is XP SP3 still a good OS for today's computing?

[Pam14160]

In 2001 did you think about going back to Win 95, doubt it; just be smart and stay with 7. :)

[Obi-Wan Kenobi]

"battery life for example? "

Where did you get the idea that dropping it to XP would improve your battery life???

As already stated many times already, there is little reason to drop it back to a 10 year old OS.. Now if was 5 year old hardware ok - but new hardware, new OS. Good luck finding support for modern hardware with XP. Have you even looked to see if the XP drivers are available for that laptop?

Your legally licensed for w7, what possible reason would you want to run XP on that modern hardware for??

^this. Basically, you're able to run a legal copy of 7, yet you'd be willing to drop back to XP....why? Utilize what your hardware is built to deal with, else cut yourself short. It's up to you, but I'd recommend 7 over XP anyday, if the machine is capable of running it. Personally, I'd go with 7, because it's power options are the best I've seen in a while, especially for a windows os. I still use XP on an antique laptop of mine, but only because it's got less than a gig of RAM, and it's an old chipset. I find myself using it less and less every day.

[StevenNT]

Most definitely. I don't see myself "upgrading" for the next decade unless MS realizes their mistake and makes a lite OS.

Well good luck with that frankly stupid idea. I can't see you installing Windows XP on shiny new hardware a few years down the line though.

[+Heartripper Subscriber¹]

Only if you have an old PC with XP pre-installed and don't want to spend money for a 7 license you should use xp. If you purchase a new PC with 7 pre installed there is no reason to get back to XP. XP is not more lightweight than XP (I've 7 installed in my 6 years old desktop and it runs as smooth as xp after adjusting the gfx options), expecially on new hardwares.

[hotdog666al]

It's still acceptable to be using XP but you should be considering an upgrade in the near future.

You should never downgrade a machine that comes with 7 to XP, unless you have a good reason of course.

In 2001 did you think about going back to Win 95, doubt it; just be smart and stay with 7. :)

That's not really fair, the differences between XP and 7 are minimal compared to Win 95 and XP :/

[alexalex]

XP sp3 is an excellent OS even today.

[hotdog666al]

XP sp3 is an excellent OS even today.

Considering how old it is, it's amazing how well it still runs everything. Apparently the haters don't appreciate this, it makes me sad!

[Orange Battery]

Im a supporter of XP, for a lot of people 7 offers nothing worth paying for if you already have XP.

There is nothing wrong with 7 at all, maybe not always worth an upgrade from XP but definitely not worth a downgrade to XP.

[.Neo]

Considering how old it is, it's amazing how well it still runs everything. Apparently the haters don't appreciate this, it makes me sad!

How is that amazing? If anything it's sad. There has been a 5 year gap between Windows XP and Windows Vista. So basically the PC platform stood still for 5 years when it came to new features, frameworks and other APIs. It's only now that we finally see applications make use of Windows Vista/7's new technologies and start dropping Windows XP support.

Windows XP might still do the job on older hardware, but if you have Windows 7 capable machine that runs Windows Aero I would upgrade. Especially if you already have Windows 7 license I wouldn't recommend downgrading.

[Rigby]

I loved XP as much as anyone but it makes no sense at all to keep using it on new computers. XP was designed for hardware made a decade ago and thus won't work efficiently with modern hardware. On your system Windows 7 will be faster and more reliable. You'll also get better battery life with it, not to mention being more secure.

Windows XP was a great OS but it's ancient now in terms of technology.

[Raa]

If you've got an old legacy computer, or a virtual machine. Sure.

Otherwise, Windows 7 all the way. (Or your choice of an alternative operating system that suits you)

[Frylock86]

*NO!* You would be wasting half of your hardware!

[c3ntury]

I wouldn't recommend the use of Windows XP to anyone in 2011. If they can't run Win7, run Linux.

[.Neo]

My computer would respond to that with:

NO! You would be wasting half of your hardware!

:p

[Mockingbird]

Unless you have a legacy PC with single core processor and < 1GB memory, I WOULDN'T recommend Windows XP.

Windows 7 have a superior security, power management, and multi-core processor management. The best way to get battery life is to turn off Aero.

[Udedenkz]

W7 Windows Explorer is slower than WXP Windows Explorer, but with that CPU that doesn't matter.

W7.

[Caleo Global Moderator]

Most definitely. I don't see myself "upgrading" for the next decade unless MS realizes their mistake and makes a lite OS.

facepalm.jpg

Ignorance is bliss, I guess.

[Frylock86]

Most definitely. I don't see myself "upgrading" for the next decade unless MS realizes their mistake and makes a lite OS.

[Digitalx]

Sticking with windows 7 will be better for the system.

People can scrape all the reasons to stick to XP but your only kidding yourselves. It's not "lite", faster or any of that nonsense. If they'd rather stick to horse and carriage, it's their choice. But here in 21st century you'd be better off sticking with Windows 7 which specifically related to battery is better and more accurate at regulating/conserving power and performance to provide the best end result.

The only reason to justify installing XP is if you have a system which is from/dated before 2006 and is lacking in decent hardware or specs to run windows 7.

[fix-this!]

there is no real reason to use windows xp anymore. id say run 7 and if your pc cannot handle it try linux.

[wongogue]

That's not really fair, the differences between XP and 7 are minimal compared to Win 95 and XP :/

:D

[willard27]

NO

[kiddingguy]

Just go w/ Win 7

[Frylock86]

[ceminess]

People can hang onto XP all they want. Yes it was a good OS. But its time to move on people! Windows 7 is a great OS.

The only reason to stay on windows XP is if you have a PC with low specs that can't handle windows 7.(even then you should consider saving up to purchase a new PC). You can always run XP Mode if you have an application that needs windows XP!

Example, I run windows 7 on my AMD Athlon XP 2600+ with 1.5GB of memory. And it runs just fine, just as fast as when it had XP installed on it.

A more important reason to stick with windows 7 is support. Mainstream support has ended for windows XP. http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/products/lifecycle