To ditch XP or not?

[Arjuna]

Hi all,

We are considering options for the future. We would like to improve the user interface with such things as transparent map overlays and dynamic text fields that support multiple font sizes. To do so while supporting Windows XP would require a major rewrite of the UI - basically ditching our existing UI based on MFC. This is not an attractive or economically viable option for us. Alternately, we can take advantage of the many new features now supported in the latest version of MFC but these do not work under Windows XP. If we were to go this route then it probably would not manifest for at least a year or two.

So would you be in favour of ditching support for Windows XP?

[ZoomBoy27]

Currently use Windows7

This is not an attractive or economically viable option for us.

This doesn't leave much room for change unless you can go without revenue for that extra time
Some Matrix developers see this more as a part-time job. I do not know enough to make that decision. These are internal questions

When I currently play on 1920x1080, the fonts are teeny tiny - is this a major concern for the XP Exit and to others in your customer base?
If ditching XP cannot be done economically, can the UI and art-work be re-worked - or even better - re-imagined by a professional designer or artist?
Maybe by just accepting a maximum size of 1600x900 and maximizing UI effort at that level, you'll have a more polished final product.

[Arjuna]

To support larger fonts without dynamic dialog support you would have to increase the minimum screen size from the current 1024 x 768 or dominate the scren with the side bar at the expense of the battlemap. i don't think the latter is a good option and the former one would disenfranchise a lot of notebook customers.

[Fred98]

I vote for ditching XP
 
All the games to date run on XP.
 
It just means that future games will not.
 
.
 
 
 
 
 

[TonyAAA]

Voted to ditch support.

I'd rather you didn't cripple your product in order to support an OS that most people have already moved on from.

FWIW I say "most people" as the latest Steam survey shows XP (adding both 32 and 64-bit versions) as a little over 18% of its installed base.

http://store.steampowered.com/hwsurvey

ORIGINAL: Arjuna

...then it probably would not manifest for at least a year or two....

^ Especially as you're talking about 2013-14.

[Phoenix100]

XP was a long time ago. I don't think Microsoft supports it any longer...

[Apollo11]

Hi all,

Currently in the world about 50% of all MS Operating Systems are still Windows XP...

I still use it at home (WinXP SP3) - at work I use Windows Vista - on my laptop I have Windows 7...


Leo "Apollo11"

[oldspec4]

Gotta go with Win 7 here.

[junk2drive]

ORIGINAL: Apollo11

Hi all,

Currently in the world about 50% of all MS Operating Systems are still Windows XP...

I still use it at home (WinXP SP3) - at work I use Windows Vista - on my laptop I have Windows 7...


Leo "Apollo11"

I'll guess that a lot of that 50% is businesses that don't want to spend the money for new OS and any training plus legacy software that won't work with 7.

[vsadek]

According to MS, support for Win XP(SP3) is until April 8, 2014.

@junk2drive

Yes, you are right. I work in such a company with 250+ desktops still running on XP(SP3) and at the moment they just don’t want to spend any money and legacy software is greatest concern.

[junk2drive]

One might think that in a year or two, someone that can afford an $80-100 game would have a newer computer that came with 7 installed. But you never know what a groggy core group of fans will surprise you with. They might have paid extra to have 7 replaced with XP.

[wodin]

All OS have there day and I feel it's time to say good bye to XP. I don't want an old OS holding back development to be honest. When Win8 arrives you'll be able to get Win 7 cheap, plus it's a damn fine OS.

[wodin]

ORIGINAL: ZoomBoy27

Currently use Windows7

This is not an attractive or economically viable option for us.

This doesn't leave much room for change unless you can go without revenue for that extra time
Some Matrix developers see this more as a part-time job. I do not know enough to make that decision. These are internal questions

When I currently play on 1920x1080, the fonts are teeny tiny - is this a major concern for the XP Exit and to others in your customer base?
If ditching XP cannot be done economically, can the UI and art-work be re-worked - or even better - re-imagined by a professional designer or artist?
Maybe by just accepting a maximum size of 1600x900 and maximizing UI effort at that level, you'll have a more polished final product.

Arjuna said it wouldn't be viable supporting XP not the other way around.

[springel]

I am running XP, and I plan to keep using it for at least another year, but probably till the end of the support period.

So you would lose me as a customer for some time (but maybe it will take that time to come up with a new product?)

[Deathtreader]

Hi,

About XP all I can say is HASTA LA VISTA BABY!!

Win 7 all the way.............

Rob.[:)]

[wodin]

ORIGINAL: springel

I am running XP, and I plan to keep using it for at least another year, but probably till the end of the support period.

So you would lose me as a customer for some time (but maybe it will take that time to come up with a new product?)

Well your planning to update in a year and I don't think the new game will be out in a years time anyway.

So you'll be fine. Surely you can see it would be holding back the series if they kept XP support up?

[Rosseau]

This is probably an issue that goes far beyond Command Ops, with other devs thinking the same thing. I have stuck with XP because of all the problems I read about years ago with the newer operating systems. And it has served me well. So when everyone goes to Win 7, I just need to buy a second computer when there's enough games worth playing on it. For now, I have too many as it is.

[wodin]

Win7 is the best OS MS have made (well as good as XP was in it's day). WIn8 looks pretty poor though, that is one upgrade I'm staying away from.

[GoodGuy]

ORIGINAL: Arjuna

To support larger fonts without dynamic dialog support you would have to increase the minimum screen size from the current 1024 x 768 or dominate the scren with the side bar at the expense of the battlemap. i don't think the latter is a good option and the former one would disenfranchise a lot of notebook customers.

Most notebooks these days have widescreen displays. Looking at the current poll result (not representative tho), I'd say it would be wiser to increase the minumum size, especially since many of the remaining CRTs (and 4:3 TFTs) still in use are either ending up on the junkyards these days or will get there pretty soon.

My excellent EIZO F56 17" CRT, which I bought in 1996, died in Summer 2010 (!). I'd consider this to be a miracle, being used daily for 14 years, crystal clear image with no loss of visual quality (just had to raise the brightness lvl some more, as it got darker on norm. settings), if I wouldn't have heard about a number of EIZO F56 CRTs at SHELL Germany, being used for some 10 yrs in 2008 (still there afaik, used 24/7 by their IT dep.).

But I'd consider this kinda quality and longevity to be rare. Most CRTs will be gone. Even many old notebooks have native resolutions of around 1100 something (so above 1024) and/or higher. My Lenovo IdeaPad S10 netbook has a native res of 1024x600, a widescreen resolution, so the netbook would produce blurry fonts under 1024x768 anyway, IF that particular widescreen format is not supported. Newer IdeaPads have native resolutions of 1440 x something, afaik.

Even older Notebooks, say like my IBM ThinkPad T30 (from 2002 or 2003?) with 1400 x 1050, have higher native resolutions.
I don't think you'd loose a lot of notebook customers.

I voted "no" (don't ditch XP), as I have to stick with XP on the netbook and on at least 1 of my laptops, for at least 1 or 2 yrs (job, college).

[Waffenamt]

I vote YES - ditch it. Let's move forward, and not got bogged down supporting the legacy stuff.

Regards