My View
Windows 7 is FAR superior to Vista, and I have no trouble with planning for a migration for my clients.
Windows XP Professional, still operational and still a good product, will likely have on-going support through 2011 or thereabouts.
Vista is a dead horse.
That said, the cost of migration is NOT an option for XP to Windows 7. It is a full purchase price. Cost consideration for clients.
Secondly, some of my clients have budgets decimated by economic conditions and cannot afford the upgrade at this time.
The virtues of Windows 7, such as touch-screen mouse and ability to run several open sessions at once are impressive but a real business need has to exist to use them. For some clients, a simple dual-monitor display arrangement makes this a somewhat moot issue.
Clients will have to judge as to whether the advantages of Windows 7 as per a business need to upgrade or purchase justifies the cost of doing so. And whether the neat and nifty bells and whistles of Windows 7 are impressive enough to justify time and pre-testing or implementation to perform the job.
I believe with Windows XP will be around for more than a few years, certainly given the economic recession and budget considerations I am experiencing with my clients - making do with what is already in use.
