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Windows XP SP3 Postponed Until 2008

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the wait-or-upgrade dept.

Rockgod quotes an article saying "With Microsoft now saying that its next major service pack for Windows XP will not ship until 2008, some Windows users are wondering whether the software upgrade will ever be released." and then later "Michael Cherry, an analyst with Directions on Microsoft, agrees that Microsoft may very well decide to drop XP Service Pack 3. "It absolutely could happen. Microsoft is under no obligation to produce any service packs, ever," he explains. "They feel that because these fixes are available through the auto-update that there's less need to create a service pack."

3 of 259 comments (clear)

  1. Personally I think they will kill it by raitchison · · Score: 5, Interesting

    They killed Windows NT 4.0 SP7 in the ßeta process
    They killed Windows 2000 SP5 in the pre-ßeta stage

    Given this track record of killing off Service Packs shortly before they are released, as some (including me) might suspect in an effort to drive adoption of their newer software (which makes them money unlike a service pack) I'll be extremely surprised if Windows XP SP3 is ever released.

    IMO, what they are saying now is just lip service/stalling and they have already made the decision.

    1. Re:Personally I think they will kill it by Red+Flayer · · Score: 4, Interesting
      Emphasis mine:
      They killed Windows NT 4.0 SP7 in the ßeta process They killed Windows 2000 SP5 in the pre-ßeta stage

      What is a Betaeta process/stage?

      Or do you bank at an ATM machine?

      I happen to agree with you, though, that SP3 is dead in the water -- unless Vista bombs and there is a lot of Linux switchover. Announcing a delay allows MS to change their mind later, if necessary, so that they can release SP3 if it becomes a good decision to do so.
      --
      "Trolls they were, but filled with the evil will of their master: a fell race..." -- J.R.R. Tolkien on Olog-hai
  2. Re:They're right, you know by erroneus · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Actually, even Joe Sixpack is pretty tired of crashing spyware ridden computers. And the very moment they see another option, they are sure to at least look at it. And with Vista's new hardware requirements likely not matching their current hardware, there's yet another possibility he will look at his options before buying a new computer. Apple has become rather affordable as of late and their reputation for being easy will do a lot in the way of bolstering confidence. And if he actually talks to someone and finds that a mac can also run Windows, he'll be sold.

    That's a lot of IFs, and I don't expect a huge number of people to fall within those cracks, but I think the numbers will increase and become rather noticable.