Windows XP

"I can't remember a time when a very high percentage of [IT managers] skipped an entire operating system." Leapfrogging that unfortunate OS led to a lot of old hardware running old software. "What we remind them - and they know this - is that Windows XP is eight years old," Dell said. "These IT managers really know that they cannot extend the life of these client assets forever."

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"The additional protections built into 64-bit Windows will make it harder for malware to make the 64-bit jump," Faulhaber said. While Faulhaber trumpeted 64-bit XP's and Vista's -- and by extension, Windows 7's -- ability to sidestep more malware, the bi-annual Microsoft Security Intelligence Report he cited said that some of the lower infection rates might have nothing to do with the OS, and everything to do with the user. "Infection rates for the 64-bit versions of Windows XP and Windows Vista are lower than for the corresponding 32-bit versions of those platforms, a difference that might be attributable to a higher level of technical expertise on the part of people who run 64-bit operating systems," the report concluded. "This difference may be expected to decrease as 64-bit computing continues to make inroads among mainstream users."

Read more: 64-bit Windows safer, claims Microsoft | In this article: Microsoft, Linux, Mac OS, IDC, Symantec, and Windows Vista

"Similar utilities for Windows XP also started appearing in the summer of 2005, shortly after the Windows Genuine Advantage system was made mandatory in July of that year," he added.

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"The customer complaints identify manifestations of the defect that occur on HP Pavilion Elite series computers running Microsoft Windows XP and XP Professional, Windows 7 and Linux," the filing said.

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where it says: "BizTalk Server 2009 Enterprise, Developer, Branch, and Evaluation Editions support native 64-bit execution on Windows Server 2008, Windows Vista, Windows Server 2003 x64 (including R2), and Windows XP Professional x64"

Read more: You cannot create an x64 host with the Standard edition | In this article: Windows XP Professional, Windows Vista, Windows Server 2003, and Windows Server 2008

"Last week, Windows XP had a share of 69.5%," said Vizzaccaro, "while Vista had 18.5%." The numbers for XP and Vista were down 1 percentage point and 0.3 of a percentage point, respectively, since the end of October. Even more interesting, added Vizzaccaro, was the drop in market share of Apple's Mac OS X. "That's very intriguing,"

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"The fact of the matter is that prior to the launch, there were a lot of operating systems out there," Baker said. "When Vista launched, you didn't see a lot of Windows Millennium PCs," he said, referring to the edition that preceded Windows XP. "Windows 7 will be more of a long haul."

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Microsoft says this of errors in upgrading to Windows XP: "Your computer may b over-clocked.

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"Microsoft will support Windows XP until April 2014, [but users should] plan to be off Windows XP by the end of 2012 to ensure ongoing support by independent software vendors for new applications," Gartner analyst Stephen Kleynhaus wrote. Software vendors and integrators will stop supporting XP "beginning in late 2011 and accelerating through 2012,"

Read more: XP End of Life Means Enterprises Will Move To Windows 7 (NewsFactor) | In this article: Microsoft, Gartner Group, Sunbelt Software, Yahoo, and Windows Vista

"The opportunity to move people to a new operating system is fairly substantial for us," said Tech Networks president Susan Labandibar. She said many customers have held on for years to underpowered machines running Windows XP, but "you cannot stay on XP forever. It's time to get off. "

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