Windows XP Professional Edition

There are several versions of Windows XP - some are locked to a single PC via the motherboard BIOS, some can only be installed on a new PC, some will only install if a previous version of Windows is already present, and the full retail is free of these restrictions. You need to carefully check which version you are buying.

A lot of people upgrade from a previous version of windows, and while in most cases this is OK, there is no doubt that installing WinXP on to a freshly formatted drive is least problematic.

The minimum hardware requirements listed on the side of box are very much that. For acceptable performance, a considerably higher specification is required. WinXP is fairly demanding of hardware.

Installation is usually straightforward, but if there are problems, they can be very difficult to solve.

Activation requires either a live internet connection or a telephone code to MS to get a very long code.

When all is installed, update runs. Security updates and other fixes can run to many megabytes. This is not a problem on a corporate network, but for a home user on a modem it can take hours.

Win XP does contain just about everything to get by - an internet browser, firewall, a basic text editor with a variety of fonts, a simple painting package, file manager, CD writer software, media player and so on. However, each of these items can be improved considerably by installing either bought or free additional software. There is no antivirus protection.

Annoying faults are usually cured by re-booting the PC.

More serious faults are usually cured by re-installing, as the restore option is too complex for most users.

There are a huge number of independent websites to assist users whose copy of WinXP is not operating as expected.