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If you're still clinging on to the 12 year old Windows XP operating system then you might want to think about upgrading as a new security flaw has been found that allows hackers to gain full user permissions over your computer. This means that once a hacker has access, it could install programs, view data, delete data and easily mess with your machine.
The security flaw currently affects Internet Explorer 6 to 11 on all platforms so if you're using an older version of the browser anyway, you should probably stop using it. Microsoft will patch newer versions of Windows but XP support ended at the very start of this month meaning Microsoft will not be patching the problem for XP users.
Windows XP is no longer secure and as time goes on, more and more exploits are likely to be uncovered. Security Firm, FireEye, discovered the loop hole and showed it to Microsoft but there is also evidence of an active exploit targeting IE 9 to 11 as well as Adobe Flash. If you refuse to move on from XP then you could just not use Internet Explorer or Adobe Flash but it's probably best to move on at this point, the OS is more than a decade old, it has served its time.
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KitGuru Says: We know that most of you guys probably wouldn't be caught near Internet Explorer unless you've just re-installed Windows and need a new browser but this does serve as further proof that Windows XP isn't all that secure to use anymore. Do any of you guys still use XP? If so, do you plan on upgrading?
Source: Computer World
Windows is at heart just a suite of utilities. It is to be judged by how well it supports the apps and hardware that a user wants. Over the last decade the only improvements seem to be in the area of games support, and as I suffer from mild RSI I am not a gamer. For unclear reasons Windows has become far more of a memory hog over the years and (except in games) slowed down a bit.
I use my desktop PC for Web Browsing/Shopping and keeping my books. My internet gets choppy at peak viewing times so I prefer to watch/record TV over air or freesat rather than downloading over compressed/malware laden content from the web. I also use an EMU soundcard (which provides programmable filters and mixes
the dialogue channel to L & R) to connect to my Hi-Fi. Getting the TV tuners and card to work together with full stability involved a lot of trial and error with different versions of the drivers.
Given my experience with a Windows 7 laptop, it is unlikely that my old hardware will work as well (if at all) when I have bought more memory and downgraded my desktop to the new version of the MS Utilities.
As the concept of a PC as a Hi-Fi seperate is out of fashion, there are no superior modern equivalents of my hardware, and even if there were why should Microsoft have the right to force me to spend several hundred pounds to achieve nothing.
It would be interesting to know how many other near-irrepraceable specialised PCs are going to be trashed