As with anything else, though, one door closes and another one opens. Recently, Microsoft has released that Windows XP has finally earned that vacation home on the Software Retirement island. Microsoft has officially stated that Microsoft Windows XP will no longer be supported as of April 8, 2014. This marks the end of a stable operating system that has grown up with us and our children for over 12 years.

Now, does this mean that on April 8, 2014 any computer running Windows XP just stops working? Absolutely not. This simply means that Microsoft will no longer release security patches or offer support assistance for Windows XP, which could potentially make them vulnerable to attacks. Along with the anticipation of this date, however, other software vendors may also drop their support for Windows XP sooner than April 8, 2014. This simply means that newer versions of software (line-of-business or otherwise) may not be supported or work with Windows XP.

At this point, the time has come to transition to newer operating systems, such as Microsoft Windows 7 or Microsoft Windows 8. You may be thinking, “Oh that’s no problem, I’ll just upgrade to new PCs when the time comes. That’ll work, right?” And for some of you, that may be true. There are, however, a few items that you should consider NOW rather than later to insure a smooth transition to the newer technologies from both a cost standpoint and a usability standpoint:

So even though April 8, 2014 seems to still be ample time away, the time to start considering these items is now! The sooner the transition is planned and started, the easier it will be on your budget and yourself. Don’t hesitate to contact your Technology Business Consultant here at NET Xperts for assistance in planning your transition!