Windows Xp

Windows XP Presented by: Nancy, Ann, Tom Noah, Arthur, Louis, Marcus

Introduction Windows XP is a line of operating systems produced by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, notebook computers, and media centers. The name "XP" is short for "experience". Windows XP is the successor to both Windows 2000 Professional and Windows Me, and is the first consumer-oriented operating system produced by Microsoft to be built on the Windows NT kernel and architecture.

History In 2001, Microsoft released Windows XP (code named "Whistler"). The merging of the Windows NT/2000 and Windows 95/98/Me lines was finally achieved with Windows XP. Windows XP uses the Windows NT 5.1 kernel, marking the entrance of the Windows NT core to the consumer market, to replace the aging 16/32-bit branch. The initial release met with considerable criticism, particularly in the area of security, leading to the release of three major Service Packs. Windows XP SP1 was released in September 2002, SP2 came out in August 2004 and SP3 came out in April 2008. Service Pack 2 provided significant improvements and encouraged widespread adoption of XP among both home and business users. Windows XP lasted longer than any other version of Windows, from 2001 to January 30, 2007, when the Windows XP line of operating systems was succeeded by Windows Vista.

Windows XP Ve r s i o n s

• Windows XP Home Edition, for home desktops and laptops – Windows XP Home Edition N, as above, but without a default installation of Windows Media Player, as mandated by a European Union ruling • Windows XP Professional, for business and power users – Windows XP Professional N, as above, but without a default installation of Windows Media Player, as mandated by a European Union ruling • Windows XP Media Center Edition (MCE), released in November 2002 for desktops and notebooks with an emphasis on home entertainment – Windows XP Media Center Edition 2003 – Windows XP Media Center Edition 2004 – Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005, released on October 12, 2004.

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Windows XP V e r s i o n s Windows XP Tablet PC Edition, for tablet PCs

o Windows XP Tablet PC Edition 2005 Windows XP Embedded, for embedded systems Windows XP Starter Edition, for new computer users in developing countries Windows XP Professional x64 Edition, released on 25 April 2005 for home and workstation systems utilizing 64-bit processors based on the x86-64 instruction set developed by AMD as AMD64; Intel calls their version Intel 64 Windows XP 64-bit Edition, is a version for Intel's Itanium line of processors; maintains 32-bit compatibility solely through a software emulator. It is roughly analogous to Windows XP Professional in features. It was discontinued in September 2005 when the last vendor of Itanium workstations stopped shipping Itanium systems marketed as "Workstations". o Windows XP 64-bit Edition 2003, based on the Windows NT 5.2 code base.

Windows XP Features • Improved interface - Windows XP includes a new set of visual themes, known by its codename, Luna.

• Display and Readability - Windows XP includes a wide array of options to increase visibility of items on the computer screen. Options that can be adjusted include: – – – – – –

Font style, color, and size of items on the desktop Icon size Screen resolution High contrast schemes Cursor width and blink rate Microsoft Magnifier

• Sound and speech - Windows XP includes options to make computer sounds easier to hear or distinguish—or, visual alternatives to sound. A variety of speech-to-text options are also available. Options you can adjust include: - Sound Volume -Sound Schemes - ShowSounds - Notification

• Keyboard and Mouse- In Windows XP you can choose a number of options to make your keyboard and mouse faster and easier to use. Options you can adjust include: • Mouse Option Double-Click Speed ClickLock Pointer Speed SnapTo Cursor Blink Rate Pointer Trails Hide Pointer While Typing Show Location of Pointer Reverse the function of the right and left mouse buttons Pointer schemes

• Keyboard Options: Character Repeat Rate Dvorak Keyboard Layout StickyKeys FilterKeys ToggleKeys MouseKeys

Windows XP Accessibility Utilities: Magnifier Narrator On-Screen Keyboard Utility Manager

• Standby (Sleep) mode When Windows enters standby mode, it turns off all nonessential hardware, including the monitor, hard drives, and removable drives. This means that the system reactivates itself very quickly when "woken up". This does not power down the system. In order to save power without user intervention, a system can be configured to go to standby when idle and then hibernate if not re-activated.

• Desktop Cleanup Wizard was introduced to help users reduce clutter on their desktops, by looking at the shortcuts on the Desktop and moving any unused ones into a directory called "Unused Desktop Shortcuts".

Advantages Windows XP's main advantages are due to it's popularity, since Microsoft has been the dominant make of operating systems for many years. Some of these advantages include: 1. Practically universal hardware support (done by vendors, not Microsoft). 2. Abundance of programs for it. 3. Support. Almost everyone has experience with it, so they will be able to offer support for it, and help you with problems.

• Direct advantages it has to OS X: 1. Runs on a far larger range of computers. OS X is specifically tailored to certain hardware configurations, so not only will it not support some of the hardware on a computer other than a Mac, it won't even boot on them. XP will run on almost every computer with an Intel or AMD processor from 1998 to the present. 2. Cost. A computer with XP will (or did) cost far less than a Mac would.

• Direct advantages it has to Linux: 1. Ease of use. Though ultimately debatable, most people find XP easier to use, or have no desire to spend time learning to use Linux. 2. RTFM. Even beyond the initial shock of how different Linux tends to be from Windows has passed, many users will simply not be willing to help you accomplish more advanced tasks, like setting up a web server. The Ubuntu forums are a notable exception: they help everyone, and have a specific rule against RTFM.

Disadvantages 1. Security loopholes exist in it hence it is easily affected by virus and spyware. 2. It is expensive to purchase. 3. Prone to crashes and hence unstable. 4. Many flaws and bugs are present in it. 5. It is very heavy system and old hardware can¡¯t run it. 6. Older DOS programs may not run on this version. 7. Parallel port not recognized. 8. No file encryption facility in XP home edition. 9. Comes with single user license so it cant be loaded on multiple PCs.

10. It has no inbuilt chipset drivers making the install time consuming. 11. Windows XP home doesn¡¯t support Dual core processor. 12. Product activation. 13. OS requires significant system resources. 14. Susceptable to virus, hacking & other security breeches. 15. Retail pricing is significant. 16. Aging peripherals not widely supported. 17. Difficult to administer.

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