Windows XP SP3: Beware the service pack!

By Stan Beer
Thursday, 08 May 2008 04:54

Opinion and Analysis

With all this in mind, I'm now watching the XP SP3 saga with interest.

Like Vista SP1, delivery of XP SP3 has been delayed and the reason given - incompatibility with an existing software package from Microsoft, Dynamics Retail Management - does not exactly inspire confidence. Like Vista SP1, XP SP3 promises system improvements - better networking features and security; easier product activation. However, after the software incompatibility issue that caused a delay, there are other ominous warning signs that intending users should take note of.

If you do upgrade to XP SP3, you will find that your choice of Microsoft browsers is limited. You will no longer be able to use IE6. As a Firefox user, I personally don't have a problem with that and, although I'm not a fan of IE7, it definitely is much better than the previous version. However, incredibly if you're a IE 8 beta user, you'll have to uninstall it to run XP SP3 because Microsoft is worried that you might break your system!

I don't know about anyone else, but I would be very wary of installing a Windows upgrade that is so fragile that it can't handle the latest beta release of Microsoft's own Web browser. Why is Microsoft doing this to itself?

There is no doubt that there is a demand from users for Microsoft to continue selling and supporting XP SP2. It is to Microsoft's credit that it is heeding those demands and has brought to market SP3. However, users should tread very carefully before taking the plunge. There's no doubt that Microsoft will eventually solve the issues it definitely has with XP SP3 and Vista SP1. In the meantime, users who have a working system of either XP SP 2 or Vista RTM should ignore the subtle pressures being applied to "upgrade" and instead steer clear of the service pack!