Windows XP N Editions

[prathapml]

After much hemming and hawing, Microsoft finally shipped its so-called N Editions of Windows XP--Windows XP Home Edition N and Windows XP Professional Edition N--to European Union (EU) countries in mid-June. The N Editions, as you may recall, were designed to satisfy an EU antitrust ruling against the software giant which stipulated that Microsoft must ship a version of Windows XP that did not include Windows Media Player (WMP) or any associated files.

Microsoft's documentation about the N Editions explains what files where left out to meet this requirement. In total, almost 200 files were removed from XP Home and Professional Editions, though most of them are ancillary or support files. The most crucial missing pieces, of course, are Windows Media Player itself (WMPLAYER.EXE) and the "classic" version of WMP (MPLAYER2.EXE) that Microsoft still inexplicably ships in other XP versions.

If you're wondering what the XP N Editions are like, wonder no more. I got my hands on both XP Home N and XP Pro N this week and gave them both a spin......

http://www.winsupersite.com/showcase/windowsxp_n.asp

[SiMoNsAyS]

i personally find this edition interesting since i always try to remove wmp from my system

btw, how it is supposed multimedia content to be played now...

[Aegis]

i personally find this edition interesting since i always try to remove wmp from my system

btw, how it is supposed multimedia content to be played now...

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

You need to install an alternative media player.

[Scubar]

many times when i removed windows media player from my xp cd music editing apps complained and wouldnt work due to no wmp, i tried leaving some crucial files in the instal and still no joy. its a real shame because i despise WMP with a passion

[SiMoNsAyS]

You need to install an alternative media player.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

i know, i know, it was something like rethoric

even nullsoft's winamp reports an error when wmp is removed with nlite... ¬¬

[prathapml]

from above review:

So what happens when you try and access digital media files on a stock XP N system? My expectation was that the system would behave oddly in some way. That wasn't the case at all. I tried two methods for accessing media files. In the first, I accessed the MSN Music Web site to see what would happen when I attempted to play a song preview. Here, the site simply dumps you to the System Requirements page, which suggests Windows Media Player 7.1 or newer (Figure). Ditto for CNN.com's free video service: You're told that no Media Player is detected and are provided with a link to download it (Figure).

Next, I tried to access an MP3 file directly from the Windows shell. Here, the system simply didn't know what to do with the file, which is pretty much expected behavior (Figure). Interestingly, if you follow the advice of the warning dialog, the Microsoft Windows File Associations Web site pops up and recommends either Microsoft Windows Media Player or, curiously, Nullsoft Winamp. Nice.

[Press any key]

many times when i removed windows media player from my xp cd music editing apps complained and wouldnt work due to no wmp, i tried leaving some crucial files in the instal and still no joy. its a real shame because i despise WMP with a passion

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Well, if you move to the Continent, all your problems will be forever solved! NO WMP there..

Just a thought.

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"Englishmen like to visit the Continent but they wouldn't like to live there" -WordWeb