Windows XP is still alive and kicking
XP is still the OS of choice for some.
It’s not just the NHS that runs legacy systems there are quite a few XP devotees still using the beloved system to run software. This week’s unusual job was one such instance.
The computer had failed. Kaput! Gone for good … and on it a number of old systems – do you remember when Lotus 123 was the spreadsheet of choice for many? Well Lotus 123 was still used on this XP system and guess what the word processor was ….. Wordstar. That brought back memories.
To get things back and running an old computer could have been set up with windows XP but the preferred solution was to get a new PC and use an emulator. There are a number of choices but before delving into installing Virtual Box or similar the built in Windows 10 compatibility software which lets you run programs right back to Windows 95 was tried first. It worked! It’s not guaranteed but for general office type work it is worth a go.
The bigger problem then became how to get the 20 year old 132 character wide dot matrix printer back into life. This did not have a USB conection and new computers certainly don’t have a Centronics 24pin Parallel port anymore. However, with a convertor cable and bit of jiggery-pokery with the Windows printer drivers it was coaxed back to life.
If you are having issues with your computer equipment or are thinking of setting up a computer museum contact me here: Contact Tony for a free discussion.
