Hi Dark, Actually, this already exists. I don't know if you know this but Windows 7 Professional and Windows 7 Ultimate come with a licensed Windows XP virtual machine complete with the VB 6 runtime libraries and the whole nine yards. Granted you have to pay extra for Windows XP backwards compatibility, but to say Microsoft doesn't already do this is false. Microsoft knows companies and gamers can't necessarily run all their older software on Windows 7 Starter and Windows 7 Home so they've included a Windows XP virtual machine into the Professional and Ultimate versions of the opperating system. So Microsoft is aware of the issue, and offer the very feature you mentioned below in their pro and ultimate versions of Windows 7. Its not a compatibility pack, but a licensed copy of Windows XP that is installed inside Windows 7 Ultimate so you get the best of both worlds on the same dvd.
This is precisely why I feel you guys are giving Microsoft a bad wrap here. Microsoft is doing the best they can to maintain long term backwards compatibility and the way they have done it in Windows 7 is by using a virtual machine they created specifically for Windows XP applications. I suppose the only reason most people are unaware of it is that most PCs from HP, Compaq, Toshiba, Del, etc all come with Windows 7 Home Premium, and you need Windows Ultimate to get all of the applications and extras for Windows 7 Microsoft has to offer including a licensed copy of XP for the Windows 7 virtual machine. I really recommend doing a bit of research about this topic as I think you just opened your mouth and inserted your foot on that one. Cheers! On 12/12/11, dark <d...@xgam.org> wrote: > Hi Alex. > > But if microsoft care so much about customers, why don't they have any > options to extend backwards compatibility of products? for instance a > licenced microsoft virtual machine? > > Frankly, the reason they had to extend xp support is simply because vista > was buggy as heck for several years and thus new xp machines were being > bought as late as 2010. If microsoft had dropped support for what the > majority of users use, people would go over to mac or other os and they'd > lose sales. > > I don't really understand this business about "technology moves move with > it" > > I repeat, I have my snes, which is now close to 20 years old. I keep it > because I like the games on it. > > The fact that something is "new technology" has no real applicability to > myself or probably to several other people as well if it doesn't actually > let us do the things we want. > > A computer is afterall just a tool. > > Beware the grue! > > Dark. --- Gamers mailing list __ Gamers@audyssey.org If you want to leave the list, send E-mail to gamers-unsubscr...@audyssey.org. You can make changes or update your subscription via the web, at http://mail.audyssey.org/mailman/listinfo/gamers_audyssey.org. All messages are archived and can be searched and read at http://www.mail-archive.com/gamers@audyssey.org. If you have any questions or concerns regarding the management of the list, please send E-mail to gamers-ow...@audyssey.org.
