U3A1 Windows 7 Professional “ XP Mode ”

U3A2 Microsoft promotional text for XP Mode “Seamless applications Publish and launch applications installed on virtual Windows XP directly from the Windows 7 desktop, as if they were installed on the Windows 7 host itself.”

U3A3 My Win 7 pro desktop

U3A4 Windows XP Mode icon

U3A5 Double-Click the XP Mode icon

U3A6 Windows XP Professional, running, full-screen, as a window in Windows 7 Professional, using the Windows Virtual PC application.

U3A7 Windows XP Pro icons on the XP Mode desktop. Notice MS Security Essentials, below, and HP Scanner and Copier shortcuts.

U3A8 Drop-down list from the XP Mode toolbar, showing the USB connections available for attachment. Note that the system automatically shares the Windows 7 printer and the external hard-drive. You CAN ’ T make it attach the others, automatically, on start-up.

U3A9 Win 7 program menu, showing XP Mode, XP Mode Applications and HP PrecisionScan LTX.

U3A10 Win 7 is running a “ background ” XP Mode, to execute the legacy scanner software, BUT, as the scanner USB port has not yet been “ attached ” to XP Mode, the software reports no scanner attached.

U3A11 The solution is to run XP Mode, attach the USB port for the scanner and do the scan “ in ” XP Mode. This is fine, for my occasional use, but there are lots of postings on the Microsoft forum, complaining that it makes nonsense of their advertising claims about “ solving the problem of running legacy software on Win 7 ” So far, Microsoft have not responded to these complaints!

U3A12 You have to be careful where you save things. The Win 7 drives are accessible from within XP Mode, BUT, the XP Mode c:\ drive is “ virtual ” and not available from Win 7, if XP Mode is closed.

U3A13