[Neil]

Ok my analogy was a bit iffy but I think you know what I mean.
It is a difficult because software is not written to any sort of standard so you can't guarantee on bit will work with another.

I don't particularly like Microsoft but it might not be their fault. I assume they found a security weakness in the operating source and corrected it. The programs that no longer work may have been relying on that weakness to function. Microsoft correct the issue and 3rd party software stopped working.

One of Microsofts biggest faults is making sure 3rd party software still works in it's new operating system releases. I think this as prevented them from redesigning Windows from the ground up.