I agree, but it seems that in order to take advantage of the possibility of using Windows XP on some of the "newer" machines, one has to know a great deal more about the innards of the "newer" machines than many of us know. So, like it or not, we end up being the victims of developments. Fortunately, I have an older machine at the moment. But I dread the day when it goes on the blink, because I know that I'll likely not be able to configure a arrangement that will permit me to use XY4 with all of the ease I currently have, if I am able to use XY4 at all. M.W. Poirier ----------------------------------------------------------------- On Sun, 29 May 2011, J R FOX wrote: --- On Sun, 5/29/11, M.W. Poirier <poirmw@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Like you I like Windows XP, but every time I raise your question with someone in my entourage, I am told, if you go back to Windows XP you will find that some pieces of hardware in your machine will not work because they depend on the latest OS. Now, my question is: Is this true? It seems reasonable to assume that it is. And so maybe it is not a good idea to go back to Windows XP? M.W. Poirier
I'm going to echo what Carl said about no direct experience with this, but . . . I strongly suspect that the answer depends on how recent your hardware is, and whether you _must_ have access to the latest stuff that comes on today's hardware, such as USB3. (Personally, I'd much rather have eSATA, for backup purposes, etc.) I'm not really sure what the dividing line is, but let's say it could be something like 2009 models.
I just had a (proprietary design) power supply blow up, am hoping it did not take the motherboard, video etc. along with it, and in that case fully intend to repair this 2006 dual-core system, which pretty much does everything that I need it to do. In the meantime, I have purchased a used 2007 or 2008 model from the same line, and may also get one that is a model year later than that. With the models later than this from my preferred manufacturer (the Shuttle "cube" PC line), I just do not like a lot of the changes that have taken over. Even on the 2006 model, I was already regretting that the PS/2 connectors went away, replaced by all-USB, which introduced certain problems for me. The adapter I got to support the Omni-102 keyboard that I **refuse** to give up works well for _almost_ everything, including Xywrite, but there are a couple of stubborn apps or circumstances for which it does not, and they happen to be important, unfortunately.
(Those model years I mentioned are approximate, and could all be +1.) But the point is that no one is forcing us to use the "latest and greatest." Although XP dates back to 2001, and will be get forced off a cliff by MS in their EOL scheme, many users still find it preferable to what came later. Until the security fixes get totally cut off, I am not planning to make any change. After that happens, I'll reconsider. Even then, the option will remain to continue using XP for the existing lineup of apps, and just use something else for internet access, which is mainly where the security factor comes in.
Jordan