Microsoft is trying to sunset XP as quickly as they can, and after June 30th it will be much more difficult to get your hands on it. Microsoft released a statement a few days ago saying: "Windows XP will no longer be available for purchase from Microsoft for general retail and OEM partners as of June 30, 2008."
That seems like there is no way around it, but MS is not telling the whole story with that press release. If an OEM, or a computer store still has copies of XP, or machines with XP installed - they can still sell them as long as they please. The same is true for computer makers like Dell, and HP.
Additionally hardware makers like Dell, and HP are selling their higher end Vista machines with 'Downgrade' rights. This means if you are not pleased with Vista, and want to switch back you can call them up and get an XP disk to upgrade (oops) downgrade your machine. This also is allowed after the June 30th deadline.
Finally, makers of lower end notebooks that simply cannot handle Vista (like ASUS in Taiwan) have been given the right to sell XP all the way through 2010. The requirement is that these machines have a small screen and a low powered CPU.
So it looks like we are almost at the end of the road with XP. At least from Microsoft's perspective. I think people will be using it for many years to come. Heck...I still get asked if we support Windows 98. I bet in 2018 we will still be getting support questions asking if we support XP :)
Posted By: Steve Wiseman on Tuesday, June 10, 2008
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