Criticizing XP has ended(?)

[DanGrease]

Remember the time when Windows XP got released?
That year (2001) was a mess in my opinion regarding the Windows world.
How many people actually hated XP when it got released? Many.
How many people criticized both Bill and Microsoft? Many.
People just seemed unhappy with the new Windows.
The people couldn't seem to understand the new generation of the OS.
I know I had a hard time figuring out the new interface (which I still dislike)
I preferred using Windows 2000 Professional when XP was released I remember.
Remember the nightmares with drivers for XP when it had just been released?
God, that was a real mess. People even called Windows XP the next Windows ME.
Anyways, remember the usual sentences used when criticizing Windows XP/Microsoft?

~ I hate Windows XP, I mean product activation? Give me a break!
~ Windows XP is crap. Its bloated, and just looks ugly
~ Its fisher-price look gives me the creeps, hate it.
~ Unnecessary, Practically Windows 2000 Professional with more bells and whistles.
~ The OS is full of holes, its just scary. Stay away from it!
~ Its a recourse hog, I mean you have to have a super computer to run it smooth.

The list could go on forever.
I think most of us that were used with Windows 2000 Professional back in those days disliked Windows XP the first time we tried it. At least I did. I hated the new look of it. The new interface was just childish looking in my opinion. Luckily Microsoft had integrated a Windows classic interface with XP (which I still use)

Anyways, even if Windows XP wasn't what we had expected, I do think it was necessary.
I also believe its one of the most interesting Windows out there.
The step Microsoft took with XP was in my opinion pretty big.

The product activation was necessary in my opinion.
It works affectively and its really not that big of a deal.
Using the internet to activate Windows XP is really both easy and fast.
Using the telephone is also really simple, but takes a bit more time than using the internet.

I do like Windows XP right now.
Its my favorite Windows OS at least.
I do think its a lot like Windows 2000 Professional, but it has many features I do like.
Windows XP Professional is the OS I am using right now, and I do enjoy it.

What I think was the BIG mess with Windows XP was its security issues.
I mean, how many patches/fixes have been released since its release?
Still, Microsoft managed to release only one SP1 (which when released turned out to be a fiasco because of it giving so many issues to people they decided to use Windows 2000 Professional instead) which included (and still includes) many patches regarding security issues. SP2 to be released soon for XP.

Even if many people still dislike Windows XP, I do think its a great OS.
I also believe Microsoft did a good job with it.
I mean, I haven't experienced any crashes with Windows XP since I've started using the OS (very soon after it got released)
Using NTFS (As Windows 2000 Professional) was a great choice in terms of stability.

The purpose about this thread is to know how you guys feel about Windows XP right now.
Do you guys use it? Enjoy it? Hate it? and so on.
More information, opinions, or thoughts are appreciated.
Now that Windows XP SP2 is soon to be released, I wonder how it will affect the current situation.

dan

[tony_j15]

I wasnt exactly a happy camper about the whole product activation thing, but I realized the OS should provide a good performance boost if you have good enough hardware and upgraded to XP Pro. Was it worth the money? Considering you can get Linux for free, I say no. But its very stable and works great for playing games. Overall, its a decent OS, if the could tighten their code to half of what Linux is it would be great.

[DanGrease]

That was something I forgot th mention, the price.
I also think Windows XP was (and still is) too expensive.
Still, what from Microsoft isn't? Most people use their software anyways.

Linux is also one of my favorite options.
I do use Redhat sometimes, but right now almost none.

dan

[RobRich]

I refuse to upgrade my Windows 2000 boxes (Server and Pro) to Windows eXPerience. I simply can not find any significant technical reason for an upgrade at this time, especially considering the costs and lost time involved in the migration process.

As to interface concerns, I use custom shells like Aston and SharpE, so there are no concerns from my perspective.

For a person deploying a new installation of Windows, then WinXP is certainly satisfactory, though product activation is still quite annoying IMHO.

Robert Richmond

[peterwilkes]

I have used every major release of windows from Win 3.11 upwards and windows XP is the OS of choice. It is fast, stable and everything just works as it should do. I have had this installation for over a year now and it still runs nice and smooth.

The worst thing about the OS is the look of the iterface, I have since installed a new theme to make it look like Longhorn whcih is fantastic and very clean looking. I can post screenshots if you would like to see my desktop.

[jmichna]

I started with Win3.0/DOS4.01 (went DR-DOS 5.0 and stayed DR-DOS until MS DOS 6.22) and migrated, literally, through every WinOS to XPPro. I have always kept all the security patches updated since NT4.0, and have always used AV, and added S/W firewalls since I got broadband.

I like XP Pro, and have been pleased with performance, stability, older software/hardware compatability, etc. This has been on a variety of boxes, from Slot-As through TBirds, 1.6 P-4s, Palominos, TBreds and Bartons.

DanGrease,
For my money, Micrososft's biggest leap in OS was probably from NT4.0 to W2K. W2K was light years better than NT4.0 in user interface, hardware compatability, ability to game, even stability. The evolution from W2K to XP was more incremental, IMO.

[omalleytrading]

Dan - I think you're right on track with most of this. XP is generally more stable and easier to use that past versions of Windows. Many people hated the "Fisher Price" interface at first, but it's grown on me. 98 and 2000 look dated now.

Hardware compatibility is great, and you get a lot more "out of the box" features than you did with prior versions (though not as much as what's typically bundled with Linux)

The activation process is a pain, but I can't blame them for wanting to protect their investment. Software Piracy is rampant -- especially on college campuses and in south east Asia. That one hoop isn't too painful for honest, paying customers -- but it does slow the piracy a bit.

[Gutter Ball]

My last 3 builds have been with XP. Although I don't like the new "Xtra Pretty" colours...I just use classic themes. Overall, I'd say I like it a bit more than 2K.

[DanGrease]

I totally agree with most of you when you mention Windows 2000 Professional. If it weren't for me already been used to Windows XP Professional, and liking it I would probably use Windows 2000 Professional right now. Many features in XP are great, which makes be stay with it instead of switching to Windows 2000 Professional. Still, the whole OS itself is very alike. I would definitely use Windows 2000 Professional over Windows XP Home if I could and had the option to. The change Microsoft did from FAT32 to NTFS was literally huge in my opinion and definitely needed. I would never go back to FAT32 unless I had to right now.

I do think though some program integrated with Windows XP (such as Movie Maker, Windows Messenger) shouldn't be there, unless the user wants to. This is something I still don't like about XP unfortunately. Using program to be able to delete these program is a great way to use Windows XP the way you want it.

For me Windows XP Professional has been faster in most of the machines I've used it with comparing it to Windows 2000 Professional. Boot time was dramatically improved in XP, which I think is great. I have tweaked down XP to make it faster than Windows 2000 Professional, and keeping the nice features that I like from XP.

dan

[Droppyale]

I used to love win200 and still do... but the built in driver handling feature of XP won me over...

I've never really had any complains about xp, exept for the ugly/childish interface... but that can be changed with a few tweaks