exiftool always seems to clear the XP Metadata after a write-back.

[tasfam]

After write-back on a JPG file in IMatch, I notice the exiftool always clears IFD0:XPTitle, IFD0:XPComment, IFD0:XPAuthor, and IFD0:XPKeywords always seem to be cleared. I've tried changing various settings in metadata2, but haven't seen any difference. These fields are always cleared. Is there a way to control this behavior?
Here's my test case:
My test file is "StellaPanda_Original.JPG". This is done before the file is put into IMatch.
Using Windows Explorer, I set the properties: Title, Tags, Comments, and Author as shown in StellaPanda_Original-PropertiesDetailSnapshot.png.
I then copied the file into StellaPanda_Copy.JPG.
Started up IMatch. Selected a directory and then Copied the file into that directory.
The "MetadataPanelSnapshot before write-back.png" shows the XP fields (IFD0:XPTitle, IFD0:XPComment, IFD0:XPAuthor, and IFD0:XPKeywords) as I set them.
The file in the File Window has the pencil highlighted.
I then click on the pencil to cause the data to be written to the file.
The "CutNPase of ExifTool Output Panel after invoking write-back.txt" is the exiftool output window showing the aforementioned metadata fields being cleared.
The "MetadataPanelSnapshot after write-back.png" also shows this fields have been cleared.
I copied the application log, which is in: "imatch_log20200420txt".
I also navigated to the "StellaPanda_Copy.JPG" file in my directory for the IMatch database, and did a snapshot of the Windows Explorer properties for that file. I noticed the Author, Tags, and Title were still set in the file; however, the Comment field was cleared. See "StellaPanda_Copy-PropritiesDetailSnapshot after write-back.png".
I've read from various sources that these Microsoft metadata fields have no fans in the metadata community; however, my users are expecting these fields to be populated.
I know it is possible to write these fields during write-back; however, the subsequent read-back seems to always clear them. How do I keep exiftool from clearing them?
Thanks for your help.

[Mario]

I'm not sure that I can follow. It helps if you press <Enter> once in a while. Your post ends up as three solid pages of block text on my mobile.

"XP" tags are something Microsoft invented for Windows XP, and since then dragged along. These tags are rather unreliable and should not be used in any proper workflow.
Windows Explorer, depending on the Windows version, pulls a strange mix of metadata from EXIF, IPTC, proprietary Microsoft tags and then presents this melange to the user. Not always easy to figure out what comes from which tag, and Microsoft does not document it.

Looking at your original image file, it contains some metadata in some proprietary "XP" tags.
And since the IMatch Metadata Analyst complains about a wrong "Microsoft Photo" URL in the file, I assume you have touched the file with some sort of Microsoft software. Like Photos or one or the many applications Microsoft has released over time. Or Windows Explorer.

What I see is:

[IFD0]          XP Title                        : Stella and Panda playing
[IFD0]          XP Comment                      : Stella (left), Panda (right); They enjoyed chasing each other in the backyard.
[IFD0]          XP Author                       : Rebecca-Rasmussen-1955
[IFD0]          XP Keywords                     : Stella;Panda

This is proprietary metadata, only supported by some Microsoft software. And IMatch.
The file also contains an incomplete !() XMP metadata set:

[XMP-rdf]       About                           : uuid:faf5bdd5-ba3d-11da-ad31-d33d75182f1b
[XMP-dc]        Creator                         : Rebecca-Rasmussen-1955
[XMP-dc]        Subject                         : Stella, Panda
[XMP-dc]        Title                           : Stella and Panda playing
[XMP-dc]        Description                     : Stella and Panda playing
[XMP-microsoft] Last Keyword XMP                : Stella, Panda

The last one is a proprietary Microsoft extensions. The application which has produced this data has not bothered to even record the data or software name.

During write-back, IMatch produces a proper EXIF record and also a proper XMP record, with all the data intact.
ExifTool maps the proprietary legacy XP tags into their corresponding counterparts in EXIF and XMP.
Other applications can see this data now. Including Windows Explorer etc.