Tumblr 101: Tips And Tricks To Get Started
Sebastian Thrun: Google's Driverless Car
Windows XP Mode coming to Windows 7, could be a game-changer
Dubbed XP Mode (XPM), the new feature should make Vista-esque program incompatibilities little more than a bad memory.
So how does it work?
First, systems will need to be running a CPU that supports processor-based virtualization. Windows 7 Pro, Enterprise, and Ultimate licensees will receive access to download a fully-licensed Windows XP SP3 Virtual PC environment from Microsoft. Unlike Virtual PC, though, it's not a standalone virtualization program. Once installed, XP Mode works behind the scenes and allows programs to run seamlessly alongside native Windows 7 apps.
And yes, that means even outdated programs like Internet Explorer 6 that some businesses still depend on for their daily operations will run just fine on Windows 7. According to Paul Thurrott, Microsoft claims nearly 100% compatibility with current Windows XP applications in XPM.
Microsoft needs Windows 7 to be a winner in the enterprise. Apart from cost, compatibility concerns are a huge factor for administrators considering an upgrade path. XP Mode might just squash that concern, which only leaves the final Windows 7 pricing structure.
We'll see how aggressive Microsoft is on that front as the RTM approaches.
Comments
27
Subscribe to commentsFabianApr 25th 2009 9:46AM
I think there is (at least) a word missing in this sentence:
Dubbed XP Mode (XPM), the new feature should make program incompatibilities.
;-)
Lee MathewsApr 25th 2009 9:48AM
Thanks for catching that Fabian. Firefox 3.5 is great, but one of my addons is causing some inopportune crashes. :)
Saint SeminoleApr 25th 2009 10:12AM
There's more than a word missing. There's like a paragraph missing. That paragraph would say something to the effect:
"This is pretty much an admission by Microsoft executives that XP is just fine and doesn't need to be replaced at all."
Lee MathewsApr 25th 2009 10:16AM
Hey, USB 2.0 is backwards compatible too. Does that mean we should still be running USB 1.1 since it's also "just fine?"
Who wants new features and improvements?
MalteserrApr 25th 2009 10:33AM
What a stupid thing to say.
It's Microsoft being smart and eliminating another factor that made Vista such a flop in the business world. Now businesses can make sure the programs they paid good money for still work on the new OS, and if they don't, they can still run them virtually.
tyApr 25th 2009 7:15PM
Lee, under USB 2.0 all previous USB version hardware works, that's kind of the point of the xp compatable mode.
GavApr 25th 2009 10:38AM
I just hope this doesn't encourage developers to make more XP apps, rather than making apps for 7.
Also, I'm curious, why would a business go to the hassle of installing this, to use IE6? Surely it would be much easier just to push out IE8?
QuikboyApr 25th 2009 10:48AM
Unfortunately, there are still a lot of sites out there that can only render well and compatible through IE6's backwards standards, that a lot of corporations and companies use. Those sites are the ones that are stopping progress.
Night ElveApr 25th 2009 1:11PM
Yeah what Quickboy said. I work for a large company as a Java Developer and believe me, most of their web applications are wrote based on IE6.
So when you try to run those sites on IE7 or IE8 you can expect that lots of thing don't work or the Explorer crash.
I hate IE6 :(
tyApr 25th 2009 7:13PM
I think it's more to those places that have POS or other proprietary software that costs 5-30k per install yet want more security and interoperability with new systems.
rcarmApr 25th 2009 11:00AM
100% compatibility? Would 3d games work?
Tech-MikeApr 25th 2009 1:47PM
I am also wondering this, I know that VirtualBox cant do it (yet)...but with "game-changer" in this title - it would be nice to know (although that could be referring to the "OS game"?)
master811Apr 26th 2009 4:13PM
Probably unlikely, as I think it's simply a customized version of Virtual PC which unfortunately doesn't support 3D acceleration.
FredApr 25th 2009 11:00AM
This is a fantastic idea. WHile I do not think I will ever have to use it, it would go a long way towards fixing compatibility. One question: could you run drivers in XPM?
Drew GreenApr 25th 2009 11:05AM
Here's the big question, though: I saw pictures on Paul Thurott's site of this yesterday. It showed the XP desktop at one point. Does XP Mode run XP in the background and just not present itself to the user while running applications, or do you essentially need to be running a VM of the OS (XP) to run the program you are "virtualizing". If this is the case, it's not actually application virtualization, but merely just OS virtualization. Workstations will take a performance hit, and probably require many companies to upgrade hardware as well as software to support this (at least a RAM upgrade).
I think VMWare has the leading edge on this issue with ThinApp. By stealing 512mb to 1gb of RAM from the end user (to virtualize the entire XP OS), thing will be noticeably more sluggish if they are running a system with say, 2gb of RAM total. ThinApp removes the actual virtualization, and just repackages the program in a portable manner that allows regular resource usage rather than real virtualization does.
ToddApr 25th 2009 12:56PM
So dystopic is the state of Microsoft's cash cow that they must provide vitalization of their 12 year old product to cause decision makers in the enterprise to even consider purchasing the latest?
That speaks volumes.
"XP mode" is only a "game changer" if the game is to recover from a decade and a half of market share lost to Linux, compounded by the past five years of zero third party apps being written specifically for the still born Vista.
This is merely Ballmer's last futile to brainwash you into thinking locally installed Windows only software still has relevance.
We all know non-OS specific, browser based web apps, access via the Enterprise's secure cloud ( example: Salesforce's AppExchange ), will rule the enterprise - en mas - in a few short years.
P.S. AppExchange is powered by Linux!!!
Lee MathewsApr 25th 2009 1:16PM
And businesses are all totally willing to pay for that transition? No, they're not. Budgets are tight, and moving to the cloud will cost money.
If their new machines ship with Windows 7 anyway, why would they bother changing old apps that "just work"?
ToddApr 25th 2009 1:46PM
Cost *less* to write web apps than pay Microsoft seat licenses.
LAMP stack is $0.00 a year - forever. That alone saves millions and millions of dollars. Cost of writing web apps, or using existing Open Source for internal use is fractions of a penny compared to 5,000 seat license for Windows Server+ Windows 7 + Office over 10 years.
KeegdnaBApr 25th 2009 1:44PM
So if it's free for Pro, Enterprise, and Ultimate I wonder if it will be available as a paid option for Home Premium. I'm still on the fence of getting HP or Pro so that may be a deciding factor. It's not a huge problem if I don't have it, but it would be nice to have.
Green_OgreApr 28th 2009 3:24PM
What about using the anytime upgrade? It's possible to add it with the upgrade to like, business or something.