Despite Microsoft’s obvious focus on selling Windows Vista to its customers, it hasn’t yet forgotten about all those people out there that still use Windows XP (personally, I use Windows XP MCE 2005). The company has confirmed it has finally ‘released to manufacturing’ the third service pack to Windows XP – 7 years after the operating system’s original release.Service Pack 3 contains little in the form of new features, and is more of a massive update and patch roll-up than anything else. According to PCMag, the only new features are Network Access Protection (for Server 2008 compatibility), ‘black hole‘ router detection, a more detailed Security Options control panel, FIPS 140-1 Level 1 compliant cryptography at the kernel level, and a new product activation scheme that allows you to install the operating system without first entering a product key. A more detailed breakdown of SP3’s contents can be found on the Microsoft website.
Windows XP Service Pack 3 is pushed to customers in three steps:
- 21st April: Released to manufacturing, OEM and enterprise customers.
- 29th April: via Windows Update and as a stand-alone download for us normal people.
- June 2008: Automatic Update distribution for home users.
I have been running the latest beta of SP3 for a few months now on my Windows XP installation (32bit) and I noticed little during my day-to-day use. No apparent performance hits or gains, no added instability, nothing. This is probably a good sign, as this is most likely the final service pack for Windows XP.
I would be really sad to see XP reach EOL to be honest. It has been a great run for me with that OS. Sure I am using XP 64 bit now but it had turned in to quite a solid OS over the years. Heres to hoping that SP3 makes it even better…though it seems its more of a patch rollup than anything else. SP4 anyone?
SP4 for XP? I wonder if that will ever happen. I doubt that…if it takes 3 years or so to do a Service Pack, that means XP would be 10 years old before SP4. You would hope Vista would be the main OS for Windows consumers by that point.
On a funny note, that would be like releasing a Service Pack for Windows 98 this year.
“On a funny note, that would be like releasing a Service Pack for Windows 98 this year.”
Not exactly. Windows XP is still relevant and the perfect tool for the job.
You would hope Vista would be the main OS for Windows consumers by that point (in three years).
You might hope that, but many of us do not. In three years I hope Windows 7 starts putting nails in Vista’s coffin. It should be buried next to Windows ME and MS Bob.
yeah, highly doubt a SP4 for it… I’m surprised at a SP3, honestly.
NT4 – SP6a
Win 2k – SP4, 5 unofficially
XP – SP3
Vista – Already at SP1
The numbers are dwindling for service packs. I bet Vista will end at SP2 and no more.
Solid OS?
You probably just don’t know any better and I feel sorry for you.
OS is not solid when even its “safe mode” is not safe.
I was cleaning one of those “trendy” Virusheat badboys yesterday on someone’s computer and the thing is starting even in safe mode.
Windows is really a pinacle of bad software engineering.
Then again, this is still the “dark age” of computing.
It never fails that here at OSNews someone says they’re happy with Windows, someone else has to chime in with their sob story of how they had to deal with viruses/spyware.
In the hands of a competent computer user, Windows XP is a safe operating system, and is quite powerful.
In the hands of an ignorant user, yes, it can be a problem.
Please, there’s no need to “feel sorry” for someone happy with their OS, and certainly no need to use a condescending tone to another OSNews member.
And then there is, here at Osnews, always someone (probably Windows admin that just discovered the registry editor) that has the need to chime in and claim complete nonsense that Windows can be secure and powerful in the hands of a skilled user.
No, it can’t because it’s faulty by design, so even Billy-upload-your-dollars-Gates can’t make it secure and powerful without first redesigning it from ground up.
It’s funny because people making that claim (you) think they can get away with it. But the problem is that there are already countless websites, articles, stories that directly disprove your claim.
So, again, no, Windows cannot be made secure and powerful because it’s technically impossible.
And sorry, it’s hard to talk to Windows users without being condescending.
I see you’re taking advantage of the new mod system, troll! Well done!
Wow, you found me out. I just discovered the registry editor yesterday. And what’s this neato thing called the command line? Wow, a batch script!? What’s that? Group Policy? Neato!!
Try better, troll.
And for the record, I’ve got a pretty even split of SuSe, Ubuntu, and XP machines. So I see it from a far more objective view than a zealot such as yourself sees it.
I also actually work in the field, unlike someone such as yourself.
Yes, Windows is horribly insecure and unstable. Yet it seems to work well enough that everyone here gets there job done (and done well) and it leaves me enough time to post an argument with a faceless linux zealot on OSNews. Oh wait, gotta run; someone’s driver update on SuSe just blew up X……
Edited 2008-04-22 21:21 UTC
Love that one. Thing is, we are still in the dark ages of Software development in Operating Systems. Non of the mainstream OS’s have got it right and all have thier problems.
Maybe in 50 years time…
Ha! I’m using the mostly perfect OS. NEXTSTEP 3.3
mmmmmmmmmmmm….
I have to say maintaining an XP machine that has lived in the hands of computer novices through the birth, and succession, of SP2 hasn’t been easy.
Having responsibility for a 3 year old (and still pristine, believe it or not) installation of Windows XP Home Edition on my parents machine, I am both relieved and slightly nervous at the prospect of installing SP3.
Edited 2008-04-21 18:52 UTC
just install sp2, go on windows update an you’ll have 90% of sp3 (the set of patches released after sp2).
I’m currently typing on a 6 year old windows 2000 installation. It’s only at SP2 … I forgot to update it a long time ago and I had a bunch of cleanup/defrag programs running automatically. It’s my bro’s PC and all he does is play a few games and surf. I’m too scared of killing it to upgrade it to SP4.. heh
every so often you run into a Windows machine that just refuses to mess up
So what you’re saying is your brother surfs the net using an insecure OS.
Windows 2000 SP2 is not a supported SP level, and hotfixes for it are not released.
He surfs the web using Opera behind a hardware firewall with an AV scanner that runs weekly (I HATE real time scanning.. ugh). In the last few years, he has gotten like 1 “trojan downloader” virus that was inert. He knows not to download random crap, he asks me before installing things. I routinely do check ups on it and no, it doesn’t have any root kits installed, either.
yeah, it might be unsupported now and “insecure”, but what version of windows IS secure?
On two identical VM’s SP3 seems to operate faster than SP2. We’ll see how it behaves in the real world on the 29th, when I am more willing to install on a physical machine.
Oh yeah I forgot about that. There is a performance increase. There were some blogs out I remember comparing performances on a machine with SP3 and on a machine without.
I shudder to mention it, really, but once again I’m wondering about side-by-side performance comparisons of XP with other OSes on the same machine …
http://www.linuxloop.com/news/2008/04/21/linux-eee-pc-far-faster-th…
It was only three years ago I upgraded to XP from Windows 2K. At this rate I will be ready to upgrade to Vista in another five years.
I love it that users are holding onto XP since it mostly works good enough. I do have to admit that the other day I was watching a friend use Vista on a laptop and I was envious of all the transparency and fading in/out stuff. Seven years and you get transparent Window effect. Damn, that it progress!
I’m glad to see XP die. The only news that can beat that is that Microsoft went bankrupt.
If you use SCCM 2007 and want to use the Network Access Protection component with your client, it will require WinXP with SP3 installed.
I only upgraded last month from 2k (newer visual studios won’t run on 2k). Had to do a lot of tweaks (disable popups, disable update-restart nagging, etc.), but so far so good. Doesn’t seem to be much slower than 2k, but then again my dev machine is powerful (but no vista for thanks:D).
I will wait a while before installing, don’t want to hose my installation after a month:D