Windows XP: Better support for home networking
Zatni Arbi, Columnist, Jakarta, zatni@cbn.net.id
Last week in New York City, U.S., Microsoft officially launched Windows XP, the latest operating system for the PC that combines the stability of Windows NT and Windows 2000 with the compatibility and multimedia features of Windows 9.x and Windows Me. It will launched in Indonesia on Nov. 1, 2001.
The launch might or might not have taken place at the right time. While some industry observers expect the new OS will give the currently lethargic PC market some steroids -- because it requires powerful PCs with more memory, etc. -- others think that the current worldwide uncertainty will prompt users, both individuals and corporate, to delay investing in new PCs and in the new OS. Besides, it is also common knowledge that most of the PCs sold in the last year or so are more than ready for Windows XP.
Incidentally, if you would like to know whether your PC can run Windows XP or not, there are tools available to test its PC- readiness. One of them can be found at http://www.pcpitstop.com/xpready/. Microsoft also includes an Upgrade Advisor utility on the setup CD.
Mixed reception
As review reports pour in, it becomes clearer that, like myself, the majority of testers -- including editors and analysts -- also believe that this is a great OS. Perhaps not revolutionary, but certainly a new standard-setter.
That is not to say that everybody is rolling out the red carpet to welcome XP. For example, in South Korea, as BBC News reported on Oct. 5, a group of firms -- including Daum Communications, which claims a 20 percent share of South Korean instant messaging market -- had filed a complaint at the Seoul District Court in an attempt to stop XP from entering the country's market because it would hamper their ability to grow their local Internet-based businesses.
In general, however, the arrival of this product has been trumpeted. In China, for example, a survey report published in Tongxin Xinxi Bao (Communication and Information News) on Oct. 15 said that 71 percent of China's Internet users were thinking of upgrading to XP. In a country where, according to China Online, the total number of Internet users has been projected to reach 300 million by 2005, this is really good news for Microsoft.
What makes Windows XP a great OS? As we have discovered in past columns, XP's strength lies in its robustness, security, hardware compatibility, friendlier and prettier user-interface and tighter integration with Internet services, which could prove to be a source of legal tangles. In addition, Windows XP also offers useful features such as Remote Desktop, quick wake up from standby and hibernation, better support for home networking, wireless technologies and encryption.
The Remote Desktop, for instance, allows you to telecommute or to help solve the problem in a friend's PC without having to be there at his desk. You may have already been able to access and use your office computer from your notebook using a remote access program such as Symantec's PCAnywhere, but with XP you can do it without the need of any third-party product. Remote Desktop does not allow more than one person to use one single machine at the same time, however. Microsoft makes sure that every user will need one copy of XP by automatically freezing a PC running Windows XP when it is being accessed remotely.
Legal matters
What can be more problematic is the inclusion of the tightly integrated instant messaging, photo printing and online music services offerings in Windows XP. The OS prompts users to register for services offered by Microsoft, its affiliates or others who have paid to be included in the offering. A lot of people have complained that this limits their choice as other competing services are locked out, which prompted the complaints by Korean firms. Fortunately, if we ignore the offers, the prompts will go away. After five ignored attempts, for example, the "Register for your Passport" offer will stop appearing.
In fact, annoying offers such as these ones are becoming more rampant on the Internet. However, every morning since my old subscription expired I have been getting a message from McAfee that I need to renew it. It seems that this marketing practice, which causes some inconvenience, may be part of our computing experience in the future, unfortunately.
Like quite a few of the other Microsoft products, Windows XP is plagued with legal issues. One of the more disturbing to a lot of people is perhaps the fact that each copy of XP has to be activated, which means that it will be locked into a specific hardware configuration. People who constantly change their hardware configuration will have a lot of trouble, because each time they will have to contact Microsoft to get their copy of Windows XP reactivated.
Technically, however, Windows XP is clearly a better OS and promises an easier and safer way to use our PCs. If you can put up with its downside, you should have it.