I got a notice from Microsoft regarding the end of days for Windows XP. Ordering new systems with Windows XP from Dell and the few other build to order companies will soon be impossible. Microsoft said:
"After careful review, Microsoft will end sales of Windows XP products on June 30, 2008. For customers who want Windows XP after this date, original equipment manufacturers will have several options to provide Windows XP using downgrade rights. Mainstream support for Windows XP will continue through April 14, 2009. Additionally, Microsoft Extended Support will be available until April 8, 2014."
The good news is that after working with Windows Vista personally for about 6 months, I am comfortable to declare it safe to enter the pool. Service Pack 1 is out, which is the usual benchmark that tells corporate clients it is ok to upgrade. There are parts of Vista I actually prefer to XP, especially the Connect to a Network utility. User Account Control is kind of a pain, but is easy enough to disable. Windows Mail is a significant improvement over Outlook Express.
Overall, I am happy with Vista, and would not want to return to XP.
APR
About the Author:
I am a cybersecurity and IT instructor, cybersecurity analyst, pen-tester, trainer, and speaker. I am an owner of the WyzCo Group Inc. In addition to consulting on security products and services, I also conduct security audits, compliance audits, vulnerability assessments and penetration tests. I also teach Cybersecurity Awareness Training classes. I work as an information technology and cybersecurity instructor for several training and certification organizations. I have worked in corporate, military, government, and workforce development training environments I am a frequent speaker at professional conferences such as the Minnesota Bloggers Conference, Secure360 Security Conference in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, the (ISC)2 World Congress 2016, and the ISSA International Conference 2017, and many local community organizations, including Chambers of Commerce, SCORE, and several school districts. I have been blogging on cybersecurity since 2006 at http://wyzguyscybersecurity.com