Microsoft Ending Windows XP Support on April 8, 2014

Microsoft is finally closing the book on Windows XP on April 8, 2014 as it closes down support for the aging operating system.

Despite Windows Vista, Windows 7 and Windows 8 having all hit the market, there are stillcomputers out there running around with Windows XP as the operating system. Microsoft has already carried on support for the OS launched in 2002 longer than it normally would due to the popularity of the software, but all good things must come to an end.

Microsoft reminded everyone today that only 365 days of Windows XP support remain, and after that it will be a wild frontier for those who still continue to use the software. April 8, 2014 will mark the end of extended support which means that corporations will no longer be able to pay for support and that there will be no further software patches issued.

Considering we are in the 11th year of Windows XP, you can’t really blame Microsoft for finally shutting this down. It is honoring the support window from the release of SP3, and the 2014 date will mark a 12 years since the initial release.

If you’re still using Windows XP, and plan to do so past the cut off date, remember you will be doing so “at your own risk.”

[Source: TechnoBuffalo]

Microsoft updates Bing Desktop app for Windows XP and higher

Previously only enjoyed by Windows 7 users, Microsoft has updated its Bing Desktop app to play nice with all modern versions of Windows going all the way back to XP. The OS' latest iteration already packs a slew of Bing-powered applications, but none of them replicate the app's headlining trick: syncing desktop backgrounds with Bing's daily wallpaper. Windows 8 (and XP, Vista and server) users who adopt the 1.1 update can set the app to change their background daily, or manually set it to any background from the past nine days. News aficionados can peek at trending headlines and popular images underneath the search field, which itself can be docked at the top of the screen for easy access. Microsoft has also added French, German, Chinese and Japanese language support to the app. If this piques your interest, go ahead and download it at the source -- that is, if you haven't Google-fied your Start Screen just yet.

[Source: Engadget]