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(More customer reviews)Windows XP Professional is perhaps the best version of Windows that Microsoft has released. It's rock-solid, well-supported, and easy to use. It's also ridiculously expensive, bloated, and the anti-piracy measures are nearly draconian (and woefully ineffective to boot).
What follows is a pretty lengthy breakdown. If you just want the executive summary, read no further than the following bullet-point list:
- If you don't have any special needs consider XP Home instead. If you truly need XP Professional, you'll know.
- If you don't really need Windows (in other words, if you're not a gamer or need to run an application for work that's strictly Windows-only), consider switching to a Mac. Or even Linux if you're a power user.
- Windows XP is a decent OS under the hood. But lingering security issues, price, and Microsoft's questionable behavior over the years should give you pause.
Now for the extended, in-depth review...
Pros:
- Built on the Windows 2000 codebase. It's not so prone to BSOD (Blue Screen Of Death) and other random crashes as 95, 98, and Me. I still get crashes, but they're usually the fault of a particular app, and a single crash rarely brings down the entire system.
- Excellent hardware support. It's plug-and-pray no longer; it recognizes and automatically configures a wide range of hardware.
- Well-supported. Like it or not, Windows is the dominant OS. You won't find a greater selection of commercial software for any other operating system.
- More secure than previous Windows versions. With the introduction of Service Pack 2, Microsoft is finally doing something about the rise of adware with improvements to Internet Explorer 6, a better built-in firewall, and a one-stop Security Center.
- Easier networking. Service Pack 2's wireless networking tools are often better than the ones bundled with wireless networking hardware. It's also easier to share files over a LAN, especially in comparison to Windows 2000. But if you need Windows 2000's more fine-grained control, that's available to you as well.
Cons:
- Expensive. Microsoft's monopoly position basically lets them charge whatever they want. Sometimes (and if you're a good bargain hunter) it's cheaper to buy a used computer with Windows XP preinstalled than to buy a boxed retail version. It's out of control. More on this later.
- Bloated. And not just bloated, but hard to cut down. Applications like Internet Explorer, Outlook Express, Windows Media Player, Windows Messenger, and Movie Maker are bundled and do not have uninstallers. You'll need some technical expertise and quite a bit of free time to get rid of these apps.
- Still very insecure. Check Secunia or a similar security site, and you'll see that Windows XP and Internet Explorer are riddled with security holes. And many of the critical ones remain unpatched! Save yourself a lot of grief and use an alternative browser like Mozilla Firefox or Opera (but not ones that embed the IE engine like Maxthon).
- The new visual themes are an acquired taste. Some people like big and colorful. I'm not one of those people. Luckily, "Windows Classic" is still available. You'll get your traditional desktop and Start menu back, as well as a hefty performance increase.
- Activation. It's not as bad as you might have been led to believe, but it's still annoying. The process takes seconds over the internet, and you don't have to provide any personal information. But if you're in the habit of upgrading and swapping out hardware often, you might find yourself on the phone with Microsoft trying to prove that you're not doing anything illegal. Meanwhile, Windows piracy still runs rampant, especially in third-world countries where a genuine copy of Windows costs a month's wages or more. Hell, it cost me a week's wages here in the U.S. of A. for my copies. (The job market's not exactly laden with golden opportunities for recent college grads. But I digress.) Seriously Microsoft, drop the price. What you lose in the margins up front will be more than made up for by the decreased loss due to piracy.
Other considerations:
- Unless you have ancient hardware (by that I mean computers built before 1997), get away from Windows 9x or Me as soon as you can. Leave that crash-prone monstrosity of an OS behind.
- I'd say get away from Windows entirely if possible. This isn't a viable option for everyone. For gamers, there's no real good substitute for Windows short of a console. Sometimes you'll get Mac and Linux releases, but they're often released long after the Windows version and are not as well supported. Then there are those who need a Windows PC for work. Solutions like Virtual PC and VMware provide a Windows environment for Mac and Linux respectively, but they can be clunky, and you wind up having to get Windows anyway. And of course there are those that can't deal with the Mac way of doing things or can't be bothered with the endless tinkering that a Linux setup entails. But if you just need a computer that gets on the internet without fuss, and you're not beholden to Windows in any way, consider something like the newly-released Mac mini. Easy to use, easy on the eyes, easy on the wallet.
- Power users may want to consider giving Linux a spin. It's still got a way to go before it's a solid desktop OS, but it's getting better every day.
- If you're not a power user and/or don't need the advanced networking features, Remote Desktop, etc. (and really, really must have Windows), go with XP Home instead. All of the stability, most of the power, less of the fat. Cheaper too.
- If you're already using Windows 2000, XP Professional probably isn't a very compelling upgrade. You've already got a very mature, stable, not-too-bloated, well-supported desktop OS on your hands. Maybe the new network features (the better wireless tools in particular) are worth the upgrade and migration cost. I leave it to you to weigh the risks and benefits in your particular situation.
Thanks for reading!
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Microsoft Windows XP Professional Full Version with SP2With Windows XP Professional Edition with Service Pack 2, you get safer browsing and communication, powerful security tools, and improved experiences. Windows XP is the operating system release that unifies the Microsoft range, with all the desktop versions now built on the NT/2000 code base rather than the shakier foundation of Windows 95, 98, and Me. That makes XP a great upgrade for users of the now-obsolete 9x and Me line, but for those already on Windows 2000 Professional it is a closer call. Despite the similar name, there is no special synergy between Windows XP and Office XP, which works fine on Windows 2000.
For Web browsing, XP comes with Internet Explorer 6.0. The enhancements in IE 6.0 are mainly of interest to Web developers, and in any case Microsoft makes IE freely available to all Windows users. Although Java is not installed by default, it is not difficult to download a Java Virtual Machine (JVM). Windows Messenger, originally a chat client, has evolved into a collaboration tool that allows for video conferencing and application sharing.
The XP user interface is not a radical departure from earlier versions of Windows, but there are a number of small changes that together add up to a significant improvement. The Start menu now automatically features the most frequently used programs at the top of the list, and you can add and remove shortcuts by right-clicking the icon and selecting Pin or Unpin from the pop-up menu. Windows online help is integrated into a Help and Support Center that works like an internal Web site, with searchable help, tutorials, and walk-throughs.
Windows XP Professional includes all the features of Windows XP Home, and adds support for dual processors, encryptable file systems, offline folders, the Remote Desktop as described above, and extra administration features that come into play when connected to a Windows server domain. XP is demanding on hardware, and it would be a mistake to install it on less than Microsoft's recommended minimum requirements. There is also activation to consider, a mildly annoying anti-piracy measure that requires you to obtain a code from Microsoft for full installation, and in the future if you reinstall or make major system changes.
Windows XP Service Pack 2 Features
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