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Home - General / All posts - Upcoming changes in supported Windows operating systems
Mike Fisher

899 post(s)
#03-Apr-14 11:14

Manifold users should plan on changes in Windows operating systems supported by Manifold retail products. The following is preliminary information.

Background

Manifold traditionally supports many Microsoft Windows editions. When Microsoft drops support for an older Windows edition Manifold also will eventually drop support.

How long an older Windows edition is supported depends on Microsoft's continued support for Microsoft components used in Manifold. Manifold has extensive use of Microsoft facilities. This ensures compatibility with Microsoft products, improves reliability and adds capabilities by connecting to the Microsoft ecosystem.

When Microsoft stops supporting an older Windows release in some facilities any Manifold products using those facilities must choose. They must choose between stopping evolution or moving forward and stopping support for the older Windows.

Sometimes evolution is not about new features but about back integration - under the hood use of code developed for new products in an older product - because that is more efficient and reliable. Support choices for new products that way can impact support choices in updates to older products.

Trends

Microsoft no longer supports Windows XP or Windows Server 2003 - either in 32-bit or 64-bit versions - for system components Manifold would like to use. This includes use in new products now in beta, new products being planned, or new updates for existing products.

Manifold therefore plans to drop support for Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 in new Manifold configurations.

Roadmap

Manifold expects to support the following Windows versions for new products and updates to old products: Windows Vista SP2+, Windows 7 SP1+, Windows 8 and 8.1, Windows Server 2008+.

The + sign means the edition or more recent. Example - all Windows Server editions including Server 2008 or more recent.

New Release 8.00 updates might or might not require the above. All new products after 8.00 will require the above list.

Dropping XP and 2003 should affect relatively few users. Most Manifold users have upgraded from XP or 2003. 8.00 users on XP or 2003 can probably ignore any new updates. For new products a user who adopts new technology right away will not use XP or 2003.

The above information is preliminary. We might end up supporting more or supporting less - the guidance is intended to give the best idea of what operating systems we are likely to continue to support.

adamw


10,447 post(s)
#04-Apr-14 11:08

Related:

Microsoft's note on support for Windows XP (ends on April 8, 2014).

KlausDE

6,410 post(s)
#05-Apr-14 06:14

You didn't ask for comments. Yet here is mine:

I've still two old XP machines running manifold. However I have no problem with this strategy. They have to go into retirement anyway. Thx for the announcment.


Do you really want to ruin economy only to save the planet?

JohnBi28 post(s)
#09-Apr-14 15:43

Although I totally understand Manifold.net's, or any other company's decision to "move foreword" since Microsoft decided to do so and stop supporting xp, I really don't find a good reason to do so. XP still works fine for every software I had tried until now. I know I will have to move to win7 or win8 if the software I use the most (such as manifold) become unusable on xp, but I see the change as an "obligation" that is "forced" by Microsoft and not a way to become work better or become more productive.

Call me unprogressive, but XP is fine, as is Autocad 2004, as is MS Word/Excel 2000. That's because these products are mature enough to totally feel the needs of users even 10+years after.

mdsumner


4,260 post(s)
#10-Apr-14 14:28

I look forward to an end to support of Windows 8, what a disaster. I've never had such a strong motivator to move to Linux for good, and I've always been a fan of Windows. Here's hoping Manifold pushes on.


https://github.com/mdsumner

adamw


10,447 post(s)
#10-Apr-14 15:03

Well, speaking totally personally for a moment, that's a pretty popular sentiment. Merging two different user interfaces (to say nothing about merging two different programming models - practically two different worlds, development-wise) is nothing trivial, no surprise there were a lot of issues.

But. Chances are, the version of Windows after Windows 8 is going to "fix" it, similarly to how Windows 7 "fixed" most of the issues brought about Windows Vista. And Windows 8 itself *does* have useful technology (and Vista did, too).

mikedufty

871 post(s)
#11-Apr-14 09:45

In my mind 8.00 only works properly on XP. The print interface still doesn't seem to have been updated to work properly in Windows7, there seems to be no way to change the printer assigned to a layout without actually printing something.

adamw


10,447 post(s)
#11-Apr-14 10:09

That's a fair point.

Until we have something better, you can do this: open layout, invoke File - Print, select the printer you want to switch to, check Print to file, click Print, click Cancel in the system dialog that asks you where to put the file you are printing to - this will dismiss the print job, click OK to dismiss the Manifold "Can't print data" message.

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