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Like tears in rain: the death of Windows XP

Like tears in rain: the death of Windows XP VOLUME 2--ISSUE 4 PAGE 9 Like Tears in Rain: The Death of Windows XP by Chris King Tyrell: Would you... like to be upgraded? Batty: I had in mind something a little more radical. Tyrell: What... what seems to be the problem? Batty: Death. Tyrell: Death; ah, well that's a little out of my jurisdiction.1 2001 was a long time ago. The year that gave us the first space tourist and the 9/11 terrorist attacks also gave us a new version of Microsoft's Windows operating system: Windows XP. XP was an attempt to merge the home versions of Windows (such as 95 and 98) with the networked business versions (such as NT and 2000) into one single line. It worked: Windows XP quickly became accepted by everyone as a great step forward in personal computing, and the world of technology bent its will toward including XP in all future endeavors. Thirteen years and several service packs and major upgrades later, Windows XP still has a seat at the table. Reports at the beginning of 2014 indicated a 27% market share for the aged operating system. That was problematic as April loomed closer. Microsoft had announced the end of support for Windows XP, and pushed hard to spread the message that retention of XP meant not only loss of functionality over time, but serious security implications as future threats were unaddressed by patching or updates. Why should you care? Chances are, 1 out of every 4 of the personal computers in use by your faculty, staff, and students is running an operating system that is not only unsupported, but is known throughout the world as a potential vector for attack. If your school is slow to upgrade, or unable to do so due to financial or hardware concerns, then that ratio might be much worse. Every day that those machines remain online and available is another day of stress and strain on your infrastructure and your security staff. What should you do? The obvious choice is to upgrade your operating system. Microsoft has tools that will determine if a computer's hardware is beefy enough for an upgrade to Windows 7 or beyond. If not, for lots of reasons, you should consider budgeting for upgrades and get your workstations out of a potential problem. Science and technology revolutionize our lives, but memory, tradition and myth frame our response. ­Arthur M. Schlesinger There will be cases where an upgrade is not possible. Aside from financial limitations, some folks have kept computers on Windows XP to drive software or machinery that has no upgrade path. Chances are that there is a core sampler, electron microscope, or Scantron reader on campus using XP because there is no other option. In those cases, you may want to evaluate that machine and its need to remain networked -- this will limit the threat while retaining functionality.This does not solve the problem, but it will give you a reprieve while looking for alternatives. In short, Windows XP is a technology that burned bright but has since lost its usefulness and should be shunned as a threat (much like the replicants in the movie quoted above). Whenever possible, get rid of Windows XP in favor of supported and sustainable operating systems. If not, then try to mitigate your threat as much as possible by limiting your exposure. Blade Runner. Dir. Ridley Scott. Perf. Rutger Hauer and Joe Turkel. Warner Bros, 1982. Film. TION LEADERSHIP TEACHING SYSTEMS TEAMS PROJECTS SERVICES RELATIONSHIPS IDEAS COMMUNICATION DESIGN http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png ACM SIGUCCS plugged in Association for Computing Machinery

Like tears in rain: the death of Windows XP

ACM SIGUCCS plugged in , Volume 2 (4) – Apr 1, 2014

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Publisher
Association for Computing Machinery
Copyright
Copyright © 2014 by ACM Inc.
ISSN
2168-8516
DOI
10.1145/2661747.2661755
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

VOLUME 2--ISSUE 4 PAGE 9 Like Tears in Rain: The Death of Windows XP by Chris King Tyrell: Would you... like to be upgraded? Batty: I had in mind something a little more radical. Tyrell: What... what seems to be the problem? Batty: Death. Tyrell: Death; ah, well that's a little out of my jurisdiction.1 2001 was a long time ago. The year that gave us the first space tourist and the 9/11 terrorist attacks also gave us a new version of Microsoft's Windows operating system: Windows XP. XP was an attempt to merge the home versions of Windows (such as 95 and 98) with the networked business versions (such as NT and 2000) into one single line. It worked: Windows XP quickly became accepted by everyone as a great step forward in personal computing, and the world of technology bent its will toward including XP in all future endeavors. Thirteen years and several service packs and major upgrades later, Windows XP still has a seat at the table. Reports at the beginning of 2014 indicated a 27% market share for the aged operating system. That was problematic as April loomed closer. Microsoft had announced the end of support for Windows XP, and pushed hard to spread the message that retention of XP meant not only loss of functionality over time, but serious security implications as future threats were unaddressed by patching or updates. Why should you care? Chances are, 1 out of every 4 of the personal computers in use by your faculty, staff, and students is running an operating system that is not only unsupported, but is known throughout the world as a potential vector for attack. If your school is slow to upgrade, or unable to do so due to financial or hardware concerns, then that ratio might be much worse. Every day that those machines remain online and available is another day of stress and strain on your infrastructure and your security staff. What should you do? The obvious choice is to upgrade your operating system. Microsoft has tools that will determine if a computer's hardware is beefy enough for an upgrade to Windows 7 or beyond. If not, for lots of reasons, you should consider budgeting for upgrades and get your workstations out of a potential problem. Science and technology revolutionize our lives, but memory, tradition and myth frame our response. ­Arthur M. Schlesinger There will be cases where an upgrade is not possible. Aside from financial limitations, some folks have kept computers on Windows XP to drive software or machinery that has no upgrade path. Chances are that there is a core sampler, electron microscope, or Scantron reader on campus using XP because there is no other option. In those cases, you may want to evaluate that machine and its need to remain networked -- this will limit the threat while retaining functionality.This does not solve the problem, but it will give you a reprieve while looking for alternatives. In short, Windows XP is a technology that burned bright but has since lost its usefulness and should be shunned as a threat (much like the replicants in the movie quoted above). Whenever possible, get rid of Windows XP in favor of supported and sustainable operating systems. If not, then try to mitigate your threat as much as possible by limiting your exposure. Blade Runner. Dir. Ridley Scott. Perf. Rutger Hauer and Joe Turkel. Warner Bros, 1982. Film. TION LEADERSHIP TEACHING SYSTEMS TEAMS PROJECTS SERVICES RELATIONSHIPS IDEAS COMMUNICATION DESIGN

Journal

ACM SIGUCCS plugged inAssociation for Computing Machinery

Published: Apr 1, 2014

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