Wednesday 25th October marks 16 years since Windows XP was made generally available.
Are people still using XP?
Yes – despite its age, it is still one of the most widely used operating systems. It’s the fourth most popular overall, holding around 6% of the worldwide operating systems market. Organisations and public sector bodies still using XP are reluctant to upgrade their OS due to the amount of applications they have written on them. Examples include airline check-in systems or the computers used by mobile phone companies for signing up customers; it would be very costly and time-consuming for these organisations to have to rewrite their applications on a modern version of Windows.
Why is this an issue?
The lack of security updates and
patches means that computers running Windows XP are vulnerable to attacks, such as the WannaCry ransomware attack earlier this year that affected organisations including the NHS, which was still running the old OS. Though Microsoft were forced to make an exception to patch XP for this, otherwise XP users have not been able to benefit from updates since April 2014, when the operating system reached its ‘end of life’ and was no longer maintained by Microsoft.
To receive regular updates to protect computers, individuals and organisations will need to upgrade their operating systems to a newer, supported version.
What the experts are saying:
“It may seem surprising that even though the IT world has evolved so greatly, so many companies haven’t moved on from XP. The problem is that many organisations depend on custom software and applications that aren’t compatible with the latest versions, and upgrading can be hugely complex and costly. Some might not even have the time or technical know-how in order to do so,” explains Mat Clothier, CEO, CTO and Founder of Cloudhouse.
“While on the surface it may appear easier, cheaper and less time-consuming to stick with the old rather than bring in the new, there is now a middle ground – container compatibility software that can package up old applications and bring them across to newer, supported systems. This technology enables organisations to benefit from greater security, performance and all-round peace of mind without the constraint of complete rewrites.”
Windows XP is one of the operating systems that are no longer supported, which means updates are no longer rolled out, making it vulnerable. Without security updates, it is basically sitting duck.
Still, the OS would still work, which is good news for people like you who are unwilling to upgrade to newer versions. Just know that some applications may no longer work, such as the Adobe Flash Player.
Even if you have the app previously installed, you might not get an update of the latest version.
Although this will make your system vulnerable, the real problem starts when you can no longer watch or stream videos online due to an old Flash player.
Since Windows XP is no longer supported, you will not find an updated Flash player that is compatible with the OS.
The last version released for XP was Adobe Flash Player 17.0.0.134. But some users still claim to be unable to update.
Some workarounds include using Firefox or IE instead of Chrome since Google no longer supports Adobe Flash Player. In fact, Flash has been disabled from Chrome.
You may also need to uninstall the old version you have and then install the new one. Just be ready to face some installation issues. Another option would be to use the Extended Support Release.
Visit the Adobe product page, search for Flash Player and look for the extended support release.
Some users claim that the extended plug-in is only available for IE and nothing else.
In this case, decide to upgrade your OS.
Just know that the support for Adobe Flash Player has a time limit in Windows 10.
Windows 10’s adoption rate keeps rising and Windows 8 usage is still going down, according to the latest StatCounter’s monthly worldwide traffic report.
Microsoft’s operating systems in statistics
Microsoft’s operating systems are used by 84.48% of users, while OS X is running on 11.3% of the world’s computers. Linux has a total market share of 1.79%, Chrome OS holds a 0.46% market share, while other OSs are used by 1.97% of users. FreeBSD is not being used anymore.
Let’s check out more facts about the Microsoft’s operating systems. Off all the tracked operating systems, it seems that Windows 10 usage has risen to 36.93% in July from 36.6% the month before. Windows 8 usage, on the other hand, has dropped from 2.4% to 2.32% and Windows 8.1 usage fell from 9.37% to 9.14%. Windows Vista and Windows 7 usage have slipped as well.
What does all this mean?
Even if these numbers reflect a marginal rise-and-fall effect, they are very significant from a statistical point of view because these things have been happening for quite a while now.
Windows XP managed to crawl up to 4.94% n July from 4.86% in June, and this was entirely unexpected. StatCounter’s data for the past year showed that XP has been in a constant decline except for a bump that occurred back in December when the operating system went up to 5.93% from 5.92% in November. We could even say that the operating system is making an effort to come back to life. But these changes are so tiny, and this will probably turn out not to be a long-time trend.
Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA) program is part of the commitment by Microsoft to protect its customers and partners from counterfeiters through education, engineering, and enforcement of policies and laws. WGA differentiates the value of genuine Windows software from counterfeit software. This enables you to enjoy the capabilities that you expect, the confidence that your software is authentic, and the ongoing system improvements that help you do more with your personal computer. you can also download Windows xp. The WGA program creates an improved Windows experience for users who have a genuine copy of Windows. By using genuine Microsoft software, you can be confident that you will have access to the latest features, security, and support. This helps improve your productivity and expand the capabilities of your computer. You will also have access to innovations and offerings available only to genuine Microsoft software customers. Windows XP (stylized as Windowsxp and codenamed Whistler) is a personal computer operating system that was produced by Microsoft as part of the Windows NT family of operating systems. It was released to manufacturing on August 24, 2001, and generally released for retail sale on October 25, 2001. Development of Windows XP began in the late 1990s as "Neptune", an operating system built on the Windows NT kernel which was intended specifically for mainstream consumer use—an updated version of Windows 2000 was also originally planned for the business market. However, in January 2000, both projects were shelved in favor of a single OS codenamed "Whistler", which would serve as a single OS platform for both consumer and business markets. Windows XP was a major advance from the MS-DOS based versions of Windows in security, stability and efficiency due to its use of Windows NT underpinnings. It introduced a significantly redesigned graphical user interface and was the first version of Windows to use product activation in an effort to reduce its copyright infringement. Windows XP Instructions: 1. Extract AntiWAT.XP.2k3.Activator. 2. Run AntiWAT.cmd and wait till it finishes. 3. Run xpgen.reg and add it to registry. 4. Restart. Download Windows XP Activator Given Below Link: Download Now
Windows has a lot going for it, but it's also saddled with one of computing's biggest annoyances: crapware. Here's everything you need to know about identifying, avoiding, and removing unwanted software from your system.
What Is Crapware?
In simple terms, crapware is software you don't want, but—for one reason or another—gets installed on your system against your will. This can range from legitimate programs that come pre-installed (like Netflix or a trial of McAfee Antivirus) to browser toolbars, auto-starting apps, or something that changes your default search engine.
The former category—the legitimate software that comes pre-installed—is often referred to as "bloatware" as well. Not all pre-installed apps are bad, but more often than not, you'll want to remove 90% of what came on your system. So, for the purposes of this guide, we'll be talking about both kinds of unwanted software.
How to Remove Pre-Installed Bloatware
First, let's talk about the bloatware you get when you buy a new computer. If you built your computer yourself (or bought a "Microsoft Signature" device), you won't have to deal with pre-installed programs, but if you bought a Dell, HP, Toshiba, or other machine, you'll have a lot of pre-installed apps to contend with.
Luckily, removing them isn't too hard, and you have a few choices.
Option One: Manually Remove Unwanted Apps with Revo Uninstaller
Obviously, you could just uninstall the programs you don't want with Windows' built-in uninstaller, but we don't recommend this. Lots of programs—especially those pesky pre-installed ones—often leave things lying around in the Registry and other folders after they leave. So, we recommend using a more powerful uninstaller like Revo:
Start it up and wait for it to generate a list of the programs on your computer.
Select a program you want to remove and click the "Uninstall" button.
Repeat step 3 until all the unwanted software has been removed.
Note that you shouldn't just run rampant and uninstall anything that doesn't look familiar. If you know you don't want that McAfee trial, go ahead and remove it, but if you aren't sure what something is, look it up before you go deleting it from your system. Heck, it might even be something worthwhile.
Option Two: Automatically Remove Unwanted Apps with Decrap
Obviously removing programs one-by-one can be a bit of a hassle, so if your computer comes with a lot of bloatware, you may want a more all-in-one solution. Decrap is an awesome program that will scan your system, give you a list of installed software, and check off everything you want to remove. Then, it'll get rid of everything in one fell swoop:
Download and install Decrap. I recommend downloading the portable version and unzipping it to a folder on your desktop—that way you don't have another program to uninstall later!
Start Decrap and let it perform its initial setup. It will ask if you want to run it in automatic mode—I recommend leaving this box unchecked.
It will then scan your computer for currently installed software.
Once it gives you a list of programs, go through and check the programs you want to remove. You'll likely find these items under the "Automatically Starting Software" category and "Third Party Software" category. You'll probably want to leave "Drivers" and "Windows Related Software" unchecked.
Click Next and create a System Restore Point when asked.
Decrap will ask you if you want to automatically install everything, or do it yourself. This is up to you. If you made the correct choices in step 4, you should be fine to uninstall everything automatically and clean the registry.
Let Decrap run through the unisntallation process. When you're done, you should have a much cleaner PC! Make sure to go through your Start menu and Revo Uninstaller to make sure there aren't any stragglers you forgot.
Once again, if you don't know what something is, Google it before you remove it. It may be something important to the system, or (in some cases) a pre-installed app that's actually good!
Option Three: Go Nuclear and Reinstall Windows from Scratch
Some people prefer to skip the above options and just install Windows from scratch, without the bloatware. You'll need a Windows install disc from Microsoft—not the one that came with your computer, which likely has the bloatware on it—and a valid license key, usually located on a sticker on your computer. Note that this isn't guaranteed to work for everyone, and in some cases you may not be eligible for service if you reintsall a different copy of Windows, so be forewarned.
We have a full guide to reinstalling Windows here, so check that post out for the step-by-step. Installing Windows is easy, but you'll probably have to reinstall some drivers and other software too. It'll take longer than removing the bloatware yourself, but you'll know exactly what's on your system and start with a clean slate. It's up to you whether that's worth your time and energy.
How to Remove Toolbars and Other Bundled Crapware
The second kind of crapware is a bit more sinister than free trials of Microsoft Office. Sometimes, you download a new program, only to find that after installing it, you also have a toolbar in your browser and your default search engine has changed to Yahoo or Ask.com. Often, companies will bundle toolbars or other junk with their free programs. This allows them to offer those programs to you for free, while still making money.
Unfortunately, while that's a nice sentiment, it ends up being quite dishonest, because installers try to "trick" you into agreeing to the crapware you don't want. We'll talk about this in the next section, but first: let's remove the crap you already have.
You have two options here: remove the crapware manually using Option One (Revo Uninstaller) as described above, or use a more automatic program like AdwCleaner. It's quite simple:
Download AdwCleaner and double-click the icon to run the program—no need to install it.
Click the Scan button to scan your computer.
When it's finished scanning, go through each tab (Services, Folders, Files, etc.) and check anything you want to clean. Not everything Adw finds will be crapware—if you aren't sure whether to remove something, try to determine the name of the software from Adw's list and search for it on Should I Remove It's web page.
Once you're sure you've selected everything you want to remove, click the Clean button. It'll clean the selected options, restart your computer, and provide a report detailing what was deleted.
After running AdwCleaner, I recommend doing one last pass with Revo Uninstaller to see if there's anything left over on your system. Hopefully, though, your PC should be clean as a whistle—at least from toolbars, adware, and other crap.
How to Avoid Unwanted Programs in the Future
Now that you have a clean PC, it's time to keep it that way. As I said earlier, most of these programs come on the back of something you actually wanted to download—usually from a company that's trying to make money, but offering their software for free.
Many people choose to boycott these programs entirely, and only download truly free or open-source software. That's certainly one solution, but it leaves out so many great pieces of software that—crapware aside—are worth having on your system. As long as that program gives you achoice to install the crapware or ignore it—and most do—boycotting isn't necessary.
Avoiding crapware is pretty easy once you become familiar with the tricks installers use to get you to agree to them. Here are some things to keep in mind as you download and install new programs:
Always download programs from their home page, if possible. Many download sites (like Download.com) will create their own installers with bundled crapware, even if the original download didn't have it.
Watch for checkboxes on the download page. Sometimes the option to avoid crapware may not be in the installer, but on the download page of the app itself. Adobe, for example, offers you the chance to decline installing McAfee on its download page. Other apps may offer an installer with crapware, but a portable version without it.
Don't click Next over and over without reading! If you don't pay attention to what you're installing, you're bound to install crapware. Carefully read each page of the installation wizard before you click Next.
Always choose the Custom Install option. Never choose Automatic. Custom install with almost always offer you the opportunity to decline crapware.
Read every checkbox. Sometimes they'll hide it on an otherwise unrelated page of the installer. Read every checkbox and uncheck anything that wants you to install something you didn't ask for.
Don't Click Every "Agree". Sometimes, an installer will make the "crapware agreement" look like the original software's terms of service. Your brain wants to click "Agree" thinking it's the only way to continue with the installation—but read closely. If the "terms" are for a program other than the one you downloaded, you can safely choose "Decline" and continue the installation.
Watch Out for Multiple Offers. Just because you've avoided one piece of crapware doesn't mean you're done—there could be more bundled apps waiting for you, or multiple offers for the same toolbar in the same installer!
It seems like this is complicated and not worth the trouble, but once you get the hang of it, it's a breeze—you'll be able to outsmart any tricky installer that comes your way. FreewareGenius has a great guide to some of the tricks you'll see, with examples for each, so check that out to familiarize yourself. You can also try using Unchecky, which will automatically uncheck those boxes for you—but it's no replacement for due diligence. Good luck and safe downloading!
