The hype machine has been at full throttle in the homestretch to the
Windows XP™ official rollout.
The Financial Post's Robert Thompson
notes that "a PC purchased two years ago is still relatively
current in terms of technology and software. A new computer might be
better, but a machine bought two years ago is good enough, hence the
term ['good enough computing']. And that's the big problem facing the
computer industry."
Thompson suggests that the release of Windows XP may catalyze
laggard PC sales somewhat from the seven-year low they hit this spring
and which are still in steep decline.
"Which is why many PC makers are counting on the allure of
Microsoft's Windows XP to drive consumers back to electronics stores
across the country," says Thompson.
However, Thompson also notes that there could be sales
resistance to Microsoft's scheme to force users to sign up for
Passport, the new Windows online authentication service.
For most enterprise users, Windows XP amounts to a relatively minor
update to Windows 2000 that focuses mainly on "fit and finish." Mike
Silver, an analyst for industry research firm Gartner Group, has
commented that "Gartner views Windows XP as a minor service release for
Windows 2000 (much as Windows 98 was to Windows 95)." Indeed, the most
noticeable change in Windows XP for business users already equipped
with Windows 2000 will be Microsoft's new copy-protection scheme that
will make it necessary to buy a separate, full-price copy of Windows
for each PC it is installed on.
Minor the changes may be, but XP is not cheap at about US$99 per pop
for an upgrade of the home version and US$199 for the full install. The
Professional Edition of Windows XP for commercial users, which includes
multiple-processor support, corporate network connection and
management, remote access, file encryption and more security features,
will cost around US$199 as an upgrade or US$299 for the full version,
which will run into real money if you have more than one or two
machines to upgrade.
Windows Product Activation (WPA) will only allow you to install
Windows XP on one computer at a time, creating and storing a profile of
the configuration of every PC on which you install Windows XP. This
will allows Microsoft to "lock" each copy of the operating system to
one specific PC. Once installed, you will have 30 days in which to
contact Microsoft, either via the Internet or by telephone, and
activate the software.
If you don't do this, your copy of Windows XP will stop working,
and even if you do comply, Windows XP might still stop working sometime
in the future if you upgrade your PC's hardware so that it no longer
matches the profile Microsoft has on file. If your PC malfunctions,
making it necessary to reinstall Windows XP, you'll be obliged to
explain the situation to Microsoft and hope they allow you to activate
it again. Windows will also keep monitoring your computer to make sure
that it's still running on the same machine. (Note: there are rumors
afoot that Microsoft may be planning to back off a little bit on
product activation, allowing up to six changes to your hardware
configuration, and a 120 day reset. Also, OEM copies of XP that come
preinstalled will have WPA linked solely to the machine's BIOS, so on
these you will be able to change anything you like without
reactivation.)
Microsoft also plans to move to a subscription licensing policy in
the near future, so that paying the Windows license fee will not give
you the right to use the software in perpetuity, but rather you will be
obliged to pony up subscription fees on a regular basis.
Needless to say, a lot of Windows users are unenchanted by these
changes. Of course, the fine print on Microsoft's license has always
insisted that each copy of Windows only be installed on one machine,
but in practice home users and many small businesses have sometimes
been using one copy of Windows to upgrade several PCs - a habit
Microsoft calls "casual piracy." Under the letter of the law, that's
what it is.
There are going to be a lot of unhappy campers out there once the
practical implications of this product activation protocol sink in, and
more than a few of them will be inclined to give using Windows a second
or third thought.
Changes in this first major upgrade to Windows since Windows 95
include:
- A revamped taskbar intended to reduce desktop clutter by organizing
your programs
- More robust stability and reliability based on Windows 2000
technology; ergo: XP will not crash as often as previous consumer
Windows versions
- Enhanced remote access allowing Internet users hand off control of
their PC to another individual over the Web. Useful for troubleshooting
over the phone.
However, AnchorDesk's David Coursey has posted a sober, contrarian
screed on
The Dark Side of Windows XP. Coursey notes that negative issues
with respect to XP are:
- Licensing and cost (copy protection and authentication)
- Activation
- Firewall woes.
- Wireless troubles.
- Drivers.
- Applications compatibility
- Home vs. pro: "I am a tad concerned about whether some "home" users
will think they actually need the "pro" version, a $100 additional
expense per machine."
- Memory: "If you are upgrading an older machine and have less than
256 MB of RAM, be sure to buy some memory."
- Passport
- MSN tie-ins
- No MP3 support
- Firewall
Windows XP System requirements are
- Intel 300 MHz Pentium III processor or better
- 1.5 GB free hard-drive space
- 10 GB hard drive recommended.
Personally, I find all this hype and angst over Windows XP a bit
surreal. There is no small resonance of the Emperor's new clothes
here.
Windows XP probably is a significant improvement over Win95/98/ME,
at least for users who have the hardware muscle to run it, but it's
still Windows and still Microsoft, the latter being the main problem.
From the perspective of Mac users, life on the Dark Side seems to be an
exercise in masochism - a never-ending trip to the dentist. It's very
sad, really, when there is such a simple and easy alternative.
