Even for those coming from a MS Windows environment, this is a good investment.

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"The Windows 2000 environment is a key part of our electronic business strategy, " Szygenda said.

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This problem was especially thorny for Microsoft because Virtual PC allows Windows 7 users to run applications designed for older Windows versions in a virtualized environment on their Windows 7 machines.

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While it can be used on its own, Canonical mostly sees it being used in a dual-boot environment with Windows (giving Canonical a bigger foothold in the process).

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There are nowhere near the number of native Mac business applications for higher end accounting, customer relationship management and Office as for a Windows environment.

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Software developers are experienced and comfortable working in a Windows environment.

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"LaCie is pleased to work with ASUS to showcase the power of Thunderbolt technology in a Windows environment, " said Erwan Girard, Business Unit Manager for Professional Solutions, LaCie.

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Recent developments for a robotics programming language include Microsoft Robotics Developer Studio (MRDS), a Windows-based environment for robot control and simulation.

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In Windows 8, you can revert to the Windows desktop experience via a tile, and you can further customize the interface with third-party apps which revive the Start experience and return Windows 8 to a 7-like environment.

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