xb0ne, right? Win8 should only wreck you...

I have to agree there tooo....I LOL everytime I see a MS Surface commercial during a football game (the only time I will actually watch that big black brainwash box)....they're really pushing what they keep referring to as "the new windows".....it will do a bellyflop worse than Vista and ME combined..... Back when ME and vista flopped, MS overwhelmingly controlled the marketshare. That isn't the case today, so I say again...MS discontinuing Win7 to the OEM's for preloads was a massive shot in the foot for MS.

[kaboom]

Re: Windows XP End of Life Approaching

While I agree with that, I'll be one of the stubborn old farts that won't let go of my PC.... Smartphones are cute gadgets.....but a very poor substitution for a pair of 27" monitors and realistic useful horsepower....

"Dumbphones" aren't really as freeing as former-PC users think they are. Just one aspect is the rental/subscription issue.

I was really referring to those who'd buy a new computer just for the hell of it, only because it appeared to be the only choice when wintard finally died after that squatter site trashed the computer. That's, like the only way dude, to fix a computer! Buy a new one! Even when it's our fault!

No, those "happy clickers" never deserved a computer in the first place. They're too ignorant to handle a proper computer, all they deserve is a dumbphone. With it's broken touchscreen and all...

This...

Exactly. They're still living in 1998 and think people "owe their souls" to the monopoly.

was a reference to the M$ pricing/forcing problem. They keep pushing garbage, because it's '98 and no other options exist. "Of course they'll pay us $750 for M$ Offi$e. What are they gonna do, use ClarisWorks?" (In it's defense, CW wasn't as bad as some say.) And FrontPageExpressOfDoom- the only way to, um, author anything! Quaint and cute- FrontPageExpress. More like ScriptKiddieExpress. And IE- da best browsah in d world!

Get off it, microsoft. You aren't the only game in town anymore. You didn't get it with Xb0ne, right? Win8 should only wreck you...

[Topcat]

Re: Windows XP End of Life Approaching

We need proofs about that.. How many Nvidia cards have you get so far?

( The respectable number is above six )

I've got that beat....got a box full of various AGP and PCIe GPU's....you might even find an ATI or two in there.... You don't even want to see my drawer of CPU's and memory!

[Kiriakos GR]

Re: Windows XP End of Life Approaching

I'll be one of the stubborn old farts that won't let go of my PC....

We need proofs about that.. How many Nvidia cards have you get so far?

( The respectable number is above six )

[Topcat]

Re: Windows XP End of Life Approaching

Exactly. They're still living in 1998 and think people "owe their souls" to the monopoly. People are leaving, having found other devices, and frankly are getting away from stupid computers.

While I agree with that, I'll be one of the stubborn old farts that won't let go of my PC.... Smartphones are cute gadgets.....but a very poor substitution for a pair of 27" monitors and realistic useful horsepower.... The tablet market is not taking over the world as they thought it would.

[kaboom]

Re: Windows XP End of Life Approaching

Yes, paint the elephant yellow so to look as to was a canary... LOL

Briefly, yes. "Disguise" the XB0NE as a "game system," when in reality, this device only exists to be a "place holder" in the A/V system. Merely a means to keep Sony and Pretendo out. A way to extend the debacle, that is "software rental" to the living room.

The only "games" that are part of this deal are the ones M$ plays with those stupid enough to fall for the scam.

What MS forgot to mention is who is going to pay the new win8 License.

Exactly. They're still living in 1998 and think people "owe their souls" to the monopoly. People are leaving, having found other devices, and frankly are getting away from stupid computers.

But who cares really, after XP all attempts about new OS was about cutting away compatibility with hardware drivers and even ties with other software vendors.
It was more like a war of MS VS all others.

Who haven't they pissed off at this point?

But I do not complain, thanks to MS I got for free one nice Mustek USB scanner because it did not have drivers for win7 and above.
And even used legit software from people who was consider it as old trash.

Sounds like, "It's a C2D, therefore it's junk!"

Adobe Photoshop 7 which worth 12$ I got it for free ... Thank you Bill. :P.

That's better...

[Kiriakos GR]

Re: Windows XP End of Life Approaching

Take all this with a mountain of salt, for as one commenter says: "I don't know, this sounds too intelligent to be true...."

Yes, paint the elephant yellow so to look as to was a canary... LOL

What MS forgot to mention is who is going to pay the new win8 License.
But who cares really, after XP all attempts about new OS was about cutting away compatibility with hardware drivers and even ties with other software vendors.
It was more like a war of MS VS all others.

But I do not complain, thanks to MS I got for free one nice Mustek USB scanner because it did not have drivers for win7 and above.
And even used legit software from people who was consider it as old trash.

Adobe Photoshop 7 which worth 1200$ I got it for 300$ ... Thank you Bill. :P


.

[momaka]

Re: Windows XP End of Life Approaching

I don't think it's normal for it to sit there for hours with 100% CPU usage while it's checking for updates.

It is. I've seen it many times.

They don't pay attention to stuff like that.

In that case, just quietly disable automatic updates (and the process from services as well), and keep quiet about it.

That was another pointless thing they added in XP, along with the stupid control panel "category view." The first thing I do on any fresh Windows install is disable those two things.

Window Vista and newer are even worse in that regard. The way Control Panel is [dis]organized for those doesn't make any sense to me.

Therefore, I always run through my "standard procedure" after installing Windows to make sure to disable all of the unnecessary and useless garbage and visual [d]effects.

Last month, I think I did my lightest XP installation ever. It was on an old Pentium II 400 MHz Dell XPS R400 PC. After the fresh install and everything setup the way I wanted it, Task Manager indicates there are a grand total of 14 processes running, and the computer was using something like 70-ish MB of RAM. I'm sure I could probably simplify it even more. But it should do fine for now. I'm going to use that computer as a "test-box" for the random PCI cards I have accumulated over the years. For some of them, I just can't find any drivers and will probably resort to those retarded driver-scanner programs. I know they do put a lot of junk on your PC, but some of them do actually find legit drivers for the things you need. So after I get the drivers for those cards - reformat and start fresh again.

[lti]

Re: Windows XP End of Life Approaching

No, this is nothing new. Windows Update runs as a service under SVCHOST.EXE and it's always been like that. Depending on the update and the speed of the computer, some PCs get 100% CPU usage, and some don't.

I don't think it's normal for it to sit there for hours with 100% CPU usage while it's checking for updates. After the CPU usage returned to normal, it alerted them that updates were available.

I still don't understand why you have that crap turned ON. It makes computers extra extra extra slow.

They don't pay attention to stuff like that. That computer is left on with a browser window open (sometimes multiple browsers at the same time ) 24/7. Sometimes they'll complain about it and I discover that they have left the same browser window open for a month. It isn't as much of a problem since I installed Firefox and got them to use it. IE has some serious memory leak issues.

(and I absolutely hate it when things are hidden from me, like I'm some kind of an idiot - no, I like all of my tray icons to display, thank you - especially that "Safely Remove USB drive" icon that always seems to hide).

That was another pointless thing they added in XP, along with the stupid control panel "category view." The first thing I do on any fresh Windows install is disable those two things.

[momaka]

Re: Windows XP End of Life Approaching

I like taskbar grouping... otherwise you end up with 5 zillion textless tasks... Now that would be a pain to deal with. Just click the group and find what you need.

You really have to have a billion things open before it's impossible to recognize what you have opened. Most of the time I remember what I have opened or at least can have an idea by the icon. And this way I also have an idea of how many things I have open. Otherwise shit just hides under one taskbar button and you think you have nearly nothing open (and I absolutely hate it when things are hidden from me, like I'm some kind of an idiot - no, I like all of my tray icons to display, thank you - especially that "Safely Remove USB drive" icon that always seems to hide).

Also, a solution to having many things open in the taskbar is to unlock it, pull it up a notch, and display stuff on two rows. I do that sometimes too. Not pretty, but quite efficient.