Microsoft releasing XP SP3 this week?
By Ryan Block 
posted Mar 23rd 2008 4:28PM
posted Mar 23rd 2008 4:28PM
XP may not EOL until this June, but that doesn't mean it's not in need of the same kind of tender lovin' update packs as OSes of every variety occasionally receive. And according to CRN, the long awaited XP SP3 could be due out as early as tomorrow, or possibly later this week. We'll keep an eye out -- we know it's hard to let XP go.[Thanks, Khattab]
Update: We hate to be the bearers of bad news but we've already heard that things might not be so optimistic for such an early release. Sources tell us that there still might be some show-stopping issues with SP3 that could prevent it from staying stable (and thus seeing immediate rollout). We'll be watching, as always.
SP3... Well, won't need do download that now... SP1 for Vista is now sweet and I don't hate it anymore.
Slow news day...
agreed
I feel exactly the opposite. I was hanging onto vista for SP1 hoping for major improvements... when nothing came I formatted and installed XP. Plus now I get SP3!
@Allen
If you installed XP that recently you should have waited until a slipstreamed disc made itself available. A truly fresh SP3 experience.
PS: Vista SP1 (via a clean install) is awesome. I don't think enough people are installing it slipstreamed. Patching with something as big as SP1 is never going to be as tight as going from sqiuare 1.
C'mon Microsoft for the love of all that's holy release SP3 - my grandparents who refuse to get a new computer (and had me take back the one I bought for them) demand that I reinstall XP on a PIII 550mHz + 256 megs ram. It will take me the entire damn day to patch that thing.
@Chebwa
I'm installing slipstreamed its called Windows Server 2008......far better then Vista.
@Tomahawk
You know that Vista SP1 updates the kernel to the exact same code as Server 2008, right?
Come on Engadget you selfish bastards - remember only report news that Aguiluz finds interesting.
SP1 wont even install on my Amilo La1703 laptop.
WHY? BECAUSE ITS CRAP AND IS A BASIC XP LAPTOP WITH A VISTA STICKER!
well judge vista on a more capable machine :)
All these computers are Vista capable.
But some are more capable than others.
Compositing metacity, KDE4 kwin, and compiz /all/ -crush- aero.
But I thank all the suckers out there for bringing hardware prices down and giving me lots of room to participate in distributed rendering for the next open movie.
Actually, Aero looks nicer than all of those and is still fully themable with a simple .dll replacement. Sorry.
I agree with ethana. Compiz fusion does crush Aero.
Here are some things I can now do on my machine that I couldn't with Aero: Zoom desktop, Expo (virtual desktops), Mac OSX-like widget overlay, wobbly windows, window previews, OSX-like window switching, scaling, and various window animations.
Not to mention the dock-like avant window navigator. There are thirty-four additional effects that I haven't turned on.
This video will help you more than my post will: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xC5uEe5OzNQ
@Zorque you obviously have never used Compiz Fusion, It utterly and completely blows Aero out of the water.
You're confusing "more effects" for "better looking".
That may be, but at least there's no confusion as to which provides you with more functionality. (I'll give you a hint, it's the one that offers more effects.)
I didn't realize a tiny cube where you can kinda sorta make out any of your desktops at a given time was considered functional.
Me neither; that's why I don't use it, and why I didn't list it. Here's what I did list, and why it adds functionality for me:
Zoom desktop: makes smaller things bigger. Sometimes my eyes get tired, or want to zoom in on, say, an embedded video or Dosbox (emulated video games).
Expo: If one desktop is useful, why not two or three? I often have many windows open, especially when programming.
Widget overlay: Allowing the fullscreen to be taken up by items that give you information is useful, especially when you can get it to it with one button. I have a clock, notes, calendar, calculator, and weather information.
Wobbly windows: Not useful, truthfully.
Window previews: If I can't remember which browser window I had the PDF open in, which terminal my program, and which notepad-program holds my class notes, I just roll over their icons and see live previews.
OSX-like switching: I think it's called expo? Windows has something similar, but less slick; allows you to see the full, live application next to the others, in a sort of virtual carousel.
Scaling: One button, and every window is resized and I can pick which to bring to the foreground. Don't try and tell me it isn't useful. Sometimes windows get put behind other windows; why should I have to cycle through them all to find what I want?
Animations: not useful.
34 other items: may be useful.
It's impossible to let XP go since Vista is, and always will be a privacy invading turd.
Luckily Wine 1.0 is around the corner, and hopefully it will feed back into the ReactOS project. That hopefully means we can use legitimate OS' that protect our privacy AND run the software we need. Something Vista Barely does anyway.
Amen! ++
I'm looking forward to it. If we can get a link posted here to a stand alone install download that would be great. I run Ubuntu as my main OS, but I still need Windows for somethings. I plan on using XP for at least two more years, so SP3 is a welcome update I will be happy to get my hands on.
If I ever find myself rebooting into XP any time soon, I may consider it too.
..but I doubt it.
uhm
ive had SP3 on my XP for over a week now.. from windows updates.. :?
did you download the registry key to update to an RC?
is a registry key over 400 mb? :x
NeutralPatriks7
@ Mar 23rd 2008 4:55PM
is a registry key over 400 mb? :x
He is talking about the registry tweak to be able to download SP3 via Windows Updates you n00b.
oh yes now that i dont know much about computers im a noob -.- great
plus i hardly use windows.. mac user for a couple years u n00b _|_
Any performance enhancements?
Did anyone saw this?
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=68C48DAD-BC34-40BE-8D85-6BB4F56F5110&displaylang=en
sweet overview?
I didn't know the updates came in PDF format.
Times have changed...
That's why i say "saw" not "downloaded", duh...
Well then you should have said "see". I wasn't going to point it out, but since you wanted to rub your usage of words all in my face, I decided to.
Ouch...Point taken (honestly, english's not my usual language)
I can tells.
I dont think that the person who wrote the PDF was a native english speaker. Page 4, "English Updaets". =))
i'd rather have 3sp -- 3 six packs -- of apple juice!
Keep drinking Apple's Kool-Aid.
JAmerican
Why did you put "JAmerican" in your post? We knew it was you...
It's because he can. Why do you need any other reason?
Abuzar
@Jamerican
As apposed to drinking Microsoft's Arsenic?
@CraigJ
Looks like people took out their revenge on my comment by making you get High Ranked. Nice! As for signing my posts, its a habit and one that I like. Its like saying why sign a letter when your name is right under the signature.
@Kent
Recently, looks like M$ is using less arsenic compared to Apple.
you forgot to sign
SP3 made my computer refuse to boot after it was installed. the only way i could fix it was by uninstalling in safe mode...lame
I've installed the RC on 3 systems.....not MS's fault that you have something funky with your system.
lucky for me i never mentioned it was microsoft's fault. the installation of the service pack just didn't sit well with my extensively modified system.
Using lame....lame
being named timmy...lame
Won't microsoft just use it to cripple XP on order to push people to vista????
No, they actually improved performance by 10% with SP3. You must be thinking of Apple "Screw our Customers over" Inc.
Seriously though, this is update does make it faster.
Actually Microsoft has seen the new trend of mini laptops like the Asus EEE than can crank XP well. Microsoft is betting that XP will be around for a few more years on those new devices.
I would also bet we are close to seeing a handheld computer running XP instead of Mindos Mobile.
XP won't be dead yet ... XP's support doesn't have anything to do with Vista other than maybe Vista is too big to run on mobile platforms.
but...
why would they release any more updates for an operating system which they don't want to keep people using?
Because for low power umpc's and cheap notebooks it's where it is at. And they (i know it's hard to believe, took me a while to get over it) actually want to keep there customers happy.
unlike some other operating system company we all know of. Yeah I am looking at you HitlerOS
Have you ever freshly installed windows XP, even with SP2? It takes a hell of a long time (3 hours) for me to get it up to date properly. Some people aren't patient with that, and so don't install the updates. No updates is bad. Very bad.
Well, I hope they offer it already slip streamed on to disks. I am about to buy XP and I don't want to have to upgrade. I want it installed already.
Who needs this. Just get Vista.
Well, I just plain don't like Vista. It DOES use up extra memory and it DOES generally perform slower. YES it's a new OS and we should expect it to be a bit slower. The only thing is, XP works just fine for me. Vista DOES NOT have anything that I need, so why take the hit?
So XP SP3 is a welcome update for many of us who don't need Vista.
Agrees with Abuzar. Vista does nothing for me that XP (or 2000 for that matter) doesn't do except require a machine with a higher spec to get the same performance I get from XP. All that security crap is, well crap. Asking me 50 time a day if I'm sure is NOT security, it is Microsoft covering their ass if something goes wrong: "But we asked you if you wanted to install that malware and you said yes". Why would I pay for an "upgrade" that has lame security features I'm not going to use, and needs a freaking power hungry expensive video card to display "aero glass"? XP with Royale looks better than Vista without Aero, and works fine with the integrated graphics, though I do have a GE force 8800.
Yes I know that Vista has a lot that's new under the hood, but even as a fairly sophisticated user, none of that stuff really does anything for me, except make me look in different places for the same functions.
I'm not bashing Vista, in fact I user it every day at work, but it's just not an improvement over XP (to me anyway). I ordered my last machine in December with XP, and I will continue to order machines with XP, or I will just install XP once I get the machine. If SP2 is spectacular, I might change my mind, but it seems to me that Microsoft is probably going to abandon aggressive improvements to Vista in favor of Windows 7, which I suppose will cost a couple of hundred dollars too...
Oh, and ditto Office 2003 vs. Office 2007. I have been using 2007 at work for a year now, and I still can't find stuff that is obvious in 2003. I know a lot of people like the ribbon, and maybe it is good for new users, but I hate it: it just gets in my way. That and the fact that the default doc types are docx and xlsx, when most of the world is still on 2003. I do like a lot of features of 2007, I just wish there was a way to revert to 2003 style tool bars and menus...
Oh BTW I'm running XP on this machine:
Q6600 at 3.6Ghz
2GB of Crucial RAM
ATI Radeon HD 3850
GA-P35-DS3R
I have more than enough power to run Vista(like Craig), but then again why take the Hit?
Although I do prefer Office 2007 for some reason. I do agree on the docx file type thing, that's just stupid. I bet that "feature" has ruined many school presentations.
@Abuzar. Please learn how RAM works before saying using more memory the way vista does is a bad thing.
Vista runs faster on my machine, then XP did. I originally downgraded, for familiarity purposes. But then upgraded when a certain program wouldn't work and am happy
So by Just get Vista, I suppose you mean going to http://www.microsoft.com/vista, downloading the .iso, buring it to a disk, popping it into your optical drive, booting off of it, and launching 'install' from the desktop?
FAIL. Screw Vista...
http://www.ubuntu.com/GetUbuntu .
people without money or a powerfull enough computer to "upgrade"
Also like Craig, I a have a fairly powerful machine:
P4 1.6
640MB RAM
120GIG Drive
ATI 9250
I still run Xp when Vista would work just as well.
I don't think I would call your CPU powerful. Not even midrange. So that's about the only thing holding you back.
@Abuzar latest post:
Why a P 1.6 isn't powerful? Its much faster than your brain, and can get information from the internet (not like you).
IMO Any Processor over 1ghz is 'powerful'.
@danny
id have to say that a brains processing capabilities surpass a p4 at 1.6 ghz by a long shot, a very long shot.
i hate vista
At least try when you troll.
Vista hates you too.
I am going to wait for SP5
Kevin Kyle Tidemand
I need this so bad. MY XP install keeps BSODing with 0x000000F4 errors.
JAmerican
STOP SIGNING YOUR POSTS DAMMIT
JAmerican
LMAO! Anything to make your life more miserable :)
JAmerican
JAmerican
JAmerican
JAmerican
BTW not sure why I got low ranked. I am not lying. My XP SP2 install keeps BSODing with 0x000000F4.
It's probably because you don't quit with the signature.
@James and CraigJ
Are you guys high or something. Its my post and my PC, I'll post as I want. You guys are so childish.
JAmerican
Likewise, those are their computers and they will mod down as they want.
----------
Don't take this personally; just pointing out a logical flaw.
my auto update says office xp sp3 is available for download??
wouldnt that be the sp for office though
Finally SP3 maybe i can upgrade from windows 98 now. XP is so bloated and a resource hog.
Whatever! Graphical interfaces are for losers. MS DOS FTW!
Lol, was that a jab at all the people that bitch about Vista being a hog?
*Sigh*
Yes, avanderveen, it was supposed to be a joke about people who complain Vista is bloated.
Abuzar, I don't know that I've ever seen someone who thinks that the windows CLI is worth crap before. Congratulations! ..I don't believe you.
sudo rm -r /windows && echo "meh"
Ethana - you do know the difference between Windows and MS-DOS, don't you?
XPlicious! (times 3!)
its over 9000!
You know, I'm surprised clak isn't all over this article.
Probably asleep. Everyone has to sleep sometime.
@Abuzar:
Ahh silly you, just wait and you will se the true plan behind SP3.
All that "improved performance" is damaging your components and in June every computer with SP3 installed will go *boom* and MS will stand there pointing at at Vista going "We told you to upgrade".
P.S. Shh! Don't tell anyone....this is our secret.
Alright, I WILL KEEP IT QUIET. Just between me and you, I like OSX better anyway.
Not really. lol.
I will keep it a secret though.
OSX is frigging mutant. Negative system call numbers? HFS? TPM-only booting on x86?
pssh. OSX can go die.
....Apple is why I don't use the BSD license.
I was joking...
It's XP first, then Ubuntu, and Vista following close behind.
Oh oh oh I heard what you said! I'm telling everyone else!
*Runs off like a little girl*
How to inspire confidence the Microsoft way!
There's a typo in the first graphic on the PDF file: "Performance Updaets"
Ahhh, sneaky... it's inside the glass cup thing!!!
What's with all the people signing their posts?
So you know who it is. lol
Abuzar's Brother.
It makes them feel special... it's obvious they have no life outside the internet :P