Application Compatibility Features in Windows XP

The imminent release of Windows XP will be a watershed event: from that point forward all desktop, server, and embedded versions of Windows, with the exception of Windows CE, will come from a single code base. That makes it all the more important for developers, users, and administrators to begin addressing any incompatibilities between that code base and their applications and hardware.

Windows XP, currently in beta under the code name Whistler, is Microsoft’s successor to both Windows 2000 Professional and Windows 98 Millennium Edition (ME). Although Windows 2000 and ME are two distinctly different products, Windows XP improves on both: it gives Windows 2000 new and updated application programming interfaces (APIs), such as DirectX version 8; a new themes-based user interface; and applications from Windows ME, such as Windows Media Player version 8 and Movie Maker. Microsoft believes these features will give Windows XP the reliability, security, and performance of Windows 2000 Professional and the ability to run a broad range of consumer multimedia and entertainment applications that previously required Windows 98 or Windows ME, allowing Microsoft to offer it as the desktop operating system for both home and business users.