Another Day With My PC

Once in a while, some of us install old applications to bring back a part of the good old days. I’m sometimes guilty of clearing a few megabytes in my hard drive for circa 1990 software, some of them even DOS-based.

Nostalgia isn’t the only reason why some people are resurrecting old programs. For those who abhor the clutter of options that software-makers litter in their creations, it is indeed not surprising why a good number of PC users are missing the old applications that are simpler and easier to use.

While it would seem that breathing life back to your outdated programs may be harmless, analysts are discouraging using old software. For one thing, installing them might just induce migraine as new operating systems don’t support obsolete applications anymore.

But the real reason why experts advise users not to reinstall old programs is because they could chisel a hole in your computer’s wall. Malware could easily exploit the security gaps that unpatched software creates. Although program makers regularly releases security patches or updates, they usually do so only to products that have been recently released. Very few would even bother putting a band aid on apps that were issued more than 10 years ago.

Be very careful then when reinstalling or running programs that are not supported by their makers anymore. If you’re bent on using old software again, try to look first on the Internet for patches or updates. If there are none, then don’t connect to the Internet whenever you’re using them as malware in cyberspace could smell unpatched software from thousands of virtual miles away.

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