Windows XP introduced several new features to the Windows line, including:GDI+ graphics subsystem
Start Menu and Taskbar improvements
A number of new features in Windows Explorer
Faster start-up, logon and logoff and hibernation sequences.
The ability to discard a newer device driver in favor of the previous one (known as driver rollback), should a driver upgrade not produce desirable results.
A...
Windows XP featured a new task-based graphical user interface. The Start menu and Taskbar were updated and many visual effects were added, including:A translucent blue selection rectangle in Explorer
Drop shadows for icon labels on the desktop
Task-based sidebars in Explorer windows ("common tasks")
The ability to group the taskbar buttons of the windows of one application into one button
The ability to lock the taskbar and other toolbars to prevent...
Windows XP is an operating system that was produced by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops, and media centers. It was first released in August 2001, and is the most popular version of Windows, based on installed user base. The name "XP" is short for "eXPerience."[3]Windows XP was the successor to both Windows 2000 and Windows Me, and was...
Microsoft supports Office for the Windows and Mac platforms. Beginning with Mac Office 4.2, the Mac and Windows versions of Office share the same file format. Consequently, any Mac with Office 4.2 or later can read documents created with Office 4.2 for Windows or later, and vice-versa. Visual Basic for Applications support was dropped in Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac[51] but was restored in Microsoft Office for Mac 2011.[3]There...
A major feature of the Office suite is the ability for users and third party companies to write add-ins (plug-ins) that extend the capabilities of an application by adding custom commands and specialized features. The type of add-ins supported differ by Office versions:Office 97 onwards (standard Windows DLLs i.e. Word WLLs and Excel XLLs)
Office 2000 onwards (COM add-ins)[48]
Office XP onwards (COM/OLE Automation add-ins)[49]
Office...
Microsoft Office prior to Office 2007 used proprietary file formats. This forced users who share data to adopt the same software platform.[42] In 2008, Microsoft made the entire documentation for the binary Office formats freely available for download and granted any possible patents rights for use or implementations of those binary format for free under the Open Specification Promise.[43] Previously, Microsoft had supplied such...
Microsoft SharePoint Server — collaboration serverExcel Services
InfoPath Forms Services
Microsoft Lync Server (formerly Office Communications Server and Live Communications Server) — real time communications server
Microsoft Office Forms Server — allows InfoPath forms to be accessed and filled out using any browser. Office Forms Server is a standalone server installation of InfoPath Forms Services.
Microsoft Office Groove Server —...
Microsoft PowerPoint is a popular presentation program for Windows and Mac. It is used to create slideshows, composed of text, graphics, movies and other objects, which can be displayed on-screen and navigated through by the presenter or printed out on transparencies or slides.
Other desktop applications (Windows version only)Microsoft Access — database manager
Microsoft InfoPath — an application...
Microsoft Excel is a spreadsheet program which originally competed with the dominant Lotus 1-2-3, but eventually outsold it. It is available for the Windows and Mac platforms. Microsoft released the first version of Excel for the Mac in 1985, and the first Windows version (numbered 2.05 to line up with the Mac and bundled with a standalone Windows run-time environment) in November 1987.[edit]Outlook/EntourageMain articles: Microsoft...