I just got the notice from Microsoft that support for XP is finally ending in April. It sounds like they really mean it this time. When you read the article, it says to download the Windows 8 upgrade assistant to see if you can migrate. I tried that and got the message "This platform not supported." Does anybody know if that means my PC won't run Windows 8 or just won't run the upgrade assistant for some reason?
 
It's only a matter of time before I have to bite the bullet and buy new hardware, but now isn't a good time. Of course, I can continue to run XP, but there will be no further security patches after April so that has its own risks. 

Are you sure you are trying to run the Windows 8 (windows 8.0) upgrade assistant and not the Windows 8.1 upgrade assistant?
The 8.1 assistant will only run on Win 7 and later.
 
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-8/upgrade-assistant-download-online-faq
 

Yeah, I went back and downloaded it again just to make sure. Got the same result.

I'm interested to see what happens to all the ATMs running XP...

Microsoft just wants money, but if just using an XP computer it probably will have no problem unless your anti-virus don't work, but then again, software won't be made for it probably any more.
A person could use a Windows 98 computer if you have the drivers for all of your hardware, but if buying new hardware, then they may not have drivers made for Windows XP anymore, so the computer will work with old hardware and drivers that still were made for XP.
 

henkejs
Yeah, I went back and downloaded it again just to make sure. Got the same result.

What are your computer's specs?

A good idea is to split your studio and network computer, so you won't have to worry about security. However, there is still risk - what you bring to your computer on USB drives, CDs... USB Vaccine is the solution to this (hopefully).
The Windows 8 is such an improvement, 8.1 is even better (with Start button).

Ruben
What are your computer's specs?

Windows XP Home Edition SP3
Pentium 4 2.8 GHz
150 GB hard drive, 81.5 GB free
 

henkejs

Ruben
What are your computer's specs?

Windows XP Home Edition SP3
Pentium 4 2.8 GHz
150 GB hard drive, 81.5 GB free

 
You didn't post your RAM, but either way a P4 is an awfully old chip to be running Windows 8. It might work depending on RAM but I would think you would want at least some kind of dual core processor.

Sorry, I thought I had it: 2.5 GB RAM.
 
Yeah, it's an old computer. I wasn't optimistic about the idea of upgrading, but I've read that Windows 8 is a little leaner than its predecessors so I thought it would be interesting to look into it.