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Microsoft ends updates for Windows Media Center, tech site ZDNet reports


After some 13 years, Microsoft will no longer update Windows Media Center, tech site ZDNet said.

ZDN's Ed Bott said a Microsoft executive confirmed to them that the upcoming operating system Windows 10 will no longer update Windows Media Center and any PC that upgrades from Windows 7 or 8.1 to 10 will lose Media Center.
 
"That decision shouldn't come as a surprise. Media Center, once a signature feature of Windows 'premium' editions, has been on life support for years. The team developing Media Center features was broken up in 2009, shortly after delivering the final Media Center code for Windows 7," Bott said.
 
While work on Media Center had stopped in 2009, there is a small group of enthusiasts still using it.
 
Those who try to install Windows 10 - or at least its latest build - on a PC running Media Center will get a warning Windows 10 is not compatible with Media Center.
 
Media Center started as part of a special edition of Windows XP in 2002, supporting PC-based TV tuners and eventually high-definition TV and CableCard-based tuners.
 
"The Media Center interface was groundbreaking, and its DNA is still present in the Windows 10 user experience. But plug-ins written for Media Center never took off, and most of them are abandonware in 2015," Bott said.
 
Bott suggested those who want to stick to Media Player stick to Windows 7 and 8.1 for now.
 
"For playback of TV programming on big screens, the Xbox One is the best modern alternative for Media Center refugees," he added.  — Joel Locsin/ELR, GMA News
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