Reply to rant about why XP isn't supported

[Selur]

Since I got a mail from a troll yesterday I thought I address the issue of why I dropped Windows XP support.

Here's the mail I got from someone calling himself 'Balkan Guy':

Hybrid: It Fascinates Me U Have Brains 2 Write A Program But Not The Sense 2 Make It Work On 30% Of The World's PCs!
There is absolutely no advantage to having it be 64 bit or locked to Vista or above.  Stuff written for XP can work on ALL of those OSes.
GET A GRIP!  Still using the 'ancient' version of 'Handbrake' encoder interface because your junk, like most alternatives, is INFINITELY WORSE because it won't even run on XP.  If U want 2 do something useful, take the new version of Handbrake (which supports VP9), & add whatever other codec support U can (AV1 & WVC1?) & release it as an alternative version of Handbrake.  Make yourself useful instead of crowding the wrold with more useless, unusable $hit like 'MPV' = OMFG ~ as if a player should even exist without the ability 2 configure things? LOL!!!

All that work U have done, 4 nothing, because it won't run on so many MILLIONS of machines, & 4 NO good reason! =))

Hell, even 'MPC-HC' runs on XP!

Disregarding the 'tone' of that email I'll try to reply to it here:

I dropped Windows XP support, because it's a pain to maintain Windows XP versions of tools like x265, mkvtoolnix, ffmpeg which by default do not build any more with Windows XP. It is possible to build XP compatible versions, but it always requires a lot of time of patching the latest sources and compiling different versions.

That said, I'll try to reply to that email in more details:

It Fascinates Me U Have Brains 2 Write A Program But Not The Sense 2 Make It Work On 30% Of The World's PCs!

last I checked NetMarketShare Windows XPs market share was below 5%, not 30%.

There is absolutely no advantage to having it be 64 bit or locked to Vista or above.

Strange, x264/x265/Vapoursynth/... is like 5-10% faster on 64bit systems compared to 32bit and you don't have problems with 2GB memory limitations. (Which really is a good thing when filtering UHD content.)

GET A GRIP!  Still using the 'ancient' version of 'Handbrake' encoder interface because your junk, like most alternatives, is INFINITELY WORSE because it won't even run on XP.  If U want 2 do something useful, take the new version of Handbrake (which supports VP9), & add whatever other codec support U can (AV1 & WVC1?) & release it as an alternative version of Handbrake.

Problem with this is:
a. I don't like Handbrake at all
b. I don't see any good reason to use Windows XP on an encoding system that isn't like 10 years old. (Windows XP is like 17+ years old,..)
c. Trying to patch sources of x265, av1 and other codecs to make them XP compatible simply seems too much of a hassle.
d. As far as I know Handbrake itself dropped Windows XP support with version 0.10.0 back in May 2016, so making Handbrake Windows XP compatible isn't probably that easy either.

=> I feel sorry for those stuck with Windows XP and old tools and hardware that might require to use it, but I don't see me spending time on trying to get the tools Hybrid uses to be Windows XP compatible. It's simply not worth the time spend to me.

Cu Selur

[Selur]

Got a reply:

It's GR8 that U took time 2 'respond', but it really doesn't matter what U R saying about it.  Fact is you CAN make it support Windows XP, and you SHOULD! =D  There is always a 'reason', like a heroin junkie likes 2 get 'high', or a thief likes 'free stuff', or a rapist is 'very horny'.  Well so what?  Just because you made a MISTAKE & can explain away all the EXCUSES Y U (pretend 2 think) that U "can't" fix it, in reality & U most certainly can & it would only make U all that much more AWESOME 2 do so =D

About 30% of the PCs on Earth R running Window Sex Pee (Bill'$ big inside joke =))  From factories 2 real estate offices, power plants to grocery stores, & on & on & on in bazillion$...  'Just Do It'.  Don't 'Take A Knee' about it tho HAHA =:-o

Also, if U wanna' do something even MORE useful, there R some GR8 ways 2 further improve XP that nobody seems 2 currently B working on, like a mod 2 make it not 'lock out' if U change the motherboard or something with 'BSOD' (Blue Screen Of Death) & instead B like '98 & B 4 where it would automatically detect whatever it can when U move a drive 2 'new' hardware.  

Loads more tips if U want... but mainly, make your thing work on XP.  Pretending it is 'not possible' is a load of krap & U know it.  'Recompile' it, or use 'alternate' DLLs or something. It's not rocket science.  Well maybe it's harder HAHA  But I know lots of 'old krap' that WAAAY outperform 'latest greatest' garbage.  FFDShow is a GR8 xample...
https://justpaste.it/71kdb

Don't B an 'Apple Fag'.  B $OLUTION oriented.  & by that I mean, maybe people would actually PAY U 4 it, if U made it actually 'cross-platform', as in XP on 'up'.  Lin-Hell & the rest = Oh Pleeze... 'protest trash' nobody really uses.  Let the Mac Clowns pay 4 their 'Final Cut'.  U could maybe mod 'Super' converter & get that 'De-Spammed'?  There's another option! HAHA

'Can't Do XP Because BLABLABLA' = give me a break =P
I am 'The User' & what I say goze.
Make the product FOR YOUR AUDIENCE, not some 'elite' clique of random trolls out 2 spout sadistic 'Werx 4 MEEE!' giggles =))

Do I really need 2 list Y everything past XP is infinitely WORSE?!
Do U really not already know how HORIFICALLY CRIPPLED they R by comparison?
Yours is just 1 of many tools.  XP beats the field in overal flexibility.
If the rest were better, I'd B using them.
Yes, I try them out yearly, & they all SUUUUK! =D

My reply:
Hmm,... I thought I made myself clear:

• Yes, I agree it could be possible to rewrite lots of tools (including Hybrid) to support Windows XP.
  
• No, I don't think it's worth the effort, since I think:
  • the reasons 32bit Windows XP gets 'abandoned' are valid.
    • like: no support for NUMA and a few other extensions which are used in modern codecs
      
    • memory/ram limitation of 4GB due to 32bit (filtering of UHD content is not really usable)
      
    • 17+ years old, there are no drivers for most of my hardware, no security support by the manufacturer etc.
      
    • real user base is below 5%
      
  • My 'free' time is better spend fixing bugs and further developing Hybrid than trying to adjust xy tools for Windows XP.
    

-> Wish you the best of luck with your endeavour to get people to support Windows XP, but personally I don't think people will go for it.
But then there are portable turntable players and vinyl records are having a (slowly, but) steadily growing follower ship.

Cu Selur

[Greyscail]

Got a reply:

It's GR8 that U took time 2 'respond', but it really doesn't matter what U R saying about it.  Fact is you CAN make it support Windows XP, and you SHOULD! =D  There is always a 'reason', like a heroin junkie likes 2 get 'high', or a thief likes 'free stuff', or a rapist is 'very horny'.  Well so what?  Just because you made a MISTAKE & can explain away all the EXCUSES Y U (pretend 2 think) that U "can't" fix it, in reality & U most certainly can & it would only make U all that much more AWESOME 2 do so =D

About 30% of the PCs on Earth R running Window Sex Pee (Bill'$ big inside joke =))  From factories 2 real estate offices, power plants to grocery stores, & on & on & on in bazillion$...  'Just Do It'.  Don't 'Take A Knee' about it tho HAHA =:-o

Also, if U wanna' do something even MORE useful, there R some GR8 ways 2 further improve XP that nobody seems 2 currently B working on, like a mod 2 make it not 'lock out' if U change the motherboard or something with 'BSOD' (Blue Screen Of Death) & instead B like '98 & B 4 where it would automatically detect whatever it can when U move a drive 2 'new' hardware.  

Loads more tips if U want... but mainly, make your thing work on XP.  Pretending it is 'not possible' is a load of krap & U know it.  'Recompile' it, or use 'alternate' DLLs or something. It's not rocket science.  Well maybe it's harder HAHA  But I know lots of 'old krap' that WAAAY outperform 'latest greatest' garbage.  FFDShow is a GR8 xample...
https://justpaste.it/71kdb

Don't B an 'Apple Fag'.  B $OLUTION oriented.  & by that I mean, maybe people would actually PAY U 4 it, if U made it actually 'cross-platform', as in XP on 'up'.  Lin-Hell & the rest = Oh Pleeze... 'protest trash' nobody really uses.  Let the Mac Clowns pay 4 their 'Final Cut'.  U could maybe mod 'Super' converter & get that 'De-Spammed'?  There's another option! HAHA

'Can't Do XP Because BLABLABLA' = give me a break =P
I am 'The User' & what I say goze.
Make the product FOR YOUR AUDIENCE, not some 'elite' clique of random trolls out 2 spout sadistic 'Werx 4 MEEE!' giggles =))

Do I really need 2 list Y everything past XP is infinitely WORSE?!
Do U really not already know how HORIFICALLY CRIPPLED they R by comparison?
Yours is just 1 of many tools.  XP beats the field in overal flexibility.
If the rest were better, I'd B using them.
Yes, I try them out yearly, & they all SUUUUK! =D

My reply:
Hmm,... I thought I made myself clear:

• Yes, I agree it could be possible to rewrite lots of tools (including Hybrid) to support Windows XP.
  
• No, I don't think it's worth the effort, since I think:
  • the reasons 32bit Windows XP gets 'abandoned' are valid.
    • like: no support for NUMA and a few other extensions which are used in modern codecs
      
    • memory/ram limitation of 4GB due to 32bit (filtering of UHD content is not really usable)
      
    • 17+ years old, there are no drivers for most of my hardware, no security support by the manufacturer etc.
      
    • real user base is below 5%
      
  • My 'free' time is better spend fixing bugs and further developing Hybrid than trying to adjust xy tools for Windows XP.
    

-> Wish you the best of luck with your endeavour to get people to support Windows XP, but personally I don't think people will go for it.
But then there are portable turntable players and vinyl records are having a (slowly, but) steadily growing follower ship.

Cu Selur

It fascinates me that this man is somehow smart enough play around with video post-processing