Let me take a moment to reminisce about what Windows XP was to me. As a result, XP is now considered “dead”. However, as many corporations have systems which are dependent on XP, they are now finally feeling the need to migrate, many to Windows 7 where their hardware permits. For the majority of users, this means that XP is no longer a safe or advisable operating system to run, as there will be no patches released to the general public, although for larger corporations, they can opt to pay a very hefty fee to continue limited support. Today marks the official end of extended support for Microsoft Windows XP, after mainstream support ended on 14th April 2009.

There was also a lesser known, 64-bit edition, named 圆4, however it was generally unsuccessful due to lack of driver support and a lack of native 64-bit applications at the time. It also came in separate variants, designed to power Media Centres with TV tuners, and the first generation of tablet PCs (which were like a notebook with a stylus/touch-sensitive screen that could fold back over the keyboard). Its Windows NT heritage and Windows Driver Model only framework bought well needed stability to users’ desktops, however, it still lacked in security for much of its lifetime resulting in a spate of worms and malware infections which were considered a “part of life”. It also was the first to include serious DRM measures against piracy. It bought some user friendly features to the masses, attempting to simplify everyday tasks while still offering flexibility to advanced users. It saw multiple generations of hardware through, from the Pentium II and Pentium III days, through to the present day and went from a “big lumbering” OS to a featherweight in comparison to modern OSes. It will be remembered as one of Microsoft’s most successful operating systems, living well beyond the intended ten year lifecycle. It continues to see a large market share, over 30% as of today.

It was based upon Windows NT, and was intended to be the first business and consumer operating system.

Microsoft Windows XP was a popular operating system released to manufacturing on 24th August 2001.

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