List of features removed in Windows XP

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Windows XP

As the next version of Windows NT after Windows 2000, as well as the successor to Windows Me, Windows XP introduced many new features but it also removed some others. Following is a list of these.

Shell

  • The balloon notification (or dialog box) that warns the users when removing external flash storage devices without safe unmounting has been removed.[1]
  • The Line Up Icons command on the desktop was removed and replaced by the Align to Grid option.[2] Due to this being a toggle, simply aligning desktop icons once without further constraining their placement requires an extra click.[3]:47
  • The Minimize all windows command on the taskbar was removed.[3]:76 The purported replacement, Show the desktop, co-existed with this feature on Windows 2000 and in any case only hides windows temporarily instead of actually minimizing them. It is still accessible through the keyboard shortcut but it is not available through the mouse.
  • The Show icons using all possible colors (which was previously introduced in Microsoft Plus! for Windows 95 and Windows NT 4.0) option in Display Properties has been removed. Icons are always shown using all possible colors. Microsoft states that this is by design.[4]
  • The VGA screen resolution and 8-bit color depth options have been removed from the Settings tab of Display Properties. It is still possible to select these options using the Advanced button available under this tab, however Microsoft states that this workaround is unsupported.[5]
  • In the Command Prompt, QuickEdit mode and Insert mode are disabled by default.[6]
  • Links to Phone Dialer[7] and NetMeeting[8] were removed from the Start menu.

Boot

  • The "Starting Windows..." message before the boot screen (which was present in Windows 2000) has been removed.
  • The progress bar on the boot screen is now an indeterminate progress bar and not determinate like with Windows 2000. The animated gradient bar on the boot screen seen on Windows 95, 98, Me and Windows 2000 was also removed, as was the text "Starting up…" which was located next to the progress bar in Windows 2000's boot screen.

Personalization

  • With the Desktop Themes utility in 2000 becoming the Themes tab in Display Properties in XP, the Rotate theme monthly option in Desktop Themes, which was introduced in Microsoft Plus! 98 and later included in Windows 2000 and Me, and both the options to select what parts of a theme to apply and the previews for parts of a theme were removed.
  • The previous wallpapers and tiles from Windows 95–98, Windows Me, Windows NT 4.0 and Windows 2000 including the Plus! wallpaper were removed.
  • The Utopia sound scheme, first included in Windows 95 and included up to Windows Me, was removed. Despite this, the files for the sound scheme are still included on the Windows XP CD-ROM in the i386 folder and could be manually installed on Windows XP from the CD-ROM.
  • It is no longer possible to save or delete schemes under the Appearance tab of Display Properties.
  • The option to select a Pattern under the Background (9x/NT)/Desktop (XP) tab of Display Properties was removed. Users can only set a pattern with the Registry Editor.[9]
  • The 3D FlowerBox, 3D Flying Objects, 3D Pipes and 3D Text screensavers have been updated and dropped OpenGL support in favor of Direct3D.
    • The 3D Flying Objects screensaver was updated to replace the classic Windows logo in use since Windows 3.1 with the then-new Windows logo introduced with Windows XP, while the 3D Maze and Flying Windows screensavers were removed entirely as they were never updated to accommodate the aforementioned Windows logo changes. The 3D Pipes teapot easter egg was also removed from Windows XP.

Windows Explorer

  • Small Icons view was removed from Windows Explorer.[10]
  • Web view in folders was disabled by default but can be reinstated by editing the registry. Additionally, the Customize This Folder Wizard was removed.[11] Due to the removal of Web view, pie charts showing disk space are no longer available immediately upon opening a drive.[12]
  • The status bar no longer shows the free space remaining on the given disk when browsing through folder paths of shell namespace extensions,[13] removable drives,[14] and network shares when the navigation pane (Folders) in Windows Explorer is turned on, unlike in Windows 2000. It continues to show the free space remaining only for paths on local drives. In combination with the Web view-related lack of pie charts previously mentioned, this means it is no longer possible to immediately view the amount of space remaining in these three cases.
  • The Directory icon was removed from My Network Places.[15]
  • The default sort order in Windows Explorer has changed but can be restored by editing the registry.[16]

Media components

Protocols

  • NetDDE[21] and NetBEUI,[22] which are included in earlier versions of Windows, are no longer installed by default but can still be manually installed from the Windows XP CD-ROM.
  • The DLC network protocol is no longer included. A download was made available by Microsoft.[23]
  • The AppleTalk protocol is no longer included and was not made available for download from Microsoft.[24]

Subsystems

  • The Microsoft POSIX subsystem was removed.[25] Windows Services for UNIX is available as a replacement.[26]
  • The Microsoft OS/2 subsystem, which supports 16-bit character-based OS/2 applications and emulates OS/2 1.x but not 32-bit or graphical OS/2 applications as used with OS/2 2.x or later, was removed.[25]

Hardware support

Windows 9x

  • WebTV for Windows was removed.[32]
  • DriveSpace was removed in favour of native NTFS compression.[33]
  • The NTBackup tool included in Windows XP does not support certain backup formats available for use in the MSBackup tool in Windows 9x.[34]
  • COMMAND.COM, a command interpreter exclusive to MS-DOS, Windows 95, 98, 98 SE and Me and not in the Windows NT operating systems, is no longer shipped with Windows XP.[35]

Later versions

Service Pack 2

  • The following raw socket functionality was removed: sending TCP network packets, sending UDP packets with invalid source network addresses, and associating local addresses.[36]
  • Support for TCP half-open connections was removed.[37]
  • Program Manager was removed and replaced with Windows Explorer. The executable is still present, but it was replaced with a stub that redirects to Explorer.
  • Media Bar, which replaced the Radio Toolbar in Internet Explorer 6,[38] was removed.[39]
  • Background message compaction was removed from Outlook Express.[40] Outlook Express in Service Pack 2 automatically compacts messages every hundredth time it is run.
  • The radio edit of David Byrne's "Like Humans Do", as previously included in the original and Service Pack 1 releases of Windows XP, was removed.
  • The Windows Movie Maker Sample File (generated by Windows Movie Maker 1.1 when it is started for the first time), which consisted of clips of a male child riding a tricycle, playing in a playground, and then running in a field, was removed.
  • The unique boot screens that have a green progress bar for Home Edition and a blue progress bar for Professional, Embedded, Tablet PC Edition, and Media Center Edition and part of Windows XP versions RTM—SP1, were removed as of Service Pack 2 and replaced with a single generic "Windows XP" boot screen with a blue progress bar.
    • The copyright years on the boot screen were also removed.

Service Pack 3

  • The Address bar toolbar on the taskbar was removed for legal reasons, according to Microsoft. Windows Desktop Search is touted as a replacement.[41]
  • The ability to use boot disks to boot into setup was removed.
  • The option to display the special Internet Explorer icon on the desktop was removed.[42]
  • The ability to install service packs cumulatively is no longer available in Service Pack 3 as it requires at least Service Pack 1 to be installed first (Service Pack 2 in the cases of the original Windows XP Media Center Edition and Windows XP Media Center Edition 2004).[43][44] Cumulative slipstreaming, however, is still possible and supported.[45]
  • The Energy Star logo in the Display Properties dialog, which originated in previous versions of Windows XP and included up to Service Pack 2, was removed.[46]
  • The copyright information in the About Windows (winver.exe) box was updated from "1985-2001" to "2007". The banner itself remains unchanged, however.

Media Center Edition 2005

See also

References

  1. ↑ Chen, Raymond (December 16, 2003). "The unsafe device removal dialog". The Old New Thing. Microsoft. http://blogs.msdn.com/b/oldnewthing/archive/2003/12/16/43890.aspx. 
  2. ↑ "Line Up Icons Command Is Missing on Windows XP Desktop". Support. Microsoft. January 27, 2006. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/293478. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Karp, David A.; O'Reilly, Tim; Mott, Troy (2005). Windows XP in a Nutshell (2nd ed.). Sebastopol, CA: O'Reilly Media, Inc.. ISBN 0596009003. https://archive.org/details/windowsxpinnutsh00karp. Retrieved November 7, 2012. 
  4. ↑ ""Show icons using all possible colors" Option Is Not Available". Support. Microsoft. January 15, 2006. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/282432. 
  5. ↑ "Cannot Change Display Setting to 640 X 480 or 256 Color". Support. Microsoft. January 15, 2006. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/286906. 
  6. ↑ "Command Prompt QuickEdit Mode Is Disabled by Default in Windows XP". Support. Microsoft. January 15, 2006. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/282301. 
  7. ↑ "Phone Dialer Is Not Available in the Communications Menu". Support. Microsoft. January 15, 2006. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/285920. 
  8. ↑ "NetMeeting Is Not Available on the Windows XP "Communications" Menu". Support. Microsoft. January 25, 2006. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/298327. 
  9. ↑ Wempen, Faithe (April 21, 2010). "10 cool registry edits and tweaks for Windows XP". http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/10-things/10-cool-registry-edits-and-tweaks-for-windows-xp/. 
  10. ↑ Thurrott, Paul (October 6, 2010). "Windows 7 Feature Focus: Windows Explorer". SuperSite for Windows. Penton. http://winsupersite.com/article/windows-7/windows-7-feature-focus-windows-explorer. 
  11. ↑ "Windows Explorer no longer displays Web view templates or HTML customizations (using Folder.htt)". Support. Microsoft. October 10, 2003. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/819028. 
  12. ↑ JCMIT (September 6, 2004). "Free space pie chart missing?". Annoyances.org. http://www.annoyances.org/exec/forum/winxp/t1094485009. 
  13. ↑ aeneas kaolin (December 29, 2004). "'Disk Free Space' not displayed in Windows Explorer UNLESS viewing files under Desktop > My Computer > C". Annoyances.org. http://www.annoyances.org/exec/forum/winxp/t1104332485. 
  14. ↑ ranvel (June 11, 2006). "Free space no listed in status bar for removable drives". derkeiler.com. http://newsgroups.derkeiler.com/Archive/Alt/alt.os.windows-xp/2006-06/msg00442.html. 
  15. ↑ "The Directory icon in Entire Network in My Network Places is missing". Support. Microsoft. March 15, 2005. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/329495. 
  16. ↑ "The sort order for files and folders whose names contain numerals is different in Windows Vista, Windows XP, and Windows Server 2003 than it is in Windows 2000". Support. Microsoft. August 28, 2007. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/319827. 
  17. ↑ "Unable to Locate Either CD Deluxe or CD Player Playlists in Windows Media Player". Support. Microsoft. February 28, 2014. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/284971. 
  18. ↑ Thurrott, Paul (June 25, 1998). "Plus! for Windows 98 Review". SuperSite for Windows. Penton. http://winsupersite.com/article/windows-95/plus-for-windows-98-reviewed-127376. 
  19. ↑ "Kodak imaging for Windows is not included with Windows XP". Support. Microsoft. March 22, 2007. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/308979. 
  20. ↑ "Kodak/Wang Image OCX Controls | Some History". Ilixis. February 29, 2012. http://www.ilixis.com/developer/kodak_history.html. 
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 "Understanding Application Compatibility". TechNet. Microsoft. https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ee449431.aspx. 
  22. ↑ "How to install NetBEUI on Windows XP". Support. Microsoft. June 23, 2005. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/301041. 
  23. ↑ "The DLC Protocol Is Not Available in Windows XP". Support. Microsoft. October 11, 2002. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/306037. 
  24. ↑ "The AppleTalk Protocol Is Not Available in Windows XP". Support. Microsoft. October 18, 2001. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/305989. 
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 25.2 "Kernel Enhancements for Windows XP". MSDN. Microsoft. January 13, 2003. http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/hardware/gg463468.aspx. 
  26. ↑ "POSIX and OS/2 are not supported in Windows XP or in Windows Server 2003". Support. Microsoft. May 12, 2004. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/308259. 
  27. ↑ Mark Edward Soper (2004). Absolute Beginner's Guide to A+ Certification. Indianapolis, IN: Que Publishing. p. 519. ISBN 0789730626. https://books.google.com/books?id=KHCRkX5d-gAC&pg=PA519. Retrieved February 3, 2020. "Other size options are also available in Windows 2000; the /f:size option is not supported in Windows XP." 
  28. ↑ "Floppy Disk Formats That Are Supported in Windows XP". Support. Microsoft. October 30, 2001. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/309623. 
  29. ↑ "You Cannot Format 720 KB Floppy Disks in Windows XP". Support. Microsoft. January 31, 2007. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/302113. 
  30. ↑ "Non-Plug and Play Network Device Support in Windows XP". Support. Microsoft. October 18, 2001. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/295745. 
  31. ↑ "SCSI Host Adapters Removed from Windows XP". Support. Microsoft. January 27, 2006. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/270650. 
  32. ↑ "TV and Broadcast Driver Architecture". WHDC. Microsoft. http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/archive/broadcast.mspx. 
  33. ↑ "How to prepare to upgrade Windows 98 or Windows Millennium Edition to Windows XP". Support. Microsoft. March 5, 2013. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/316639. 
  34. ↑ "Cannot Restore Backups That You Create in Windows 95, Windows 98, or Windows Me with the Windows XP Ntbackup Tool". Support. Microsoft. May 7, 2007. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/305381. 
  35. ↑ "New ways to do familiar tasks". Windows XP Product Documentation. Microsoft. http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/dos_diffs.mspx?mfr=true. 
  36. ↑ "TCP/IP Raw Sockets (Windows)". MSDN. Microsoft. http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/ms740548.aspx. 
  37. ↑ "Source: Tcpip ID: 4226 (Windows Operating System ) - Events And Errors Message Center: Message Details". Microsoft. http://www.microsoft.com/products/ee/transform.aspx?ProdName=Windows+Operating+System&EvtID=4226&EvtSrc=Tcpip. 
  38. ↑ "The Radio Toolbar Is Unavailable in Internet Explorer 6". Support. Microsoft. January 31, 2007. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/303130. 
  39. ↑ "Media Bar". MSDN. Microsoft. September 4, 2012. http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms533100.aspx. 
  40. ↑ Koch, Tom (April 29, 2006). "Inside Outlook Express - Files and Settings - Maintenance Part I". Inside Outlook Express. http://www.insideoe.com/files/maintain.htm. 
  41. ↑ "The Address toolbar no longer appears on the taskbar after you install Windows XP Service Pack 3". Support. Microsoft. May 6, 2008. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/951448. 
  42. ↑ "Restore Missing or Disappeared IE (Internet Explorer) Desktop Icon in Windows XP SP3". Tip and Trick. May 11, 2008. http://www.tipandtrick.net/restore-missing-or-disappeared-ie-internet-explorer-desktop-icon-in-windows-xp-sp3/. 
  43. ↑ "Installing Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3)". TechNet. Microsoft. November 18, 2011. https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc507836.aspx. 
  44. ↑ "Windows XP Service Pack 3 installation fails with an error message, and the following error is logged in the service pack installation log: "8007F0F4 - STATUS_PREREQUISITE_FAILED"". Support. Microsoft. June 12, 2012. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/949388. 
  45. ↑ "After you create Windows XP Service Pack 3 slipstreamed media, your product key is not accepted". Support. Microsoft. January 18, 2010. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/950722. 
  46. ↑ "List of fixes that are included in Windows XP Service Pack 3". Support. Microsoft. September 23, 2011. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/946480. 
  47. ↑ "You cannot join your computer to a domain in Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005". Support. Microsoft. November 19, 2004. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/887212. 



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