What outdated software do you still swear by?

[Mr Sparkle]

I thought i'd split this off rather than drag the other thread off topic

Ahh, PSP (Paint Shop Pro). Still use PSP5 (yes, 5) to do a lot of stuff. Although I obviously use other programs for vectors, etc now.

Anyone else have any similar programs from years back that they never have to think twice about installing? Fireworks MX is my first port of call if ever I need to do anything with images.

[Steve Lampkins]

Office 2003. I don't need anything fancy.

[sickpuppy]

I think I'm using an older Office despite being able to install a more recent copy. I just can't be bothered for very little benefit.

Who's still using XP?

[Steve Lampkins]

Some of my co-workers haven't yet been bothered to take an afternoon to get their machines upgraded to 7.

[Matt]

Most PCs here are still running XP, some Vista.

Either is outdated and useless.

Looking at lots of peoples machines like I do, loads of people run older office - majority because its dodgy copy they borrowed off a mate - or most cos they cant be bothered to upgrade.

So many people get funny when I say I need to reinstall and I need their copy of office.

[sarahA]

I still use XP, and it's not useless My PHP Editor (Zend Studio) doesn't run directly on Windows 7, even tried it using the various compatibility mode options. Their later version is about 6 times the price and extremely bloated for what I want. Plenty of people complaining about that online.

There is a way to run it by editing the Java set up on win 7, I just need to test it out on our spare laptop when I get half an hour (so when Thomas leaves home...) and then I can upgrade. That is the only reason I haven't, but I spend 90% of my time using it so it's quite important.

Also use mailwasher pro 6.3, my license doesn't allow me to use the newer version and to be honest it's bloated. Have Office 2007, my SmartFTP is a couple of versions out of date, again the license works for that but won't let me upgrade without renewing.

So nothing majorly old like PSP, although I may still have Windows 3.1, Works 2, Word Perfect for DOS and other 90's software on floppy disks at my parents.

Plus eSheep

[Matt]

You can run an XP Virtual Machine for free in Windows 7 - so you can run any programs through that - but may be a PITA

It is useless tho, its what 10 years old now?! 7 is a far better piece of software (Before anyone says, its not perfect by any means!) 

I still use XP, and it's not useless My PHP Editor (Zend Studio) doesn't run directly on Windows 7, even tried it using the various compatibility mode options. Their later version is about 6 times the price and extremely bloated for what I want. Plenty of people complaining about that online.

There is a way to run it by editing the Java set up on win 7, I just need to test it out on our spare laptop when I get half an hour (so when Thomas leaves home...) and then I can upgrade. That is the only reason I haven't, but I spend 90% of my time using it so it's quite important.

Also use mailwasher pro 6.3, my license doesn't allow me to use the newer version and to be honest it's bloated. Have Office 2007, my SmartFTP is a couple of versions out of date, again the license works for that but won't let me upgrade without renewing.

So nothing majorly old like PSP, although I may still have Windows 3.1, Works 2, Word Perfect for DOS and other 90's software on floppy disks at my parents.

Plus eSheep

[suedenem]

I still use XP, and it's not useless My PHP Editor (Zend Studio) doesn't run directly on Windows 7, even tried it using the various compatibility mode options. Their later version is about 6 times the price and extremely bloated for what I want. Plenty of people complaining about that online.

There is a way to run it by editing the Java set up on win 7, I just need to test it out on our spare laptop when I get half an hour (so when Thomas leaves home...) and then I can upgrade. That is the only reason I haven't, but I spend 90% of my time using it so it's quite important.

You could run probably Zend on Win7Pro as a virtual app in XP mode.  It's less convoluted than it sounds ;-) Have you tried Eclipse? The coders here swear by it.

I tried the latest versions of PSP recently (for old time's sake) and hated it.  I don't know whether it's because I'm used to PS, or whether they've seriously dumbed down the interface for the consumer market.  Probably a bit of both - in days gone by it was sort-of photoshop-lite; now it's photoshop-elements-lite.

Still have XP on an old laptop.  Hardware probably wouldn't be up to 7, and it still does everything I need it to do.  That aside, there are a couple of shareware products which are a few major version behind - again because the upgrade isn't justified.

[Jem]

WS_FTP LE from the early 90s. Rock on.

[fordie]

I have to use XP at work. I wouldn't say I swear by it, I do often swear at it

[suedenem]

It is useless tho, its what 10 years old now?! 7 is a far better piece of software (Before anyone says, its not perfect by any means!)  

I do think that's contestable! Both XP and 7 are remarkably robust, capable operating systems.  That there is still resistance to XPers upgrading after 10 years is perhaps testament to how good it actually is.

Vista was never worth the upgrade (downgrade, arguably) from XP, just as ME was never worth the 'upgrade' from 98.  Whilst 7 is 'better', the costs of upgrading from XP might not be worth it - you're talking close to or upwards of £1,500 - £2,000 per workstation in many cases.

WS_FTP LE from the early 90s. Rock on.

I used that for years, until we moved to transferring files over a protocol which isn't inherently insecure like FTP.  WinSCP does the job now; it also has a load of power-user features such as directory sync, mirrored directory browsing, regex transfer filters (and saved filter sets) and the ability to run shell commands on the server (so we can transfer a ~2.5MB Wordpress latest.gzip, then unpack it on the server, or zip up a load of log or backup files before pulling local).

[rutty]

Work laptop still has XP on it. Works fine and does everything I need. Why bother upgrading?

[Charisma Bypass]

Really old version of Winzip (9 I think).

Leech FTP (this is abandonware now, but I got it in 1998 and had to post (as in postman!) 10 euros for it).

PHP Coder (now called PHP-Ide).  I have version 1 which is very basic but does everything I need it to do.

Photoshop 6.  Managed to upgrade from a free version of photoshop that came free with a camera I bought.  This is something that I really need to upgrade to the latest PS as my PS cannot open PSD files made with later versions, but mainly I just use it to crop images, so it's not important.

Vista on this laptop. XP on another almost dead laptop.  XP on the main unit (which hasn't been turned on in probably 3 years).

[Steve Lampkins]

Work laptop still has XP on it. Works fine and does everything I need. Why bother upgrading?

Small thing, but when I moved from XP to Win7, it seemed to actually be nippier. I think it improves productivity (and state of mind when you're not cursing how slow something is).

[Jem]

I used that for years, until we moved to transferring files over a protocol which isn't inherently insecure like FTP.  WinSCP does the job now; it also has a load of power-user features such as directory sync, mirrored directory browsing, regex transfer filters (and saved filter sets) and the ability to run shell commands on the server (so we can transfer a ~2.5MB Wordpress latest.gzip, then unpack it on the server, or zip up a load of log or backup files before pulling local).

Yeah, my friend raves about WinSCP. It's a resistance-to-change thing. I might stop using it when I stop using PSP7, Animation Shop 3, Windows XP etc But then I spent 4-5 years coding in Notepad before I realised there were other options, so..

[Jem]

Work laptop still has XP on it. Works fine and does everything I need. Why bother upgrading?

Small thing, but when I moved from XP to Win7, it seemed to actually be nippier. I think it improves productivity (and state of mind when you're not cursing how slow something is).

I found the same on my home laptop, but it's not significant enough of a speed increase to want to nag my boss into buying me Win7 for work.

[Matt]

It is useless tho, its what 10 years old now?! 7 is a far better piece of software (Before anyone says, its not perfect by any means!)  

I do think that's contestable! Both XP and 7 are remarkably robust, capable operating systems.  That there is still resistance to XPers upgrading after 10 years is perhaps testament to how good it actually is.

Vista was never worth the upgrade (downgrade, arguably) from XP, just as ME was never worth the 'upgrade' from 98.  Whilst 7 is 'better', the costs of upgrading from XP might not be worth it - you're talking close to or upwards of £1,500 - £2,000 per workstation in many cases.

Bollocks. How old are these machines? You can buy a new PC cheaper then that, so where do you pull that figure from? I upgrade lots of XP spec machines to Windows 7 on a regular basis, and they all more then cope, and run faster then with XP on.

[Matt]

Work laptop still has XP on it. Works fine and does everything I need. Why bother upgrading?

Small thing, but when I moved from XP to Win7, it seemed to actually be nippier. I think it improves productivity (and state of mind when you're not cursing how slow something is).

Having done this on several older laptops, anything with 1GB of RAM + is fast enough and would benefit.

You can use the excuse if it aint broke, dont fix it on anything - but 7 is a better piece of software and does much more then XP - so if you gave it a try you would perhaps find features etc that would make life easier or better somehow then sticking with a 10 year old piece of software, which has been patched that many times it must cause huge issues.

[sarahA]

You can run an XP Virtual Machine for free in Windows 7 - so you can run any programs through that - but may be a PITA

You could run probably Zend on Win7Pro as a virtual app in XP mode.  It's less convoluted than it sounds ;-)

I tried this, but on a (at the time) 3.5 yr old laptop (now add a year to that), it was too slow, I took double the time to get anything done. I tried other editors but nothing comes close.

Have you tried Eclipse? The coders here swear by it.

If that's what was out last year then yes. It rings a bell. That's the bloated* (okay, bloated for my own needs) software I mentioned. It all changed after 5.5.1, and when I tried the free trial I just didn't know where to start as it was a major change. Not to mention, I've already paid £55 for my version, they now charge 299 euros for the latest. I think with eclipse the price shot up, and whilst I would be happy to pay that for an upgrade, I'm not if it's a completely different system to what I want / am used to.

I'm sure eventually I'll redownload the latest version, have a play, suss where they've moved everything and possibly upgrade, but I can't see that happening until a new laptop comes my way (which won't be this tax year!).

Getting Studio 5.5 working on 7 is doable as I mentioned, and if I can crack that I'll upgrade as I did like Win7 otherwise. But I still don't think XP is useless. It's still supported, and it allows you to undock the quick launch bar (something I couldn't find how to do in 7 - it's the little things...).

* There is probably a lot more I could do with it and would probably help/save time in the long run. I've just not had time to read the manual yet...!

[suedenem]

Bollocks. How old are these machines? You can buy a new PC cheaper then that, so where do you pull that figure from? I upgrade lots of XP spec machines to Windows 7 on a regular basis, and they all more then cope, and run faster then with XP on.

Costs are much more than just the cost of the OS/your time.

This is entirely feasible:

• Win7Pro - ~£160
• Virtualize existing workstation to ease user transition - ~0.5 day/£200
• Stick an extra 2GB RAM into workstation (may as well - as good a time as any) - ~£30
• Install & configure Win7 (inc. networking, install printers, that sorta thing) - ~1 day/£400
• Install required software (Ninite only gets you so far)  ~0.5-1 day/£200-£350
• Time calling support line of critical business accounts software supplier to find out that the version you use isn't Win7 compatible, then more time using workarounds to get the damned thing to work - 0.5 day/£200
• Set up the virtual PC you created earlier before install - 1hr/£50
• Staff handover/training/handholding - 0.5 day (over first month)/£200
• Set up Zend as an XP mode virtual app because Sarah demands it - 1hr/£50
• Staff down-time because they don't have access to workstation (downgraded from full time spent away as they can do other things on other workstations/'offline', or you could run some things overnight) ~0.5 day/£200-£450
• Lower staff productivity as they get used to the new OS - ~£200
• Upgrade of Photoshop 6 to CS5 because virtualizing it just won't cut it - ~£600

Add £500 if a new workstation is required.

[sarahA]

Set up Zend as an XP mode virtual app because Sarah demands it - 1hr/£50

[yawner]

XP

Apart from our telly PC, all our machines run XP. It was the first really stable version of Windows I ever used, so I'm sticking with it for now thanks. Something doesn`t become useless just because its been on the market for a few years.

Word 97

With that in mind, I still use Word 97! For my needs, I just don`t see any reason in paying £££ for the latest bloatware.

PSP 9

Just about the last version of Paint Shop Pro. Again, fine for my needs!

Allaire Homesite 4

Yup. Still use this! Probably the best code editor I've ever had. I believe this is all packaged in with Dreamweaver now?

I must admit that I never liked Internet Explorer, so in terms of browsers I'm not such a luddite, and use Chrome. Oh, and I've made the leap from Outlook Express to Windows Mail, even though WM is rather slow. 

[Matt]

Bollocks. How old are these machines? You can buy a new PC cheaper then that, so where do you pull that figure from? I upgrade lots of XP spec machines to Windows 7 on a regular basis, and they all more then cope, and run faster then with XP on.

Costs are much more than just the cost of the OS/your time.

This is entirely feasible:

• Win7Pro - ~£160
• Virtualize existing workstation to ease user transition - ~0.5 day/£200
• Stick an extra 2GB RAM into workstation (may as well - as good a time as any) - ~£30
• Install & configure Win7 (inc. networking, install printers, that sorta thing) - ~1 day/£400
• Install required software (Ninite only gets you so far)  ~0.5-1 day/£200-£350
• Time calling support line of critical business accounts software supplier to find out that the version you use isn't Win7 compatible, then more time using workarounds to get the damned thing to work - 0.5 day/£200
• Set up the virtual PC you created earlier before install - 1hr/£50
• Staff handover/training/handholding - 0.5 day (over first month)/£200
• Set up Zend as an XP mode virtual app because Sarah demands it - 1hr/£50
• Staff down-time because they don't have access to workstation (downgraded from full time spent away as they can do other things on other workstations/'offline', or you could run some things overnight) ~0.5 day/£200-£450
• Lower staff productivity as they get used to the new OS - ~£200
• Upgrade of Photoshop 6 to CS5 because virtualizing it just won't cut it - ~£600

Add £500 if a new workstation is required.

You are still talking absolute bollocks. There is no way a home user would cost it like that, your pulling figures out of air, and in many cases pulling jobs out of the air to justify your bullshit figure.

Even in a corporate environment your figures are way out. In fact several people I work with, and who work in other enviroments responses to your post have included laughing, saying "I wish" and does this person have a clue?

[Matt]

XP

Apart from our telly PC, all our machines run XP. It was the first really stable version of Windows I ever used, so I'm sticking with it for now thanks. Something doesn`t become useless just because its been on the market for a few years.

Gah. Its 10 years old! (granted, thats young to you!) But still, things move on - are you not worried about how many vunrabilities you are opening yourself too? Software not updating to the latest version, lack of patches, lack of hardware support/driver support?

Im not saying everyone should move to 7 for the sake of it (heck Im managing 300 XP machines!) But if your PC can support it you should (and even pre vista machines can) - its not just an update for features etc - it is honestly a better OS, stable, more secure and in many cases, faster.

[Jem]

Word 97

With that in mind, I still use Word 97! For my needs, I just don`t see any reason in paying £££ for the latest bloatware.

Ahh, Word 97 was where it was at. I was 'forced' to upgrade that one :'(

[robwhizz]

Still running Win2K on a couple of machines in the office!   Everything else at work is XP. Server is 2003 (got a W2K server that ran DCHP and DNS until I finally transferred it to the 2003 server at the beginning of the year).

Got a mix of Office XP and 2003 in the office. Use 2003 at home and see no need to change it. I have tried one of the newer versions and found the toolbars to be plain stupid. Why replace the idea of having every button you need right there and replacing with a 2-click system where you have to keep switching menus to get at different buttons. Really bloody irritating.

Still using Sage Line 50 which is ancient. They keep calling me and pestering me to upgrade. Why? It does what is needed.

[yawner]

But still, things move on - are you not worried about how many vunrabilities you are opening yourself too?

I lie awake at night 

[Steve Lampkins]

But you can get creams for that.

[yawner]

Yum. Custard creams.

[Matt]

But still, things move on - are you not worried about how many vunrabilities you are opening yourself too?

I lie awake at night 

Thats not the worry of computer viruses keeping you awake tho, is it?!