All computer users should realise that Microsoft is just trying to increase it's already gigantic profits, and quite probably many hardware sales-merchants are trying to cash in too.
Everyone should realise that some enthusiasts are still using computers running Windows 2K !!!!
XP will not die quickly, and it is probably the best operating system that Microsoft has produced, and that is not saying much. Vista was a disaster, Win 7 still inferior to XP, and Win 8 in the middle.
Certain points should be known:
(a) Computers don't just get slower. What happens is (i) too many programs get held in a 'ready' state, so that they chew up computer hardware time without doing anything. Including a lot of utterly stupid programs like games, and lots of completely unnecessary bells and whistles. (ii) the hard disc files become 'fragmented', that means all the files are broken up into little bits chained together, and the poor hard disc spends ages 'seeking' the bits. (iii) the thing called the 'registery' gets so knotted up it takes ages for the OS to find anything. (iv) etc, etc, etc. Most problems are software problems, hardware problems do occur, but are relatively infrequent.
(b) The solution to this is to get a program which unravelles the mess, OR re-load the operating system. That is not as difficult as it sounds, BUT you MUST have the original CD from which the OS came, and have the long, apparently meaningless 'Key' which unlocks everything. (25 digits or so). When you bought your computer, you bought that too, and you should have got it, but some hardware merchants hang on to it. Keep it in a safe place. Making one copy for archival purposes is permitted.
(c) New computers, new hardware that is, are faster, but almost always the raw speed isn't needed. It's the craze for games, HD videos on line in real-time, etc, etc, which is driving it, not the needs of family history.
So my prescription for the immediate future of XP is:
(d) Keep using it.
(e) Check the update status of your OS CD mentioned above, and make sure you have downloaded any service packs needed (ie perhaps SP3 if your CD has only to SP2 printed on it.) Microsoft will probably (I hope) issue a "roll-up" service pack eventually, they did for Windows 2K years ago.
(f) As has already been suggested, immediately download the Mozilla Firefox browser. It's FREE, and far better than Internit Exploder. Far more secure, Internit Exploder was always being patched for security reasons. Download the e-mail program Mozilla Thunderbird as well, same reason. Almost all of the computer literati, when circumstances force them to use Windows, use these programs, or something similar, instead of Microsoft's offerings.
(g) Dump Norton as soon as possible. Norton is in bed with Microsoft, and therefore not to be trusted into the future. I personally use AVG, find it very satisfactory. Their current offering includes a 'tune-up' program which solves most of the problems mentioned in (a) above. Other vendors may do the same, I haven't needed to go any further.
(h) If you don't do banking on your computer, AVG have a limited FREE version, which does everything necessary, if what you do isn't vital. I have five computers in my household, for various purposes, the two important ones have the fully paid version of AVG Security, the other three, like the one in my workshop, which doesn't do anything vital, have AVG Free installed, just in case something nasty appears on a CD or a USB device used to transfer data, or a rare access on the internet.
(i) XP won't die until other companies or organisations such as Mozilla and AVG decide their products aren't being used enough to justify support any longer. If Windows 2K is any guide, that will take many years.
(j) If you don't suffer from technology terror, by all means switch to Linux eventually, I have a dual-boot system on one of mine, using the SUSE version. Naturally, the Mozilla organisation has Linux versions of Firefox and Thunderbird available.
(k) Another interesting point. If you are rehashing your system, always partition your hard drive, into several logical drives, ie C: D: E: ..... depending on it's size, so that it looks like several hard drives. You can then fool around with drive C:, without danger. Of course, 2 or more hard drives is better, a hardware crash can still wipe everything, but it's better than nothing. The average "Computer Man", or "Computer Shop" never does this - next time, demand that he/they does/do. It's also more secure, all your personal files don't have to reside on drive C:, and the "my documents" directory is empty.
