Still Using Xp??

[dai_trying]

I was talking to a guy today who still uses Windows Xp as his daily machine!! I can't imagine how he avoids the apparent security problems but says he uses it mainly for a few regular websites and occasionally Ebay (that bit concerned me!) but wondered what the reality is with using it. Has he just been lucky to not have been compromised or is it likely that his router firewall is enough to keep him relatively safe?

[crosscourt]

Avast was the last anti-virus/firewall app to support XP. No browsers support it so youll have to use older versions and even though major updates have shown up such as June 2017, overall its not secure and frankly should not be used. I suppose if you have a good hardware firewall and stick to only trusted sites, maybe you wont see an incident, frankly hes nuts. Hope hes got great habits but if hes using Explorer, hes toast.

[tlmiller]

Agreed with Crosscourt. At this point it's just way too insecure to use. Especially when there's alternatives that can be found for free and for basic usage are perfectly up to date and secure, and easy enough to use if there's no specialty usage scenarios.

[crosscourt]

Till recently Vista was still an option and had a decent chance of running somewhat secure but those days are over. Win7 is as old as you can go and still be secure for the time being.

[CaptNoize]

Does he realize it's 2018...???? It's such a shame....he's been brainwashed into believing Micro Slop is the only kinda OS available. I've never been proud of having a bad temper,but the one good thing that came from having it,was when XP crashed on me,and I lost everything, I started doing the research to alternatives to Windblows. I tried Ubuntu Studio from a friends suggestion. I didn't like it,and kept doing research,until I found Q4OS. It was the closest thing to XP without all the bloat,I could find. I used it for 2 years until CC recommended I try MX 17. I use MX 17 on 2 of my three computers,and Q4OS on my 32 bit computer. I will NEVER use a Microslop OS on any of my computers,again..Someone send him a ISO of Q4OS,or MX 17.!

[crosscourt]

Honestly I wish Microsoft hadnt done Windows 10 and instead went with WinXP 2018, easy to use,secure and something most people would prefer.
betanews.com actually has an article about this.

[tlmiller]

While I don't like Win10, it does a lot of things really well. The performance is actually INCREDIBLY good. Win10 outperforms Win7 or Win8 on the same hardware. It has moderately useful built in antivirus. It supports full disk encryption out of the box (Pro, not home). It crashes much less than any prior version of Windows (still crashes more than I'd like from my OS).

Even it's weaknesses has improved since release. It's SIGNIFICANTLY less spy-happy now by default, and it's much easier to turn off the tracking now. The menu is improved, although personally still despise it. With the latest updates (build 1803), the control panel is starting to get smaller while more and more functionality is integrated into the settings app. This is one of my personal biggest peaves about Win10, is the fact that there's SOOO much that you still have to jump between control panel and settings instead of fully migrating to settings.

All this said, obviously anyone who knows me knows I much prefer linux to Windows though. Even the DE's that I truly hate (like Gnome3 or XFCE) I'll use in preference to Windows on most machines. The ONLY reason I still have Windows on my desktop is for gaming. If games ever were released for linux as often as on Windows so that there were no Windows-only releases, I would ditch that last installation, even.

[dai_trying]

Thank you all, when chatting to him he hadn't heard of Linux and does only visit a few regular sites, and I think it is only used very little by the sound of it, none the less I would still be too nervous keeping an un-patched system going. I was tempted to try to convert him to Linux but realise I would be creating a lot more work for myself as he would require a considerable amount of support (which I can't really spare) so will wait for his machine to be compromised and then offer a Linux solution. But I would imagine in that event he would be likely to purchase a newer M$ machine anyway...

[tlmiller]

Just mention something that can be used as a live USB. He can download and run it live, use it to see if he could do everything himself. Then when he's comfortable, install it. MX or one of the *buntu's (mint) would be perfect for that. If while using it live he for any reason thinks he couldn't use it and keep it going, then just reboot back into his comfort zone. If he likes the linux but not enough to risk installing yet, then recommend something that ha s persistence.

[dai_trying]

That is a thought, although I imagine I would still get a LOT of calls/emails/messages regarding things that "don't work like windows" which even MX can't accommodate. I know his machine would run faster and better with Linux but it seems to me like he would prefer to stick with what he knows and doesn't really want to learn the Linux way.
Sometimes I think it is better to leave people with their systems as they are used to, I have already put forward the benefits of Linux and if at some stage in the future he shows an interest I will guide him in the right direction.