Different Flavors of WinXP

[Roy]

Hello Group
I prefer the WinXP to Vista and heared that it had also different
flavors?
WinXP Sp2 Professional
WinXP Sp2 Home
WinXP Sp2 Professional Black Edition
WinXP Sp2 Corporate Edition
WinXP Sp3 for Home and Professional

I am rather puzzled to know that there is such variety for this
particular OS?
Are all of these legitimate version ?
How did these evolve from the XP pro and XP home?
I have heard the limitation of XP home but would like to know also the
advantage and limitation of the Black Edition, Corporate and SP3
version
What happened to the Media Center2005?
TIA
Roy

 

[Jerry]

Do a Google search on Windows XP and then review thousands of
articles/comments/etc on the subject. Faster/better than what you might get
here.

 

[Roy]

Do a Google search on Windows XP and then review thousands of
articles/comments/etc on the subject. Faster/better than what you might get
here.







- Show quoted text -

Sorry but the link is broken....

 

[Colin Barnhorst]

SP3 is simply XP with service pack 3 applied. It is not a different flavor
of XP any more than is XP SP2.

The retail editions of XP are Home, and Pro. They are the only two flavors
of XP available as boxed sku's.

XP Media Center and Tablet are available preinstalled on a new computer (MCE
is also available as a system builder sku).

There are two 64bit editions of XP available as system builder editions (XP
64bit Edition for IA64, and XP Pro x64 Edition for x86_x64).

There are XP Starter editions available in emerging countries.

There are XP N editions available in the European Union as alternatives to
the standard editions.

The other editions you have heard about are most likely editions available
to Software Assurance customers and not made available through the standard
consumer and enterprise channels.

 

[David H. Lipman]

From: "Colin Barnhorst" <[email protected]>

| SP3 is simply XP with service pack 3 applied. It is not a different flavor
| of XP any more than is XP SP2.
|
| The retail editions of XP are Home, and Pro. They are the only two flavors
| of XP available as boxed sku's.
|
| XP Media Center and Tablet are available preinstalled on a new computer (MCE
| is also available as a system builder sku).
|
| There are two 64bit editions of XP available as system builder editions (XP
| 64bit Edition for IA64, and XP Pro x64 Edition for x86_x64).
|
| There are XP Starter editions available in emerging countries.
|
| There are XP N editions available in the European Union as alternatives to
| the standard editions.
|
| The other editions you have heard about are most likely editions available
| to Software Assurance customers and not made available through the standard
| consumer and enterprise channels.
|

Excellent summation !

 

[Colin Barnhorst]

Thanks, although I did forget Embedded, Auto, and XP K.

 

[David H. Lipman]

From: "Colin Barnhorst" <[email protected]>

| Thanks, although I did forget Embedded, Auto, and XP K.
|

 

[Roy]

From: "Colin Barnhorst" <[email protected]>

| Thanks, although I did forget Embedded, Auto, and XP K.  
|

BTW, there is another issue I want to clarify, how about the OEM and
Retail version, what are the difference? Which is better?

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

BTW, there is another issue I want to clarify, how about the OEM and
Retail version, what are the difference? Which is better?

The retail version is *much* better. Although if you get a complete
generic OEM version, it contains the same software, it has the
following disadvantages as compared with the retail version:

1. Its license ties it permanently to the first computer it's
installed on. It can never legally be moved to another computer, sold,
or given away.

2. It can only do a clean installation, not an upgrade.

3. Microsoft provides no support for OEM versions. You can't call them
with a problem, but instead have to get any needed support from your
OEM; that support may range anywhere between good and non-existent. Or
you can get support elsewhere, such as in these newsgroups.

It's the first point above that's the deal-breaker, as far as I'm
concerned. Instead I recommend a Retail Upgrade copy, which in most
cases can be bought for very close to the same price. And contrary to
what many people think ,an Upgrade copy *can* be used to do a clean
installation, as long as you have a copy of a previous qualifying
version of Windows to insert as proof of ownership when prompted to do
so. Worst case, if you don't have such a CD, you can buy a used copy
of Windows 98 very cheaply someplace like eBay.

 

[Colin Barnhorst]

They install the same XP. The two important differences are:

1. An OEM license cannot be transferred to a second computer even if
uninstalled from the first.

2. An OEM cd cannot perform an upgrade. It can only do a clean
installation of Windows.

A branded OEM cd may contain additional modifications made by a computer
manufacturer to provide drivers and utilities for Windows for a specific
brand and model of computer. This may include software that has been
incorporated into Windows that makes that cd function only on the make and
model of one computer. Attempts to use the cd to install on any other
computer will fail.

System builder copies (the kind NewEgg sells) are generic MS OEM cd's.

From: "Colin Barnhorst" <[email protected]>

| Thanks, although I did forget Embedded, Auto, and XP K.
|

BTW, there is another issue I want to clarify, how about the OEM and
Retail version, what are the difference? Which is better?

 

[Roy]

They install the same XP.  The two important differences are:

1.  An OEM license cannot be transferred to a second computer even if
uninstalled from the first.

2.  An OEM cd cannot perform an upgrade.  It can only do a clean
installation of Windows.

A branded OEM cd may contain additional modifications made by a computer
manufacturer to provide drivers and utilities for Windows for a specific
brand and model of computer.  This may include software that has been
incorporated into Windows that makes that cd function only on the make and
model of one computer.  Attempts to use the cd to install on any other
computer will fail.

System builder copies (the kind NewEgg sells) are generic MS OEM cd's.





BTW, there is another issue I want to clarify, how about the OEM  and
Retail version, what are the difference? Which is better?

Thanks a lot guys for the succinct answers ! you made a lot of things
related to WinXP clear to me.

 

[Colin Barnhorst]

You're welcome.

They install the same XP. The two important differences are:

1. An OEM license cannot be transferred to a second computer even if
uninstalled from the first.

2. An OEM cd cannot perform an upgrade. It can only do a clean
installation of Windows.

A branded OEM cd may contain additional modifications made by a computer
manufacturer to provide drivers and utilities for Windows for a specific
brand and model of computer. This may include software that has been
incorporated into Windows that makes that cd function only on the make and
model of one computer. Attempts to use the cd to install on any other
computer will fail.

System builder copies (the kind NewEgg sells) are generic MS OEM cd's.





BTW, there is another issue I want to clarify, how about the OEM and
Retail version, what are the difference? Which is better?

Thanks a lot guys for the succinct answers ! you made a lot of things
related to WinXP clear to me.