Understanding Application Compatibility

Most new software programs are certified as Windows XP–compatible, meaning that they will install and run without mishap on any Windows XP system. But what about older programs that were coded before Windows XP was released? They can be a bit more problematic. Since Windows XP is based on the code for Windows 2000—which was in turn based on Windows NT—programs that are compatible with those operating systems will probably (although not definitely) be compatible with Windows XP. But the real problems lie with programs written for Windows 9x and Windows Me. Windows XP—even Windows XP Home Edition—uses a completely different code base than the old consumer versions of Windows, so it’s inevitable that some of ...

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