The operating system will no longer receive updates as of April 8, 2014

May 27, 2013 09:35 GMT  ·  By

Microsoft will retire Windows XP next year, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that everybody’s fully prepared for the transition to another OS.

Educational institutions in Clark County say that moving to Windows 7 is simply too expensive and way too many computers are still running Windows XP at this point.

"The vast majority of our computers still run Windows XP," Scott McDaniel, district director of technology services, was quoted as saying by The Columbian.

"Fortunately, we passed our levy last month. That still doesn't mean we can afford to replace every computer in the district. The biggest challenge of upgrading to Windows 7 or higher is the ability of the hardware to support it. The vast majority of our computers have been donated by state agencies, and many are eight years old and won't support the Windows 7 operating system."

And still, according to a Microsoft-commissioned study, staying with Windows XP is actually three times more expensive than simply moving to Windows 8.

The research conducted by IDC revealed that the average costs for moving all files on Windows 8 was only $95 (€73), while keeping Windows XP on your computer should increase the investments to $300 (€232). This is mostly due to the need for third-party support and because of apps not working on Windows XP anymore, the study explained.

"Approximately 50-60 per cent installed PC base in the enterprises are still running Windows XP. This is an alarming situation as non-migration puts businesses at risk of security breaches and could potentially create a big dent to the company's brand image," Microsoft India director, Windows Business Group, Amrish Goyal, was quoted as saying.

At this point, more than 38 percent of the computers worldwide are powered by Windows XP, while Windows 8 is installed on approximately 4 percent of the systems.