Windows XP (Thankfully) Still On The Decline

Making the rounds across the blogs is the fact the decade-old Microsoft Windows XP operating system saw a record decline is usage for Dec 2011. You can hem and haw all day about percentage and points and so on, but the fact is that people are dropping the XP OS in droves; these users are either upgrading to Windows 7, outright replacing their old computer with a new one bundled with Windows 7, or decided to go with another OS/platform such as Mac, Linux or smartphone.

It’s safe to assume a lot of people received new computers (be it desktop or mobile) for Christmas and that probably contributed a lot to the record usage drop for XP.

It will most likely be corporations that will continue to use XP until the bitter end, with said bitter end being when Microsoft finally stops supporting it. By the time that happens a whole bunch of us (myself probably included) will have moved on to Windows 8 by then.

On the consumer side of things – and this is particularly directed at you PC builders out there – remember that Windows 7 and Windows 8 basically have the exact same hardware requirements. This means whatever you build for Windows 7 now will run Windows 8 without issue, and you won’t have to throw out your newly-built box for Win7 once Win8 is here. So go ahead and build that new PC box with confidence because it will run Win8 when it’s released.

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8 thoughts on “Windows XP (Thankfully) Still On The Decline”

Cuzzzzz says:

January 28, 2012 at 11:57 am

Marianne… thanks so much for such a complete reply. I’ve learned a lot. I googled Fritz Chip and learnnd the political aspect of it, also.

And thanks for your suggestion of “UltraSearch”.. I downloaded it and it puts XP’s search engine to shame.

I haven’t even considered Windows LiveID.

My three XP machines work beautifully. To avoid complications, I use each for very different usages.. one has a complete stereo attached for capturing and editing music from my old LPs and 78rpm records; on one I do all my video and photo-editing (lots of photos with having eight grandchildren), and one for everyday functions. All are wirelessly networked. I still have two computers with Win98 working well (with a KVM switch), and actually have an old DOS/Win3.1 computer still working flawlessly. Use it for some old games that I liked and for keeping the fun of Basic programming in this old brain.

Thanks again.. keep posting.
cuzzzzz

Kagusaki says:

January 26, 2012 at 6:16 am

I think I’m a bit late here, but my company is converting all their computers to 7 and people have been complaining a LOT about it esp. Office 2010. Outlook completely sucks compared to the older version. Ribbon tool bars are the worst invention ever. It takes up room and it’s only made for people who rarely uses computers. I can’t even make a good spreadsheet with the new Excel because of that ribbon. It takes me half an hour longer to make a decent one compared to the previous generation because everything isn’t in the same place anymore. Believe me, a lot of IT and computer professionals hate it. Why fix something that isn’t broken?

One thing I really hate is that 7 uses up a lot of ram (2gb) vs. XP64 (1gb). Besides doing the usual spreadsheet/internet stuff, I’m also a gamer so I’m not going to waste a gig on the OS. Windows 7 is pretty much bloatware that I don’t need.

I’ve been using XP/Office 2003 for a long time and going to go back with Linux/Openoffice. I used Linux for 4 years till my laptop died so I know for sure I wont be going to 7.

Cuzzzzz says:

January 13, 2012 at 6:33 pm

When thousands and thousands of David’s subscribers love XP, David’s remark “they DESERVE the trouble they get” is ill-advised. I love XP, and have never had any “Troubles” with it on the 4 computers that I have it on. If you know what you’re doing with it (but I’m sure tons of people unfortunately don’t) there are no problems. Windows 7 may have more bells and whistles, but they sometimes aren’t always needed.

Rich says:

January 13, 2012 at 6:52 pm

You’ve committed TBG violation #4. Congratulations. http://menga.net/12467

Cuzzzzz says:

January 13, 2012 at 9:28 am

I love XP… have it on 4 computers at home (built them all)… it’s so intuitive and easy to use.. and stable, if you don’t go into unknown territory on the web. Tried to load some programs for a friend om mine on her new Win 7 computer.. error message after error message. And Windows Explorer, which is so usable on XP, is very different in Win7.. can find only a list of “Librarys” in Win 7.. no list of the accessible drives, subdirectories, etc. Wish programs and OSs came with manuals, like in the old days. And as someone earlier said, DOS was great, too. I’m with Max, NoThanks, and Carol.. I can do anything with XP that I could do with Win7… except get to Target.com.. they require IE9. Stupid. As for the know-it-all comments of Guest and Rich… glad I’m not so self impressed. And as for Risley’s comment (If people are still using XP, they deserve any trouble they get)…I’ve never had ANY trouble with XP. It’s great.

Rich says:

January 13, 2012 at 2:28 pm

“…it’s so intuitive and easy to use”

No, it isn’t. You can’t search your start menu. Icons cannot be resized on the desktop without digging deep into the Control Panel while in Win7 it’s click-on-desktop, CTRL+MouseWheelUp/Down.

“Windows Explorer, which is so usable on XP, is very different in Win7.. can find only a list of “Librarys” in Win 7.. no list of the accessible drives, subdirectories, etc.”

Absolutely flat-out wrong. Expand “Computer”, it’s right there. Wow, how can you miss that. Windows Explorer in XP is awful. No breadcrumb trail clickable directories. Search is horrendous.

“…and stable”

No, it isn’t. The Task Scheduler in XP doesn’t work. File indexing is a joke and slows XP down to a crawl. Third party driver crashes cause BSODs while Win7 easily recovers and doesn’t BSOD.

“I can do anything with XP that I could do with Win7… except get to Target.com.. they require IE9. Stupid.”

Wrong again. The Target site works with IE8 and IE7 easily.

“As for the know-it-all comments of Guest and Rich…”

At least I know how to expand drives in subdirectories in Windows Explorer in Win7. The fact you completely missed that means it’s doubtful you’ve used Windows 7 at all.

Bbald says:

January 14, 2012 at 6:41 pm

I am using XP and have Win 7 on a notebook…not impressed with 7. Wouldn’t it be nice if when they make new operating systems that you were told how to do what you did in the old os(oh in language that most of us understand…not MSpeak)?

Cuzzzzz says:

January 21, 2012 at 12:50 pm

Win XP IS very intuitive.. to me.. surprised it isn’t to Rich. So you can’t resize icons on the desktop.. that makes it non-intuitive? Who cares about resizing icons frequently? I do it once when I build a computer and install XP. You can resize them by right-clicking on the desktop and going to properties, but I find no huge problem withhaving to go to and using the control panel for other functions.

It’s stable on my machine… in 5 years I’ve never had a BSOD… I’m very carefiul where I go with it. As for Task Scheduler, I must admit I’ve never used it.. retired 19 years and have no need of it. I’m very happy with Windows Explorer.. it’s NOT awful. As I mentioned, I’ve only used Win7 once loading a 1997 program on my friend’s new computer, so I have no idea what the “breadcrumb trail is”.

I agree.. the search engine in XP IS very slow and inefficient.

Also, with my computer, and several of my friends (all with XP and IE8), when you go to Target.com, we all get a “Problems Viewing Target?” message, and links to IE9 (no good with XP), FireFox, and Chrome. This has been going on for several weeks. I downloaded Chrome, and can browse Target easily now.

I’m considering getting a Win7 laptop just to learn it, as I frequently help others with computer problems (install new drives, save data for them,etc.) but I’ll probably wait now for Win8.. unless Rich can give me a good reason to buy now.

I’m 76, but still sharp enough to find XP excellent, and very intuitive.

Marianne says:

January 26, 2012 at 3:33 pm

I agree Cuzzzzz. May I suggest a search engine for you that is fast beyond belief – runs rings around even win7: ‘Ultrasearch’ and it doesn’t even index (slow) your files. It find stuff IMMEDIATELY! It has filters where you can exclude things from the search – on the fly – as you see items you’d like to not see – by foldernames, filenames, filetypes, using wildcards! It is a fantastic search for files and folders. If you want to search for words or phrases within files, try : ‘Xsearch’ – one or both of these don’t even need to be installed. Yeah, Rich has some problems – he seems to thrive on being contrary and insulting to everyone. When you aren’t on the right side of things – lash out at those who are. Win7 (or vista, or Win8, etc. – even SP3 for XP) will never be on a PC of mine – I don’t want a Big Brother operating system in my home, overseeing and taking over my PC and monitoring all my software – my next step will be Linux.

Cuzzzzz says:

January 26, 2012 at 5:59 pm

Marianne.. thanks very much.. I’d never heard of Ultrasearch.. will give it a try. I mentioned on one post that I’d used Chrome to get to Target.com… will try the one you suggested. I’m interested in your comment re XP SP3… I’ve loaded it on all my computers…no issues that I’m aware of.. what’s the problem with it?

As for Rich, have you seen his latest rant against us (XP defenders)? He says that WE all hated XP when it first came out… amazing how brilliant he is to know what’s in our minds. I actually loved it immediately. Yes, I think he does have issues. Did you see his reply to one of my posts ? ( You’ve committed TBG violation #4. Congratulations. http://menga.net/12467 )… really rude and childish. I don’t understand why David lets him take up so much of PCMech’s space.

Thanks again for your input. My XP machines will be used for another 3-5 years. Was glad to see the latest input by Kagusaki.

cuzzzzz

Marianne says:

January 27, 2012 at 4:02 pm

I keep trying to post, but I keep just getting “must be approved by moderator” and it’s just technical stuff answering your question. Marianne=Margaret

Margaret says:

January 27, 2012 at 4:06 pm

When MS realized that they couldn’t sell Vista (and as far as Window7, people are clinging to XP – even people who don’t understand what it (along with it’s fritz-chip) can do to their autonomy with their own machine), so they released SP3 to try to slip at least a little of the Vista spyware/controlware into XP. Of course, if you use Window’s Live ID, even with XP SP2, you are letting MS “cooperating vendors” into your machine and they have the ability to disable your software and change or delete your files (but they can’t turn your PC on in the middle of the night, do their dirty work, and restore the pc state without the fritz-chip – which is always powered with a small voltage even when your pc is turned off). It isn’t science fiction – MS actually did this (software damage) to me with MS Money, trying to push me into buying it again, in a later incarnation. Fortunately, I drive-image, so I was able to restore my hard drive system partition back to BEFORE I allowed Window’s Live ID onto my PC.

Rich says:

January 27, 2012 at 4:10 pm

When you send a bunch of replies in rapid-fire style with a ton of text, the commenting system can accidentally flag that as ‘pending’ because it may think you’re a bot. I will go back in the comment system and approve your stuff, not to worry.

Marianne says:

January 28, 2012 at 6:56 pm

Thank you, Rich. Please just post the first one. I was probably too long. I then tried to send pieces at a time, so no need to post those. Again, thank you.

Cuzzzzz says:

January 28, 2012 at 10:19 pm

“At least I know how to expand drives in subdirectories in Windows Explorer in Win7. The fact you completely missed that means it’s doubtful you’ve used Windows 7 at all.”

I got to study a different laptop (non-HP) with Win7… Windows Explorer works perfectly on this one… shows all drives, etc. I really think that the first Win7 laptop (HP) I tried has problems.. Tried the first one again, and several other normal and standard functions don’t work consistently or at all. Possibly a poor install at the HP factory? I may do a full restore from it’s backup partition and see if the problems are corrected.

Bigirimishoon says:

February 1, 2012 at 6:43 pm

Rich you are a moron. Windows xp is a well polished, completely stable operating system capable to maintaining even today’s users standard needs.

If you want an operating system that provides a no bullshit straight-forward way of computing stick with xp, if you want ur os to be pretty and bloated and caked with makeup and lipstick go with windows 7.

XP Advantages:
– Small footprint
– utilizes a lot less memory
– no microsoft spyware

Windows 7 Advantages:
– Pretty Looking
– Has all sorts of unnecessary features (snap, aero)
– Annoying and ineffective account control system

Rich says:

February 1, 2012 at 6:47 pm

If you truly wanted a “no bullshit straight-forward way of computing”, as you put it, then you should be using Windows 2000, as it runs circles around XP for every reason you said XP had the “advantage” over Win7. Win2k has a smaller footprint than XP, uses less memory than XP, and was never subject to WGA.

Cuzzzzz says:

February 1, 2012 at 7:06 pm

Bigirimishoon.. see? Rich’s reply doesn’t address your point… he brings up another OS and avoids your accurate points about XP vs Win7. I’ve never seen a more close-minded person who has so much to say about everything. You used moron.. if you check his older article insulting all people who make a living reparing PCs, you’ll see that he was called an A**hole, among other tihngs. All accurate.

Rich says:

February 1, 2012 at 7:09 pm

At least I don’t call people assholes and morons. Thanks for your comment.

Cuzzzzz says:

February 1, 2012 at 7:38 pm

You’ve GOT to be kidding me… all your articles are complete insults to anyone who doesn’t agree with you. Look at your childish “TBG http://menga.net/12467 ” insults that you send out to people.. they call people Jackasses and more. Beside being completely close-minded and opinionated, you’re a hypocrite.

Rich says:

February 1, 2012 at 7:40 pm

That’s on my blog, not here. And thanks for the free traffic, I appreciate it!

Marianne says:

January 26, 2012 at 3:18 pm

If you use Firefox (any version) instead of IE, you won’t have any trouble getting to Target.com…AND you will have a much safer, more controllable browser.

Tom56 says:

January 6, 2012 at 11:26 pm

What really burns me is the fact that Microsoft keeps coming out with a new operating system every few years and throw in an dog once in a while so they can issue a “newer” “better” OS (Millenium Edition and VIsta come to mind). So you just paid $100 plus to buy Vista and ooops its a dog so Microsoft releases Windows 7 and wants you to pony up another $100 plus to upgrade. No wonder Bill Gates is so wealthy!! I have Linux installed on all machines and like the fact that I can get the entire package including the office suite for free. Did I say free?

DOS_equis says:

January 13, 2012 at 8:17 am

In my opinion, MS isn’t doing this on purpose as to be devious. I think it’s because they think that a new one needs to be released every three years to keep up or stay on top of things. The big problem is they can’t pull off releasing a stable version every three years. It seems that they can only get a stable one out every six years so every other one is a turd. I remember MS wanting the public to accept Vista so bad that they secretly renamed Vista to Mohave and had people try it out on camera. Of course they had people who said they liked it and then had the big reveal that it was Vista. Trying out Vista for a few minutes in a tradeshow booth is hardly a testdrive. You have to try to hook up old equipment and whatnot to get that turd to glow. I was fortunate enough to be able to avoid Vista altogether by hanging with XP until Win7 came out and have been pretty happy with it since I upgraded.

DOS_equis says:

January 13, 2012 at 8:17 am

Tyler Melton says:

January 5, 2012 at 10:47 pm

Well…. can’t say I’m anticipating Windows 8. These days I’m really just over Windows of any version. I played around with Linux during the 2 yrs leading up to Windows Vista’s release. Installed Vista… about three months later I completely purged Windows from my machines. Windows 7 came out so I decided to give it a try but something just wasn’t right. Three weeks later I wiped my drive and put Linux back on.. haven’t looked back.

Carol says:

January 5, 2012 at 8:26 am

What’s the problem with XP? I’m still using it on a 5 year old PC that works fine. It’s my main box and I use it for just about everything (other than gaming for which I have little interest). Apart from being unable to upgrade to IE9 I have found nothing I need that won’t run on it.

The primary driver to upgrade for me might be the end of official support from Microsoft but in reality “so what”? I’d be interested to know what might justify me buying a new machine or Windows 7 when everything is working fine already? What can I do with Windows 7 that I can’t with XP (and I’m not talking about the UI, I’m interested in core user functionality)?

It can take hours/days/weeks to migrate to a new machine or O/S. Why exactly would I go through this pain “thankfully”?

And to David Risley – what “trouble” do you mean?!

Carol

Rich says:

January 5, 2012 at 11:46 am

“I’d be interested to know what might justify me buying a new machine or Windows 7 [over XP?]”

Native support for 4K sector hard drives. Automated task scheduling that actually works. Extended battery life on laptops/notebooks from better software management. 128-bit home network sharing encryption by default. Much better support in the 64-bit environment. Jump lists. HAL-less environment for far fewer system crashes. Better wireless networking management. Searchable start menu. Superior security features to XP.
The above is a small list of things 7 can do that XP cannot. Were I to list them in entirety, my comment would scroll several pages.

Carol says:

January 5, 2012 at 6:14 pm

Well it’s a nice list of what’s better in Windows 7 than XP but then I’m not disputing that. Nothing on your list however suggests a compelling reason to spend cash on upgrading, which is really my point. It all sounds a bit “nice to have” rather than “must have”.

An exception might be the “superior security” you mention but the up-to-date versions of Comodo Firewall, Avast Anti-virus, Sandboxie, WinPatrol, MalwareBytes all run fine on my XP box. As do the latest Firefox and Opera browsers, Flash, Java etc. I have a long random character WPA key on my home wifi network which works nicely. What “superior security” am I missing out on?

Jump lists and searchable start menu – are you serious? Can’t say I’m feeling too deprived here in XP land…

I’m still trying to understand what’s behind the “thankfully” in the article’s title!

Carol

Rich says:

January 5, 2012 at 6:25 pm

Action Center, Bitlocker Drive Encryption (widely agreed to be the gold standard), much easier administration of Windows Firewall, easier user control, HomeGroups (more secure than standard network sharing), etc., etc. etc.

To do the same in XP requires you to download software like you mentioned which slows down your computer significantly – with the exception of Microsoft Security Essentials that runs on XP and completely blows other security suites away because of ease-of-use and speediness.

After Win7, you don’t go back to XP. Operates like a dinosaur compared to Win7.

Carol says:

January 5, 2012 at 7:22 pm

I think we just have different philosophies Rich. All your points are valid in terms of why Windows 7 bests XP.

However it still seems that there is nothing I could do with Windows 7 that I can’t do with XP – it’s just that with Windows 7 it would be “superior” or “easier” or “more” or “better” – none of which I have reason to dispute.

XP does the job for me and it’s not like it’s broken or anything so I’ll choose to decline the cost and migration hassle of changing without a compelling reason. However, I’ll look forward to using Windows 7,8,9 or whatever when the day comes that I have no longer have a choice.

Or maybe I’ll settle on Linux Mint instead which is very fab. Thanks for an interesting discussion.

Carole.

Rich says:

January 6, 2012 at 12:11 am

Enjoy your crusty decade-old+ OS.

Max Renn says:

January 12, 2012 at 7:43 am

I’m still enjoying using XP on a 9-year-old desktop PC. It does everything I need to do perfectly well and quickly. I have no need for the exotic abilities you describe above.

Marianne says:

January 22, 2012 at 6:04 pm

What a childish thing to say. How old are you?

Marianne says:

January 22, 2012 at 6:03 pm

There are some huge reasons to NOT put any windows OS beyond XP SP2 on your PC. The “fritz-chip” required on the mobo allows vendors remote access to your software and files and you cannot disable it. Vista and all after are spyware and controlware masquerading as an OS. You’d have to be ignorant of some very important issues to allow them on your pc. When I leave XP, it will be for Linux.

Ann F. says:

January 22, 2012 at 5:55 pm

XP bests Win7 in the respects that are most important to me:

(1) control over my own computer and data
(2) ability to customize my own computer to my liking
(3) freedom from spyware/controlware…from my own OS!
(4) freedom from a layer of insulation between me and my PC!

All of these things XP can give me – and Windows 7 cannot!

When M$ finally manages to stomp out XP (and they are trying hard, and STILL haven’t succeeded), then I will be moving to Linux. I will never put M$ spyware-controlware on my machines.

Rich says:

January 22, 2012 at 6:23 pm

“M$” is childish Microsoft-bashing. Tsk tsk tsk.

maggietoo9 says:

January 22, 2012 at 5:12 pm

I agree, Carol, XP is an excellent OS. It has stood the test of time and triumphed over newer OS’s that were inferior. Win7 may have some good points, but they don’t come close to outweighing the negatives (see posted Comment).

Nothanks says:

January 5, 2012 at 8:16 am

windows xp is a great, and most importantly customiseable system, the only reason for its decline is you are FORCED to buy win 7 on new machines, where most would prefer xp in work environments, and academic ones for sure