
Windows XP Departs: Good Riddance or Sad Farewell?
Two of PC World's most opinionated editors weigh in on whether Microsoft Windows XP's departure is bad for PC users or the best thing that could happen to computing.
Robert Strohmeyer and Edward N. Albro,
The forced retirement of Microsoft's Windows XP is set--with some exceptions--for Monday. To quell XP separation anxiety and the rancor of seething Vista haters, Microsoft has agreed to offer Windows XP updates and security patches until April 2014.
Robert CardinPersonally, I never liked XP. I did run it on my daily workhorse PC--out of sheer computer-magazine-editing necessity, but my preferences leaned toward Mac OS X and Linux, both of which offered superior stability, performance, and usability even then.
Only when I booted up a beta of Windows Vista--with its streamlined interface, protected kernel, and improved networking tools--did I began thinking of Windows as a modern OS again.