If you are like most of us, you have a few old programs floating around that will possibly only run on XP. If you still have an XP system you will not have any issues at all. The
problem is that many XP systems have very old hardware and are extremely slow, especially if they were manufactured before 2007.
If you have a good running XP machine that will run your software, by all means keep it and use the XP machine to run it. If you have already upgraded to Windows 8 and your old XP machine is no longer running, you will need to try some other alternatives to run your software.
Windows 8, like most of its counterparts, has a thing called compatibility mode. This built in feature will allow you to run software that you normally might not run in Windows 8. This mode can often make a program think it is working in the environment it was designed for.
The first step is to test your software by just trying to install it the old-fashioned way and see if it works. Often times software that does not say Windows 8 or Windows 7 on the label will still work just fine in the new operating system. If for some reason you have issues running the program, you will have to go to the next level.
Try doing a right click on the icon of the software you are trying to run. In the context menu choose Troubleshoot Compatibility and follow any directions that the wizard gives you. You should never attempt this on programs such as Anti-Virus, firewall software or backup software as data loss could occur on your machine.
If that does not work, you might want to try running compatibility mode like this. First, swipe in from the right edge of your screen and then tap or click on Search. Enter the phrase run programs in the search box that appears. Next, tap or click Run Programs made for previous versions of Windows and then click or tap the Next button. In the next step you will want to choose the program that you would like to run. If you do not see the program then select Not Listed. Follow the instructions that are displayed.
If you are still having trouble running your program you can try to manually make changes to the way the program runs. Simply swipe or use the mouse from the right edge of the screen and click or tap Search. You can now enter the name of the program that you are looking to change. Next, press and hold or right click if you are using a mouse and choose Open File Location. Right click on the program icon you are trying to run and choose properties. Next, choose the compatibility tab and select one or more of the options that are given. You might have to experiment a bit to get the right combination of values.
As you can see, just because you have Windows 8 does not always mean that you will not be able to use your old software. With some experimentation, you just might still be able to enjoy that old game or program on your new PC!
Article Posted by, Ross Deprey
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