Well, it’s finally here. Windows XP is officially over on April 8th. We’re slightly concerned that this is coming as something of a surprise to so many people.But you need to take action.

No, your Windows XP machine will not dramatically self-destruct as in Mission Impossible or stop running. But there will no longer be any of the weekly to monthly security updates and that alone should give you pause considering all the recent high profile security breaches that seem to blanket the internet.

What should you do? It’s simple, upgrade to Windows 8.1. Why not Windows 7, given all the negative comments about the ‘Metro’ desktop? Because at this point, we’re now two years into the Windows 8 life cycle and believe it or not, Windows 7 support will soon be downgraded. So for maximum safety, you should get with the current OS.

If you are still a bit put off by the Windows 8 desktop, keep in mind that there are several very easy and inexpensive add-ons which restore the ‘classic’ Windows interface. We can help you with that, or of course your local IT pro can select one for you. That way you get the best of both worlds: the comforting UI you’re used to and the performance and security improvements in Windows 8.1.

If you held off on upgrading because “if it ain’t broke…” please remember that Windows XP has been responsible for the lion’s share of internet security breaches over the past fifteen years—including the recent Target debacle. Windows XP has been outdated and unsafe for a long time; you just didn’t know it. Using Windows XP has been like having a smoke detector with an old battery. Just because your house hasn’t burned didn’t mean the thing was working properly. You’ve just been lucky.

If you have several licenses, we can help with upgrades (we can often provide a better rate on quantities of 5 or more.) but regardless, it’s a new year and now is the time to update your systems.

Hopefully it goes without saying: since day one, all Simple Accounting software has been certified as compatible with both the 32 and 64 bit versions of Windows 8.