Can I run MS Front Page 2003 on Windows 10 (like I currently do with windows 7 and it's "xp package."

Question

They changed the title of my original post so I thought I'd try it again: I Know that my web sites will work on windows 10 but:

I run a website I started in 1996, 385 pages and built with old school html and (when it came out) MS Front Page. I've modified many pages of these old pages to be w3c compliant using good old html. It is super hot in the search engines and works excellent in all browsers and on all mobile devices. Front Page 2003 is like putting on a comfortable pair of shoes. Yes, I've tried Dream Weaver and all the other "options" but it doesn't do a very good job with the original code, in fact some of the modifications and programs I have tried have been a disaster. SO I'm currently running windows 7 with the xp package to support Microsoft Front Page Version 2003. My server guys have no issues with the MS Front Page Extensions and it is very fast and stable. What do you think the chances are of running MS Front Page 2003 on Windows 10? Any help would be greatly appreciated. 

Original Title: FrontPage 2003

Answer 1

Though MS does indeed say that FP is not compatible (MS says that versions of Office older that Office 2007 are incompatible with Win10.) , that does not mean that it will not install and run.  You might be happily surprised.  In my experience MS tends to discourage the use of older programs even if they will run.

Although FrontPage was not evaluated, Andre Da Costa found that core programs of Office such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access and Publisher back through Office 2000 work just fine on Windows 10.

Reference: A look at running older versions of Microsoft Office on Windows 10: http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/wiki/windows_10-win_upgrade/a-look-at-running-older-versions-of-microsoft/6faf72ea-254a-4c8e-9982-2c36cdb1936c

With that said if you are dependent upon FPSE then you might start looking for an alternative to FP. MS quit support of the server extensions many years ago and the number of web hosts that offer them are becoming few and far between. Eventually you should plan on them not being available and should start looking to migrate your sites to another program. Better now before it is too late.

DavidF

Answer 2

http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/compatibility/CompatCenter/ProductViewerWithDefaultFilters?TempOsid=Windows%2010&Locale=en-us&Architecture=X64&TextSearch=Front%2BPage%2B2003%2B&Type=Both&CurrentPage=0&TotalPages=1&ShowCriteria=0&SortCriteria=Relevance&Compatibility=Unknown&LastRequested=14s

This link says it is not compatible.  Microsoft ticks me off for doing this.  I like the program also and have lots of sites I built with it.

Answer 3

David F,

Thanks so very much for getting back with me. I'll be giving it a try and will keep all posted on the results.

Answer 4

People, stop pushing FrontPage users to switch to some foreign web design program.  Most of us who've built sites (and especially large sites) don't have the time to rebuilt sites from scratch, nor do we need to.  There are still hosting companies willing to support FrontPage extensions (e.g., successfulhosting.com).  So, stop with the fear-mongering.  

FrontPage remains a great, easy-to-use web design program that was capable of a lot, and maintains a large number of loyal supporters.

David, if you manage to make it work on Windows 10, let us know.  For now, I'm sticking to Windows 7.

Answer 5

Joseph, I saw your post and laughed so hard I had to let everyone know. Success! I received my new Dell Laptop preloaded with Windows 10. Dell was nice enough to include a cd drive so the first thing I did was pull out my good old MS FrontPage 2003 disk. After blowing off all the cobwebs I slipped it in happily knowing I had purchased the optional Dell warranty (so if I smoked the PC I'd just blame it on THEM ;). 

Low and behold - I selected the"standard" setup, gave it about 15 minutes and it was a flawless load. No runs, no hits no errors. You have browser options in MS 10. The default is MS Edge, glide your  cursor over the top and add the tool bar. Hit file, open with Microsoft Front Page, add your user ID and password and go to town. Make a change to a page in 10 seconds and it's posted! I opened the entire site - all 369 pages were there along with 1,000's of photos (some going back to 1996). Everything was there. Nothing wonky - totally stabile and intuitive (just like what made FrontPage Popular in the first place). Take out a few odds and ends in the code and it passes w3c without a hitch. Granted my pages do not use a lot of the optional templates and odds and ends that were built into FP but for me it worked - and it worked very well.

PS there is now 3rd party software that allows your host to upgrade their server to the new ones - $5 bucks a month. I'll post it when I make it back after the Holiday - looks interesting.

Happy Holidays all!