Windows 7 Downgrade Gives Windows XP a New Lease at Life
When the next iteration of the Windows-based operating system hits the shelves this October, many will want to get Windows 7 and see how good the final and stable version really is. Many will even purchase a PC this June and be eligible for a Vista to Windows 7 upgrade. But others may not want to have their machine running on Windows 7, they might rather prefer to use Windows XP instead.
The simple truth of the matter is that Vista, good or bad, was not very popular operating system amongst ends users. Sure, many purchased a PC with Vista preinstalled on it, but amongst those buyers a large number of them exercised their downgrade to XP option. XP has been out there for 8 years now, and 3 service packs later it is still viewed by many as a properly good OS for your day-today computer usage.
Even though Microsoft had initially planned to phase out XP once it brought out Vista, that plan never came to fruition. And now that Windows 7 is getting closer and closer to reaching GA (General Availability) in its development process, Microsoft is well aware of the fact that it cannot put XP aside altogether. Consequently the Redmond-based software giant has announced that it will allow windows 7 to XP downgrades.
“Windows 7 Professional and Ultimate customers will have the option to downgrade to Windows XP Professional from PCs that ship within 18 months following the general availability of Windows 7 or until the release of a Windows 7 service pack, whichever is sooner, and if a service pack is developed,” a Microsoft spokesperson commented for Computerworld.
What this means is that Windows XP will get to live until at least April, 2011.
But the question is will you want to downgrade? The operating system has been getting great reviews from the media ever since it was in Beta, and the general opinion is that Windows 7 is a properly good OS. With that in mind, there is only one scenario in my mind that could push someone to downgrade: buying a small notebook PC (netbook). But the dilemma here is that you need not downgrade to ensure your netbook can handle the OS; Windows Communications Manager Brandon LeBlanc already explained that netbooks will be able to run any of the 6 SKU versions of Windows 7, not just Windows 7 Starter .
The simple truth of the matter is that Vista, good or bad, was not very popular operating system amongst ends users. Sure, many purchased a PC with Vista preinstalled on it, but amongst those buyers a large number of them exercised their downgrade to XP option. XP has been out there for 8 years now, and 3 service packs later it is still viewed by many as a properly good OS for your day-today computer usage.
Even though Microsoft had initially planned to phase out XP once it brought out Vista, that plan never came to fruition. And now that Windows 7 is getting closer and closer to reaching GA (General Availability) in its development process, Microsoft is well aware of the fact that it cannot put XP aside altogether. Consequently the Redmond-based software giant has announced that it will allow windows 7 to XP downgrades.
“Windows 7 Professional and Ultimate customers will have the option to downgrade to Windows XP Professional from PCs that ship within 18 months following the general availability of Windows 7 or until the release of a Windows 7 service pack, whichever is sooner, and if a service pack is developed,” a Microsoft spokesperson commented for Computerworld.
What this means is that Windows XP will get to live until at least April, 2011.
But the question is will you want to downgrade? The operating system has been getting great reviews from the media ever since it was in Beta, and the general opinion is that Windows 7 is a properly good OS. With that in mind, there is only one scenario in my mind that could push someone to downgrade: buying a small notebook PC (netbook). But the dilemma here is that you need not downgrade to ensure your netbook can handle the OS; Windows Communications Manager Brandon LeBlanc already explained that netbooks will be able to run any of the 6 SKU versions of Windows 7, not just Windows 7 Starter .
