Top 10 reasons Windows XP refuses to die

While Microsoft is hoping that its Windows 8.1 update will entice users to its latest operating system, there are millions of people all over the world happily using a version of Windows that is 12 years old.
Windows XP is the operating system that refuses to die. Despite numerous upgrades to Windows and pleas from Microsoft for users to move off the platform, countless devices around the world are still using this trusty operating system.

The reasons for its popularity are many, as numerous V3 readers have proved with their declarations of love for the aging platform, even if support for XP is due to end in less than six months.
No matter how much Microsoft would like its Windows 8 platform to grow, XP will be around for a little while yet, for the reasons outlined in this week’s top 10.

10. The recession put migrations on hold
The recession that has gripped the world since 2008 caused many projects to be put on the back burner, and plans to migrate away from Windows XP are likely to be some of those that suffered.

Around that time – with XP in its seventh year – businesses may well have been thinking that the time was right to start preparing for the move to Windows 7. However, when the number bods came a-knocking and asked if it really necessary to migrate, they probably went away satisfied they’d saved another few bob for the company.

Fast-forward five years, though, and that cost saving means firms are now still on XP. If it still worked for all those years since the last planned upgrade, why move now?

9. BYOD removes the need to upgrade
These days, more and more offices are opening up to the possibility of allowing workers to bring their own devices. These BYOD policies mean that the previously provisioned enterprise desktops or laptops lie under the desk or in a drawer gathering dust until they're needed for some obscure piece of software that won't run on anything else.

In the meantime, workers happily tap away on their own laptops, tablets and smartphones, blissfully ignoring the old way of doing things.
With less pressure to upgrade these older machines, XP continues to linger, and long may it continue.

8. Legacy systems need XP
While still not old enough to drink, Windows XP has done a decent job of getting around and is still being used by a variety of systems and industries.

These include systems related to critical infrastructure areas, including power grids and water plants. This means, like the supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems used in the same critical areas, some businesses cannot update to a more recent version of Windows.

This is because the nature of the systems means they need to stay running 24/7 and so the damage caused by an error during migration could be catastrophic.

7. User training hassle
The trouble with any new technology is people take time to learn how to use it. This is certainly true of any move to Windows 8, which has led to many baffled looks and head scratches from first-time users.

With XP so embedded in enterprises and so simple to use many firms probably can’t face the hassle of user training that would come with an upgrade to any new system – whether that’s Windows 7 or Windows 8.
As such, it may well be the case that until firms absolutely must upgrade to a new Windows platform, staff will be happily using their tried and trusted XP platform, thereby saving millions of work hours that would be otherwise lost to training and confusion.

6. Most hardware in use is best suited to XP
Many, many organisations around the world have ageing PC terminals and laptops that would not have the capabilities to fully support a move to a new operating system. Even if they could technically handle it, they’d probably run the machine into the ground and prove unworkable.
As one V3 reader noted, this is the same for peripherials and software too. "My scanner only works with XP, and quite a few other software and games," the reader said.

With budgets always under review the explanation that new hardware is need to support new software is unlikely to get very far in many organisations, forcing staff to continue using older hardware with older software.

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