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Windows XP Source Code Leaked

Nimda

Outlander
UT2004 champion
Messages
4
as funny as this would be, Windows XP is *filled* to the brim with security issues and flaws. Another huge reason why people upgraded from XP to vista in the first place is the fact XP doesn't have 64 bit support, only 32.

So as a brief rundown, anything involving the background would have to be changed, several dozen services need to be updated and hundreds of modules supporting XP in the first place would need to be patched. At this point you may as well just make windows 8 usable with how much work it'd take.

Then there's the fact every program installed on XP renders the issue of it 'Not being supported'. Companies such as malware bytes, mcafee and norton won't even touch it with a 20 foot pole.

Steam barely runs on it, the only thing actually worth it would be to grab windows XP pinball.

The best solution would likely switch to a linux distro and make it look like XP. Or if you really want pain, change vista to basic color scheme in power saving mode.
 

Arnox

Master
Staff member
Founder
Messages
5,288
as funny as this would be, Windows XP is *filled* to the brim with security issues and flaws. Another huge reason why people upgraded from XP to vista in the first place is the fact XP doesn't have 64 bit support, only 32.
Actually, Windows XP did have a 64 bit version, though I don't think it was as supported at all as Vista's 64 bit version was, to be fair.

So as a brief rundown, anything involving the background would have to be changed, several dozen services need to be updated and hundreds of modules supporting XP in the first place would need to be patched.
For security maybe. I don't think a lot of programs would really need much backported though in order to simply run.

At this point you may as well just make windows 8 usable with how much work it'd take.
Dear, how many times do I have to tell you that Classic Shell fixes 8.1 completely. It literally turns into a better 7.

Then there's the fact every program installed on XP renders the issue of it 'Not being supported'.
Doesn't really matter though if it's not officially supported as long as the programs can be made to fully run on XP.

The best solution would likely switch to a linux distro and make it look like XP.
Actually, you're not wrong here, funnily enough. Even so though, I wonder if one could ever get Linux to run as light as XP did while still having the minimum feature set that people expect from operating systems. Also, Vista, once it's actually been updated, is better than you think.
 
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Arnox

Master
Staff member
Founder
Messages
5,288

So this guy thinks that the source code leak was done on purpose by Microsoft, but honestly, this doesn't really check out for a fair few reasons.

For one, why the hell would Microsoft ship the leak with a bunch of Bill Gates conspiracy theories? Makes no sense. Second, Windows XP ALREADY had a bunch of security holes. Even before the leaks, you certainly didn't fucking run Windows XP to get a secure system. Them finding more security holes is not gonna change that at all. Actually, it would make running the OS MORE secure ironically because now XP is an entirely known system. If you know a hole exists, you can either plan around it, plug it, or just straight up comment the code out (not always an option admittedly, depending on what code the hole affects). Thirdly, yes, this may affect later Windows OSes as well, but if that was really their goal, why didn't they just release the source code to all of them? Or if for some weird ass reason they can only leak one major OS, why was it XP and not a later OS where the leak would do much more damage? Fourthly, if any security holes in XP are found in later editions including Windows 10, that means Microsoft now has to patch both 10 AND 8.1, because remember, 8.1 won't be out of support for a while yet. It's more work and hassle for them for very little payoff. Fifthly, the people who make custom Windows XP editions don't give a shit about copyright, and the people who are going to fiddle around with the source even less so. ReactOS also doesn't need to copy the code wholesale. They now can (and will) write the code of their OS to compensate perfectly for XP programs because now they know exactly how it works. No copying needed. Same for WINE. And even IF Microsoft did take them to court, someone else is just going to fork it and resume work. Not that Microsoft would even bother with such a spurious lawsuit anyway. They already had many opportunities to take WINE and ReactOS to court and they never did.

So, TLDR - The idea of Microsoft leaking this on purpose is pretty damn absurd on multiple fronts. This may have a few small negative repercussions in the short term, sure, but long term, the leak is actually QUITE beneficial for literally everyone except Microsoft.
 
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