Microsoft To Provide IE Patches for Windows XP Only

Fortunato_NC writes "Microsoft has decided that future IE updates, including those related to security, will only be available to customers using Windows XP. This news.com article has the complete scoop. A choice quote: 'Microsoft may be turning the lemons of its browser's security reputation into the lemonade of a powerful upgrade selling point.' This should provide a huge boost to Mozilla and other alternative browser backers."

Comments

Not security updates but security enhancements

[FuzzzyLogik]

They aren't saying they won't provide security patches for holes, they're stating they won't provide the features that are in SP2 in anything other than XP. That's what I got out of it. Which isn't such a big deal, did you expect anything less really?

"We do not have plans to deliver Windows XP SP2 enhancements for Windows 2000 or other older versions of Windows," the company said in a statement.

No, that's not what they said.

[stratjakt]

First fucking line of the article.

Microsoft this week reiterated that it would keep the new version of Microsoft's IE Web browser available only as part of the recently released Windows XP operating system, Service Pack 2.

Only the new version of the browser is available under XP Service Pack 2, for architectural reasons the other OS's lack (NoExecute and whatever else).

It says nowhere they won't provide patches for the most current IE's available under 2000.

The new IE only runs under XP SP 2. You also need to upgrade if you want true HT support, BTW.

Re:Classic M$

[Anonymous Coward]

No, their view, believe it or not, is that people don't want the security patches for older systems! At least, that's what Bruce Morgan, of the Internet Explorer team, posted on the IEBlog.

TROLL ALERT!

[Anonymous Coward]

The story, if you read it, states the XP SP2 improvements to IE will only be available to XP SP2 customers. THESE imporovements will only be able to XP SP2.

The article DOES NOT state no more IE patches for 2000/NT 4.0

Very very misleading title to this story on ./

Re:TROLL ALERT!

[Muerte2]

I'm not sure I totally agree with what you say. You see I'm one of the rare Slashdotters that actually READ the article.

By refusing to offer IE's security upgrades to users of older operating systems except through paid upgrades to XP, Microsoft may be turning the lemons of its browser's security reputation into the lemonade of a powerful upgrade selling point.

While I'm not sure it's 100% as cut and dried as what the /. title suggests, it does say that some security releases may not make it back down to the old OSes.

Re:Classic M$

[Zorilla]

I bet you're right too. I'm sure there are many large corps who won't move from W2K to XP.

Microsoft will definitely give it a second though when they realize organizations like this one are using Windows 2000 on user machines. It took them until 2002 to get fully upgraded from NT 4.0 where I was.

Re:XP only ?

[jekewa]

If you check the Product Lifecycle Dates they've already passed the end-of-life dates for many of the older versions of Windows.

Win3x, Win9x, and WinME are all long passed. WinNT Server remains until 31 Dec 2004, but other WinNTs are passed. Win2K is scheduled for demise on 30 June 2005 (start saving). Even WinXP is scheduled for desupport 31 Dec 2006. Win Server 2003 is scheduled for 30 Jun 2008, so you've got a while there, but it's on the plan.

It should not come as a surprise that they stop providing feature enhancements to the older versions. Profit and other greed aside, technically it's unrealistic to expect them continue to support systems indefinately.

Tick, tick, tick...

Re:Classic M$

[pbranes]

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=fh; [ln];LifeWin

Read it straight from Microsoft. Windows 2000 is supported until 2010. This article from cnet only states that Windows 2000 will not receive a pop-up blocker or an add-on manager. Hotfixes will still be released as needed.