More Users Move to Windows XP Ahead of Windows 10 Launch

Trust_No1 said:

I don't understand the indignation about the article, I liked XP (still do), it took me 3 years to switch over the Windows 7.

If I hadn't foolishly bought a 3 TB HDD, I'd still be triple booting XP, W7 & LM17.

Lee said:

Sometimes I wonder about some folks. . .

It strange how some people prefer to use the top two versions of Windows (XP & W7) rather than any of the other versions.

Whether the articles are factual or not, I still see many business still using XP (just walk by the computers and the XP screen saver is floating around) and I know a lot of people the won't update from XP or 7 for no other reason than "it is what it is and there's not need to" and that tells me that most people really:

A. Do not understand what "updating" entails or do not have enough knowledge about OS and computers in general
B. They just don't' care.

Don't get me wrong, 7 is by far my favorite OS as of now and 10 appears to be getting better and better and 7 still has a 5 years before it needs to be swapped, but It always surprises my how little people know about their computers, especially updates and security. I don't expect the average user to know as much as the experts on these forums, but computers have become so integrated in our daily lives and for some, it becomes a virtual livelihood, yet many don't seem interested to learn the basics and especially how to protect themselves against viruses and the like.

For people who do a lot of banking and buying online, you'd think they would want to understand the best practices of how to keep themselves safe, especially a business, who handles credit cards, social security numbers and personal information. But many times, my friends call my with " this is happening or I can't do this", then when I take a look at their computers it's loaded with junkware, riddled with malware, 100+ processes running at rest etc. But the kicker is, the computer is a key component to their daily work/social lives and when I try to explain or enlighten them with information, it's in one ear and out the other.

I had a conversation with my mechanic last month about why he should update his single PC form XP to at least 7, and to his defense he's not a big computer guy, but it is an integral part of his business, which could also affect his customers. He told me he uses Kaspersky and he felt totally protected because of it and I know a lot of people that have the same mindset.

If people don't understand why an OS needs to be updated, they won't, especially if it costs money (generally speaking of course as 10 will be free) I always thought Microsoft should try to find ways to inform people about computers and security to help them understand their computers better. Maybe like a little quiz that people could take and it would "test the knowledge" and maybe just maybe when they realize they may be at risk, they would at least consider updating.

Off topic a bit, but I was shocked to see our local petrol station's convenience store running their POS (that is point-of-sale) on XP... (This is a large petroleum company for who I once did MIS web reporting during the XP days ...LOL) - anyway an excellent business oppotunity for me to rewrite that and get them "modern" (as partner's always get told)