Help For XP Users Upgrading To Windows 7
By: Mike Sachoff
Laplink Software has officially launched a version of PCmover that allows Windows XP users to do in-place upgrades to Windows 7.
PCmover Windows 7 Upgrade Assistant is available on Laplink’s website with special Windows 7 pre-release pricing of $14.95. This edition of PCmover provides Windows XP users with the ability to upgrade their existing computers to Windows 7 without having to reinstall applications or backup and restore data.
The challenge Windows XP users are facing is becoming widely known, as Microsoft does no support an “in-place upgrade” from XP to Windows 7. Even for Windows Vista users, Microsoft will only allow in-place upgrades to specific versions of Windows Vista.
“The various upgrade scenarios will be very confusing and frustrating for consumers,” said Thomas Koll, Laplink’s CEO.
“And businesses, especially smaller businesses, will also view this negatively. Our objective is to make upgrading to Windows 7 as easy and as simple as possible, so users can get all the benefits of a this new operating system - which is quite good - without all the hassle.”
Potential for upgrade problems is because out of the 66 upgrade scenarios outlined by Microsoft, only 14 are supported by Windows 7 as an in-place upgrade.
“The big issue is XP to Windows 7,” said Koll. “There are many other scenarios - even more than Microsoft has outlined, but the vast majority will be XP to Windows 7. Our estimates are up to 70% of computers are running XP and a majority of those will be upgraded to Windows 7.”
“Without PCmover, the user is forced to copy their data and settings to external media, install Windows 7, install all their applications, and then copy all their data and settings back to their PC. It requires external storage and it’s very time consuming. Plus, the user must find their old CDs and serial numbers to reinstall their applications. It’s not easy and a lot can go wrong.”