This is a post where I get to vent some frustration at our attempts at [Intilecta] to build large enterprise software using the latest technologies. Recently we have been talking about using WCF and/or WPF for parts of the application. After spending a day looking at whether these technologies really make a difference I then realised that I should probably check out the minimum system requirements. From the download site for the .NET Framework v3 Redistributables it is evident that the minimum requirements are WinXP SP2 and above – which necessarily precludes Win2K.
You might ask why organisations are still running Win2K – it all comes down to cost and the ability to migrate. The larger the organisation the harder it is for organisations to make the transition and upgrade. This is a reality in building large enterprise software and unfortunately that means no WCF or WPF for me! MS can preach all the benefits of WCF and WPF as much as they want but until they help those large organisation migrate to Vista they are wasting their breath.
FYI even SilverLight requires WinXP SP2 and above – MS has made the decision to support non-MS clients in preference to supporting organisations that have used Win2K for almost a decade!