Speaking of Windows NT4, the same IT supplement contained an article outlining Microsoft’s software support policy. Or should I say, lack of support. It’s bad news for people running old operating systems on old computers, as I was until quite recently.

Support for Windows 95 has already gone out the window, and NT4 for workstations is due to join the End of life list next year. The shelf life of Windows 98, 98 SE, and Office 97, expires in 2005.

Microsoft claim that given the number of products they have, “there was some confusion for customers”, being one of the reasons they started scaling back support for older products. They added that “our concerns relate more to ensuring the customers get value from the new products that are available…”

Now that probably hits the nail squarely on the head. In response to increasing competition (refer to the paragraphs about Linux above), and a tighter market in general, Microsoft effectively would like us to buy a new computer every couple of years now.

These lack of support policies pretty much end the days of being able to run a computer years beyond its anticipated operational life, which hazarding a guess, is what plenty of people do. My last PC ran for almost seven years, and I am sure there are far older systems around still going strong.

Obviously these older computers will not be able to cope with the newer operating systems, due to their system limitations, so once they encounter a problem for which no support is available, owners may be forced into buying a new PC all together.

While that’s not a problem for the large corporates and other enterprises who can afford to upgrade hardware every five years or so, it will be for some people.

After all of this, I’m not suggesting anyone shouldn’t upgrade at all though. Technologies come and go at a racing pace, so people should consider a new computer at some point, since there is only so much an old machine will do. For instance, Windows NT4, venerable as I considered it, needed a lot of coaxing to work (if at all) with USB ports for one thing.

That’s all in the past now though, and looking at Microsoft’s End of life policy, I see Windows XP is due for “software retirement” in 2007. I’d better start saving for a new PC today, hadn’t I?