Microsoft Windows XP SP3 beta

SP3 may well be the end of the line for XP service packs?Microsoft's mainstream support for the OS ends in 2009, although extended support will run through 2014. That's not to say that there isn't plenty of room for improvement in the now venerable XP. My wish list includes new functionality (such as the ability, in Windows Explorer, to switch between folder and favorites views and to navigate folders from the locations field), along with better memory management?especially for multimedia production programs?and stronger built-in security. A few overhauls wouldn't be out of place, either, particularly of utilities such as Backup and Paint and all those other things that have been lying around largely unchanged since the original XP and even before. Actually, this would be a good time to introduce a few of Vista's user interface upgrades, if only to make XP users look longingly towards the newer OS.

Alas, that's not what SP3 delivers. The new stuff isn't particularly noteworthy, and the rest has been available already through Windows Update. SP3 functions primarily as a collection of past fixes with a few security additions. SP3 is most certainly essential for anyone who hasn't applied SP2, and for those who haven't kept up with the Windows Update downloads, but if you've been on top of things, SP3 won't do much for you.