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T O P I C R E V I E W
1029usr078198
Posted - February 16 2008 : 09:59:52
The Clock Is Ticking... Windows XP to be mostly discontinued June 30.
Posted 2/16/2008, Updated 4/20/2008 We all know that Windows XP won't be available forever, but one company is trying to change Microsoft's mind. Microsoft's official position regarding the dates of availability can be found here. You'll probably have to scroll down the screen a bit because the License Availability Roadmap table is at the bottom.
The meaning of each column is as follows.
Desktop Operating Systems - Which version of Windows you have or want to buy.
Date of General Availability - The date that version of Windows went on the market.
Direct OEM and Retail License Availability (end date) - This is the last date the product will be available in stores like Best Buy, Circuit City, etc. and also the last date a name-brand computer maker like Dell, hp, Acer, and Lenovo can sell you recovery disks.
System Builder License Availability (end date) - The last date a system builder like David Anderson Consulting, or other computer stores can sell you a license of this version of Windows.
As I write this, the last day I can sell Windows XP (except, I suppose for whatever I might have in stock) is on January 31, 2009, but the last day you can get a recovery CD is June 30, 2008.
InfoWorld has a petition you can sign to try to convince Microsoft to extend XP's deadline. You can find that at http://www.savexp.com
Update! XP Home to remain available until 2010
Microsoft has recently announced that for computers in a newly-emerging category of computer dubbed the "ultra low cost notebook", Windows XP Home will be available until 2010. But, if Windows 7 doesn't ship in 2009, that will be extended to 2011. Examples of computers in this category include the Asus EEE-PC, the One Laptop Per Child project's XO laptop, and the Intel Classmate PC. This is being done largely because these computers don't have the hardware required to run Vista Home Basic. These systems, particularly the XO, tend to ship with some version of Linux. Linux has traditionally had much lower hardware requirements than Windows. In a recent survey taken by Redmond Magazine the greatest alternative to any version of Windows was first, Linux; second, Mac. If Microsoft gives Linux a foothold, I believe it fears it could lose its hold on the desktop.
