We all know that Windows 7 is coming with several new features, fixes and enhancements that will be an improvement over all previous versions. One problem that many computer users ran into with Vista is that they couldn’t run many of the same programs that they would have been able to with XP. Luckily Microsoft now has an answer for that.

XP virtualization is a new mode that is being added to Windows 7 in which users will be able to run programs off of the Windows 7 operating system. This would be similar to having to operating systems on your computer except that you won’t have to pick between them. You can simply run Windows 7 and then run the virtualization from there.

This mode will appeal to everyday users as much as it will businesses though. This is because there are many everyday users that use old programs for different reasons. Some are gamers that aren’t able to get many of their old games to work while others are elderly folk who don’t have the money to have the “fancy new hardware”.

The XP virtualization is geared towards businesses to help them feel more comfortable switching to Windows 7 even if they believe their software will only work on XP. This will certainly help boost early sales of Windows 7.

There is a downside to all of this as you may expect though. Since Windows 7 requires a lot less memory and system resources to run than XP you will need to have a lot of resources to run the XP virtualization. How much? Well you will need at least 2GB of ram as well as a processor that can handle the virtualization. Not all of the chips can handle it however most new middle and high end chips should have the capability to.

Source: CNET

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