Users petition Microsoft to save Windows XP

PC users are trying to convince software giant Microsoft Corp. to keep its Windows XP operating system available beyond the staged withdrawal that starts June 30.

Computing magazines ComputerWorld Canada and InfoWorld of San Francisco are running online petitions in the hope that Microsoft won't force users to eventually switch to the newer Vista system.

InfoWorld said that 101,333 people had signed the petition as of March 19.

Vista hasn't caught on because it still has a number of limitations, said ComputerWorld Canada editor Shane Schick.

"There's a lot of popular software products out there … that haven't been retooled to work with Vista," he said.

Computer manufacturers will stop selling new machines with XP installed as of June 30, and Microsoft will end support for the system in April 2009.

The InfoWorld website has given XP backers a forum to express their concerns.

"Millions of us have grown comfortable with XP and don't see a need to change to Vista," one said, comparing the changeover to a forced eviction from a comfortable apartment.

The petition is not the first consumer rejection of Vista, which has met with a cool reception from users.

In April 2007, PC maker Dell Inc. responded to pressure from consumers saying it would let home PC buyers choose between XP and Vista when they bought certain new machines.

Dell, like many computer makers, stopped offering XP on most home desktops and laptops soon after Vista launched on Jan. 30, 2007, but then changed its mind.

Microsoft said in February that it was upgrading the widely criticized Vista, so the system would work with 98 of the 100 top-selling software applications and 78,000 devices and components, up from 34,000 in November 2006.

In announcing the update, it admitted that users had some problems. In particular, critics complained of Vista's inability to work with some software and peripheral devices, such as printers and digital cameras.