On Wed, May 6, 2015 at 1:03 PM, Niall Douglas
The Boost SC suggested I ask about Microsoft Windows XP support in Boost libraries here,
It seems, we're restarting this thread: http://thread.gmane.org/gmane.comp.lib.boost.devel/245008/ (tl;dr; I proposed to raise the default version to Vista in libs/winapi config headers; rejected because XP was still supported at the time).
so I'd appreciate if library maintainers could state:
1. If they still support Microsoft Windows XP i.e. actively do not use APIs not supported by XP. And if SP3 is the only service pack supported, or if any XP is okay.
I have compatibility code in Boost.Log and Boost.Sync. Both should work fine on Windows XP and by default are built for that target (as Windows XP is the default Windows target in WinAPI submodule).
2. Whether they regularly test their libraries on a Windows XP machine to ensure their libraries work there.
I don't. My libraries are only tested on Windows XP if some testers do that.
3. Their personal opinion about when would be best to drop mandatory Microsoft Windows XP support. Individual library maintainers can of course choose to keep supporting it.
I think it is more correct to bump the default Windows target to Vista or even 7, if there is any significant difference. Whether or not particular libraries support building for older Windows is a choice of the library maintainers. I don't think there are mandatory requirements on support for a particular Windows version (or a particular OS in general).