Microsoft tight-lipped over XP upgrades

Microsoft has remained silent about speculation that Windows XP users will have to upgrade their desktop system to run the software.

Microsoft has remained silent about speculation that Windows XP users will have to upgrade their PCs to run the operating system.

The company released the second test version of the software, formerly known as Whistler, last week, but rumours suggest that both business and home users could be forced to buy additional memory or upgrade their processors to run it.

According to Microsoft's website, users need a minimum of a 300Mhz Pentium II processor and 128Mb of Ram to run the beta, compared with the 133Mhz processor and 64Mb of memory required for Windows 2000.

The software giant refused to comment on whether or not users would have to upgrade their desktop systems to use XP.

A company representative said: "We are unable to make a comment at this time."

But the rumours have been welcomed by upgrade and memory specialists such as Swindon-based Memory Plus. Dave Flack, marketing director, said: "The introduction of software such as Windows XP is excellent news for companies such as ourselves, because companies will either be wanting upgrades or to renew their hardware."

Milestones such as the release of Windows XP help companies like Memory Plus to see "the light at the end of the tunnel" in terms of trade, Flack explained.

"We will be keeping up supplies of DDR and Rambus memory, as well as making sure our Legacy supply is up to speed, to help the older machines with upgrades," he added.

Microsoft has been heavily pushing Windows XP, the successor to Windows 2000, because its success is vital to the company's .Net strategy. Bill Gates, the firm's chairman and chief software architect, claims XP takes "the power and adaptability of the PC to a new level".

Also published in Computer Reseller News