Did Thai floods sink Windows sales?

The floods are only a small part of the equation.

InfoWorld Tech Watch.

Windows 8: Bogged down by baggage

There’s a downside to building a tablet OS that used to be a desktop OS. Perfect example appeared yesterday.

InfoWorld Tech Watch.

Year of the Ultrabook — or the Ultradud?

With CES coming next week, you’re going to be subjected to a lot of hype about Ultrabooks.

Here’s a few things to keep in mind. InfoWorld Tech Watch.

The woes of Windows Phone

Sometimes I really wonder if Windows Phone will ever have a chance.

Microsoft’s pulled ‘em out of the fire before, but this time the deck’s stacked  overwhelmingly in the competition’s favor.

InfoWorld Tech Watch.

Is the ARM version of Windows 8 imminent?

Looks to me like MS will have to ship it next month.

InfoWorld Tech Watch.

The Windows IQ Test

Think you know Windows?

Heh heh heh.

Take the test. Prove it to yourself. Bet you’ll find at least a couple of surprises.

My latest at InfoWorld.

Microsoft being coy about Office 365 sales

Many unanswered questions.

InfoWorld Tech Watch.

Life after Windows XP

A guest editorial from Izzy Woods……

Despite being more than a decade old, Windows XP continues to be the most widely used operating system among both home and business users. Over half of all desktop computers still use XP, despite original equipment manufacturers (OEM) no longer installing it and Microsoft having released two subsequent operating systems into the mainstream – Windows Vista and Windows 7.

Indeed, Vista, often seen as a failure by many analysts, owes much to its lack of success to the reluctance of people to switch from XP to what users perceived as bug-ridden and a clunky system. Windows 7 has been more prolific in its use, partly because XP is no longer an option for anybody installing a new system, but many users with older machine are reluctant to upgrade even now.

A nice problem to have

XP’s success has dogged Microsoft, who has wished for years that the popularity of the ageing operating system would wane. XP has affected sales. Both Vista and even Windows 7 have failed to reach sales figures that the software giant hoped for, and for a company that only has operating systems as its main revenue stream, despite branching out into the world of online search and other Internet businesses, XP’s success has been Microsoft’s undoing.

Users have solidly stuck with XP, regardless of the millions spent on ad campaigns and incentives to make them switch. And it’s not just because of cost reasons, or because they didn’t want change, they stuck with it because of XP’s simplicity and usability. Rather than a complete new interface, Microsoft built XP on its other former success stories, Windows 95 and 98. People knew how to use these systems, knew how to do things – they grew up with them. The biggest challenge for Microsoft now, is when users are finally forced to switch from XP there are alternatives to choosing another Microsoft package. With the rise of the fabled iPad and Apple’s resurgence in computing, people are becoming familiar with Apple’s way of doing things, almost as familiar as they have been with XP. The danger for Microsoft is that many users may choose an Apple product or even Google’s Android system (if the company finaly gets around to releasing a desktop version), rather than the latest Windows product.

The end is nigh

And XP users will soon be forced to make that switch. All support for Windows XP will cease in 2014 – three years longer than originally planned – but a timeline that is marking the death knell for the most popular operating system in history. By this time, Windows 8 will probably be on the shelves, but Windows 7 will also still be around. And considering the preference demonstrated by XPs success for tried and tested operating systems, for users who don’t migrate to an Apple or Android systems, Windows 7 may become the new XP, because it will be a system that’s had enough time to have its creases ironed out.

Fortunately, unlike Vista, Windows 7 hasn’t been dogged with the same problems and is incredibly stable, and for home use, Windows 7 isn’t too expensive, either. You could pay for it by trading in an old phone on a cash for mobiles site, for instance, although, for business users, multiple licenses may soon add up, and is perhaps one of the reasons businesses have been so reluctant to upgrade XP systems.

Of course, some users may refuse to switch, despite the lack of support. However, this will drastically undermine their systems and make them vulnerable, so the wiser XP diehards are looking to make the switch now, or at least are planning a migration. With Windows 8 still at least a year away, this means Window 7. The good news is that Windows 7 is very easy to use and has many new features that improve efficiency and reliability.  Because all new machines come installed with Windows 7, it use is growing in popularity too and perhaps it will soon overtake XP in popularity, even before the 2014 deadline. If this is the case, and Windows 7 becomes the next beloved operating system, then it leaves Microsoft with the same problem caused by XP’s popularity, how to shift users from Windows 7 to Windows 8. It seems Microsoft is going to be a victim of its own success again.