Xandros 4: Relief for Windows 98/ME Orphans

Xandros 4: Relief for Windows 98/ME Orphans

Jul 12, 2006
2 minute read
eWeek content and product recommendations are editorially independent. We may make money when you click on links to our partners. Learn More

Today, July 11, is the day Microsoft is ending all support for Windows 98, 98SE, and ME. And, when they say ending all support, they mean ending all support: “Microsoft will end public and technical support by this date. This also includes security updates.”

So, you can either start hauling your older systems to the junk yard after todays last Microsoft patch day, or you can upgrade to Xandros 4, the most Windows-friendly Linux desktop around.

Xandros 4 is the latest in a long series of Linux desktops dating back to Corels 1999 Linux desktop. Xandros has come a long, long way since then.

Today, as three older members of the Windows family depart, Xandros is more than able to take up the needs of these, and other, Windows users.

More so than almost any other Linux desktop, Xandros is designed to look and feel like Windows.

It starts with a KDE 3.42 desktop interface, with some enhancements to increase its Windows-like look and feel.

/zimages/6/104592.jpg

In fact, you can, as I did, set it up to mirror a typical Windows environment and fool users into thinking theyre actually using Windows.

This is helped, in no small measure, by the inclusion in the Home Premium Edition Xandros Desktop Linux 4.0 of CodeWeavers Inc.s Crossover Office 5.03 Standard Edition.

With CrossOver, you can run many popular Windows applications. For example, I was able to run Office 2000 and 2003, Quicken 2004, iTunes 5.01, and Macromedia Dreamweaver MX.

/zimages/6/28571.gifRead the full story on DesktopLinux: Xandros 4: relief for Windows 98/ME orphans

/zimages/6/28571.gifCheck out eWEEK.coms for the latest open-source news, reviews and analysis.

eWeek Logo

eWeek has the latest technology news and analysis, buying guides, and product reviews for IT professionals and technology buyers. The site's focus is on innovative solutions and covering in-depth technical content. eWeek stays on the cutting edge of technology news and IT trends through interviews and expert analysis. Gain insight from top innovators and thought leaders in the fields of IT, business, enterprise software, startups, and more.

Property of TechnologyAdvice. © 2026 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.