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IrelandLGR returns to Windows XP, search dog and all
Clint Basinger's anniversary retrospective goes beyond the familiar startup sound to install, play with and troubleshoot Microsoft's old operating system.
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Story of Why this story? 944,212 views so far, and here is what is inside it.
Windows XP 25 Years Later! An LGR Retrospective
Things we can learn from the video
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- 1:04Microsoft's launch campaign sold XP around the idea of an "eXPerience."
- 5:13The original Home Edition box contains documentation, leaflets and a holographic installation CD.
- 6:36A period-correct Dell Dimension 2100 provides the hardware for the installation.
- 10:52Space Cadet pinball, media-player skins and Rover demonstrate XP's playful desktop features.
- 14:55The Microsoft Plus! pack requires a graphics upgrade, prompting installation of an ATI Radeon 7000 PCI card.
- 20:21XP runs legacy DOS software through NTVDM; Basinger then demonstrates VDMSound to address game-audio problems.
Clint Basinger opens a Windows XP Home Edition box, examines its holographic CD-ROM and puts it to work on a Dell Dimension 2100 from the same month as the operating system's launch. This is nostalgia with an installation process attached.
In "Windows XP 25 Years Later! An LGR Retrospective," the LGR host revisits both the spectacle of Microsoft's 2001 launch and the small desktop diversions that stayed with people afterward: Space Cadet pinball, Windows Media Player skins and Rover, the animated search dog.
Those details carry his central argument. "And you know what? It's fun, dang it, and I miss fun," Basinger says. His affection is for software that made room for playful extras alongside the practical business of using a computer.
He doesn't skip the awkward parts. Installing the Microsoft Plus! pack sends him back into the hardware: the Dell needs a graphics upgrade, supplied by an ATI Radeon 7000 PCI card. Game testing includes Max Payne, Age of Empires and Duke Nukem: Manhattan Project.
The retrospective also explains a distinction beneath the familiar interface. XP's DOS environment looks like the old thing, but runs through NTVDM rather than native DOS. When legacy games encounter sound problems, Basinger demonstrates VDMSound as a way to restore audio without DOSBox's overhead on modest hardware.
Viewers are adding their own computer histories in the comments: learning to tinker, supporting XP on help desks and persuading reluctant users to upgrade. Several single out the startup sound; another remembers the delight of plugging in a joystick and having it work. Basinger, meanwhile, still uses XP for LGR projects, making this less a farewell than a return to a working tool.
Published on Trari
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What viewers say
That Windows XP startup sound just washed over me like a warm summer sunrise.
@juneinblackSee it on YouTubeXP was an absolute dream to use after struggling with all the instability issues of 3.1, 95, 98, and Me all through the 90s. What really wowed me the most at this time was USB, the fact that I could plug in a joystick and it just worked 🤯
@OwenAeonSee it on YouTubeThe first Windows I ever installed on a PC myself. Taught me regedit, tinkering, and pushed me into IT. I started on a help desk 17 years ago supporting XP. Going to 7 shortly after. Now I'm elbows deep in a RHEL environment. I miss that old era of Windows.
@pxevo2418See it on YouTube
5 more comments
time is a scary thing. the startup still feels like home
@ANTIV15TSee it on YouTubeWindows XP was the perfect time to start getting into learning about computers for a kid, something about it's aesthetic and welcoming approach MADE me curious to learn and embrace technology being a part of my life. I don't see too much of that wonder these days.
@617randomnessSee it on YouTubeOf all the Windows versions I have ever tried to get people to upgrade from, XP was by far the most difficult because everything finally worked.
@godsoleteSee it on YouTube10:00 It always bugged me that the "welcome" text was off-center and in cursive, after the perfectly centered Windows XP loading screen. Anyone else? Please tell me I wasn't alone in this. 😂😂😂😂
@LasCosasComoSeanSee it on YouTubeArguably the most legendary OS of all time. Got me through elementary, middle, and high school. I graduated high school in 2016 and my school was STILL using XP until about 2014/2015.
An immense wave of nostalgia. I'd love to see a remastered re-release for modern computers.@jacobsekela8691See it on YouTube
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- Channel
- LGR
- Subscribers
- 1,820,000
- Channel views, last 7 days
- 1,582,440
- Channel views, pace per day
- 151,397 (on a normal day: 196,935)
- Video published
- October 23, 2026
- Video views so far
- 944,212 (6 days online)
- Video views, pace per day
- 130,503 (on a normal day: 151,763)
The numbers
The retrospective has drawn nearly a million views in six days. Its reach accompanies a hands-on look back, rather than an unusually fast start for LGR.
💡 Test your knowledge
What does the XP in Windows XP stand for?
Basinger explains that XP stands for "experience," the idea behind Microsoft's launch campaign.