Microsoft shuts down Windows 98

Discussions General
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BBC News
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/5164450.stm

Last Updated: Tuesday, 11 July 2006, 06:52 GMT 07:52 UK

Microsoft shuts down Windows 98
By Mark Ward
Technology Correspondent, BBC News website

Microsoft is urging an estimated 70 million users of Windows 98 to upgrade as it ends support for the software.

From 11 July, Microsoft will no longer help users over the phone with any problems they have with the ageing operating system.

The firm will also stop providing security updates for Windows 98 from the same date.

Support for the software was originally due to end in 2003, but was extended following customer protests.

Shutting down

Products affected by closing down the support system include Windows 98, Windows 98 Second Edition, and Windows Me (Millennium Edition). Analyst firm IDC believes that more than 70 million users will be hit by the change.

The majority of these people are likely to be using the operating system at home, as by now most large businesses have phased out machines running the software. Many small firms are also believed to be users of the product.

Microsoft ended free support for this trio of products in late 2003 but continued to offer paid support and provide critical security updates. This too will now stop.

The change means that those still using Windows 98 and Me after 11 July could become more vulnerable to many security risks, as bug fixes for loopholes exploited by hackers will no longer become available.

In a statement Microsoft said it was “ending support for these products because they are outdated and these older operating systems can expose customers to security risks”.

Mikko Hyponnen from Finnish security firm F-Secure said that it was still providing updates for Windows 98 users who run its anti-virus package.

“In fact, 98 users are not at that great a risk as people might think: most of the new malware we see simply won’t run there,” he said.

“Nevertheless, if you want to be safe with 98: don’t go online. Or upgrade to something that is supported with security patches,” he added.

According to computer security firm Secure Science, at least one hi-tech crime gang based in Eastern Europe specialises in Windows 98 and produces viruses that prey on the software’s weaknesses.

This is because users of it tend to have little knowledge of potential dangers - and are older, so are more likely to have substantial financial assets worth stealing.

Users of Windows 98 who have problems with the software may find an answer to their query themselves by hunting through the support information collected on the Microsoft website.

The software giant said this data will be kept live until “at least 11 July 2007”.

It urged users to upgrade to a more secure operating system, such as Windows XP, as soon as possible.

This could mean buying a new PC for those running a machine bought eight years ago with Windows 98 pre-installed. This is because the hardware specifications for Windows 98 fall far short of the minimum required to run Windows XP.

It may also mean they have to replace or update any peripherals they use with that ageing machine.

The turn off for Windows 98 was originally due to fall in late 2003.

However, protests from many developing regions of the world where, at that time, the software was widely used prompted Microsoft to reverse its decision.

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sad to hear this, although we had upgrade to WINXP, some of the user still using WIN98. Maybe is time to move a head.

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ha! that’s the spirit, Bill! Shut down all the legacy support for old OS and make those poor-china-men company cry! Make those aging technicians cry too! Make WinXP compulsary, and make Vista begger’s dream!

Please don’t really think that I’m happy about this. I read the article again and I haven’t read anything regarding Win98 or Win95 or NT4 surrender their source code to those who have paid them the license fee. What do you call this?

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double that sadness if you have to pay for a genuine copy instead of a pirated version…

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[quote=“huasing”]
Please don’t really think that I’m happy about this. I read the article again and I haven’t read anything regarding Win98 or Win95 or NT4 surrender their source code to those who have paid them the license fee. What do you call this?[/quote]

They can’t do that because the codes are still to be re-used in Vista. :wink:

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[quote=“huasing”]
double that sadness if you have to pay for a genuine copy instead of a pirated version…[/quote]

A geniune fee for company use is really not that big of a matter, as they are able to recover the costs soon thereafter - in theory. For most software, like Photoshop, this is correct.

But we all know there are hidden costs involved in ‘genuine’ Windows licenses, i.e. loss of data, malware attacks or just plain stop working after a while, incurring downtime, extra repair costs, anti-virus (which probably don’t work right) subscription fees and even firewall fees and miscellenous other charges etc.

Suddenly the small company originally making $20K per month sees its profits go down into the MS drain.

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I read some ads recently that says Microsoft OneCare cost USD$59… I wonder how much will it sell here and how many people will fall for it? :slight_smile:

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That’s just like a car company selling a car without brakes, then come up with a new ‘saviour’ plan that sells brakes for an extra charge after complaints of people crashing (which according to them, is ‘normal’ or the user’s fault).

Seriuosly. I wonder just exactly how people still stick to Windows (those who can avoid it anyway).

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Microsoft extends lifeline for older PCs
By Ina Fried, CNET News.com
Published on ZDNet News: July 12, 2006, 10:47 AM PT

Microsoft on Wednesday revealed software that turns older PCs into more modern and secure systems, but in the process also makes them less than full-fledged computers.

The software, known as Windows Fundamentals for Legacy PCs, is designed as a stopgap measure for companies with a significant number of older Windows PCs that they aren’t ready to replace and that can’t be easily upgraded to Windows XP.

Formerly known by its Eiger code name, Windows Fundamentals gives those PCs some of the security benefits of XP but essentially turns the machines into thin clients, able to run only a few programs locally, with most software needing to run remotely from a server.

As Microsoft announced in September, Windows Fundamentals is being made available as part of Microsoft’s Software Assurance licensing program. It’s one of several changes the company is making to the program.

“Software Assurance is certainly more than upgrades,” said Mike Oldham, a general manager in Microsoft’s licensing group. “We see it as a full offering that we are incoprorating more value into all the time.”

Oldham said that Microsoft developed Windows Fundamentals because corporate customers were looking for a way to get more years out of their PCs. “This gave them a key tool for expanding those life spans.”

Turning PCs into thin clients is something new, Oldham said. “Typically we have not delved into that area.”

The company also announced that it is making Virtual PC 2004 Service Pack 1 available free to customers. Volume-licensing customers who adopt Windows Vista will be able to install up to four copies of the operating system in each machine, provided that they are all for use by a single user.

Microsoft has been working hard to sway customers away from the notion that Software Assurance is primarily a way to buy its products on a subscription basis. Under the program, customers pay an additional fee when they license a program and get the rights to any updates issued during a specific period, usually three years. In some cases, though, Microsoft has taken more than three years to prepare an update–the recent release of SQL Server took five years; and Windows Vista is expected to debut early next year, more than five years after Windows XP.

Also on the virtualization front, Microsoft said that effective Oct. 1, companies using Windows Server 2003 R2 Datacenter Edition will be able to run any number of virtualized Windows Server instances. By licensing the Datacenter version, customers will be able to run an unlimited number of virtual versions of the standard, enterprise or Datacenter editions of the operating system.

Meanwhile, VMware, whose virtualization software competes with Virtual PC, said on Wednesday that it is ready with the free version of its GSX Server, for which it once charged up to $2,800. VMware, which is a subsidiary of storage giant EMC, said in February that it would make the software available for free.

Microsoft also announced on Wednesday a new “buy now, pay later” financing promotion, under which business customers can get Windows Vista, Office 2007 and other products by paying $50 a month for six months and then spreading the rest of the cost over 36 equal payments.

The announcements came as Microsoft continues its annual partner conference in Boston.

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as in the quote
"Formerly known by its Eiger code name, Windows Fundamentals gives those PCs some of the security benefits of XP but essentially turns the machines into thin clients, able to run only a few programs locally, with most software needing to run remotely from a server. "

Man! Thin client? I think it gonna be another M$ conspiracy to have those host server to pay extra bucks for that particular service, similar to RRAS and Terminal Services per client/seat. lets see… if it priced lower than CITRIX or not…