Windows XP is a personal computer operating system produced byMicrosoft as part of the Windows NT family of operating systems. The operating system was released to manufacturing on August 24, 2001, and generally released for retail sale on October 25, 2001.
Development of XP began in the late 1990s as "Neptune", an operating system built on the Windows NT kernel which was intended specifically for mainstream consumer use—an updated version of Windows 2000was also originally planned for the business market. However, in January 2000, both projects were shelved in favor of a single OS codenamed "Whistler", which would serve as a single OS platform for both consumer and business markets. Windows XP was a major advance from the MS-DOS based versions of Windows in security, stability and efficiency[5] due to its use of Windows NT underpinnings. It introduced a significantly redesigned graphical user interface and was the first version of Windows to use product activation in an effort to reduce software piracy.
Upon its release, Windows XP received generally positive reviews with critics noting increased performance (especially in comparison toWindows ME), a more intuitive user interface, improved hardware support, and its expanded multimedia capabilities.[6] Despite poor initial public reception, often centered on driver support and security restrictions,[citation needed] Windows XP eventually proved to be popular and widely used. It was estimated that at least 400 million copies of Windows XP were sold globally within its first five years of availability,[7][8] and at least one billion copies were sold overall by April 2014.[9]
Windows XP remained popular even after the release of newer versions, particularly due to the poorly received release of its successor Windows Vista. Vista's 2009 successor, Windows 7, would overtake XP in total market share by the end of 2011. Sales of Windows XP licenses tooriginal equipment manufacturers (OEMs) ceased on June 30, 2008, but continued for netbooks until October 2010. Extended support for Windows XP ended on April 8, 2014, after which the operating systemceased receiving further support or security updates to most users. The looming end of support was a cause for concern among companies and governments due to the large contingents of XP users in several market segments influenced by the poor reception of Vista, including enterprise environments, and in China—where there were fears that the end of support would fuel piracy of newer Windows versions
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In January 2000, shortly prior to the official release of Windows 2000, technology writer Paul Thurrott reported that Microsoft had shelved both Neptune and Odyssey in favor of a new product codenamed Whistler, after Whistler, British Columbia, as many Microsoft employees skied at the Whistler-Blackcomb ski resort.[15] The goal of Whistler was to unify both the consumer and business-oriented Windows lines under a single, Windows NT platform, further stating that "Neptune became a black hole when all the features that were cut from [Windows ME] were simply re-tagged as Neptune features. And since Neptune and Odyssey would be based on the same code-base anyway, it made sense to combine them into a single project". At WinHEC in April 2000, Microsoft officially announced and presented an early build of Whistler, focusing on a new modularized architecture, built-in CD burning, fast user switching, and updated versions of the digital media features introduced by ME. Windows general manager Carl Stork stated that Whistler would be released in both consumer- and business-oriented versions built atop the same architecture, and that there were plans to update the Windows interface to make it "warmer and more friendly".[10][12]
In June 2000, Microsoft began the technical beta testing process; Whistler was expected to be made available in "Personal", "Professional", "Server", "Advanced Server", and "Datacenter" editions. At PDC on July 13, 2000, Microsoft announced that Whistler would be released during the second half of 2001, and also released the first preview build, 2250. The build notably introduced an early version of a new visual styles system along with an interim theme known as "Professional" (later renamed "Watercolor"), and contained a hidden "Start page" (a full-screen page similar to Neptune's "Starting Places"), and a hidden, early version of a two-column Start menu design.[16] Build 2257 featured further refinements to the Watercolor theme, along with the official introduction of the two-column Start menu, and the addition of an early version of Windows Firewall.[12]
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