Next April 8 will mark three years since Microsoft ended extended support for the standard editions of Windows XP, but the operating system still has pockets of resistance that surprise everyone. In fact, if we go by the numbers from NetMarketShare, Windows XP gained almost half a point of market share between November and December 2016. Other measurements reveal more modest advances, but the question remains the same as always: Why does XP endure?
When Microsoft decides to kill one of its operating systems, there's no denying it fires all its artillery. What it did with Windows 10 is solid proof of that, but it failed to understand a basic rule: when you push too hard in one direction, sooner or later someone pushes back. That's how we find Windows 7 as the clear dominator. According to NetMarketShare, Windows 7 managed to maintain some stability, losing only four points in a year. Windows 10's gains came mainly from other operating systems, but most analysts agree it will need a bit of time to cross the 25 percent barrier. That's the story of the two most important desktop operating systems, but the one closing the podium continues to defy all forecasts: Windows XP.
The Numbers
The first fact to consider is that XP's fall hasn't been as steep as some expected. The charts indicate it lost only 2.5 percent of the market in a year, meaning its users are clinging to the operating system tooth and nail. But to that we must add its recent rise. After falling to 8.27 percent in October (the lowest point of all of 2016), it experienced a double rebound: 8.63 percent in November and 9.07 percent in December. Comparing with StatCounter's measurements is difficult due to the enormous difference in numbers and the sample sizes the two companies manage, but that didn't hide the fact that Windows XP did not lose ground in the last two months.
Why Does XP Persist?
Now... why? Why does this happen? To be honest, there is more than one answer. First, Windows XP's presence remains very important in the corporate and government environments. For example, 90 percent of public hospitals in the UK are still on XP. Steam reports that 1.5 percent of its users use it to play. And let's not talk about things like ATMs and POS terminals. Then there's the trick (still valid) that allows receiving updates by fooling Windows Update so a traditional XP installation is seen as Windows Embedded POSReady 2009, whose support ends on April 9, 2019. And finally, we arrive at a personal and economic issue. The concept of "it's not obsolete if I still use it" carries a lot of weight in regions where hardware is very expensive. A computer that works well with XP probably won't be replaced despite security risks. Firefox already has scheduled to give the thumb-down to XP this year, but Avast maintains compatibility of its antivirus with the operating system. For Microsoft, XP's story is over. Its users have another opinion.
