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Happy 25th birthday, Windows!
25 years ago today, Microsoft released the very first version of the operating system which now powers around 90% of the personal computers in the world. Even with the sweet analog clock to the word processing might of Write (and truly useful features like running multiple applications and a shared clipboard), Windows 1.0 failed to generate much excitement.
It would take five more years -- when version 3.0 launched -- for Windows to become a force to be reckoned with on the desktop. Sure, there have been bumps along the way like Windows ME and Vista, but Microsoft keeps on rolling. Most of our readers are now happily running Windows 7, Microsoft's customer satisfaction rate is at an all-time high, and things are generally looking good for the crew in Redmond.
This is actually the time of year when my family brought home our first Windows PC -- a sleek (for then) little unit from Magnavox complete with caveman overclocking. Oh turbo button, how I loved you...
It would take five more years -- when version 3.0 launched -- for Windows to become a force to be reckoned with on the desktop. Sure, there have been bumps along the way like Windows ME and Vista, but Microsoft keeps on rolling. Most of our readers are now happily running Windows 7, Microsoft's customer satisfaction rate is at an all-time high, and things are generally looking good for the crew in Redmond.
This is actually the time of year when my family brought home our first Windows PC -- a sleek (for then) little unit from Magnavox complete with caveman overclocking. Oh turbo button, how I loved you...
Comments
28
Subscribe to commentsVishal GajjarNov 20th 2010 7:00AM
Happy Birthday Windows,
The Best OS Ever...
arashNov 20th 2010 7:11AM
Love you Win
iGladNov 20th 2010 7:33AM
Hell I can remember running 3.0 on a commodore badged pc, which was the first computer i bought and i think it ran on DOS 5, which is what you forgot to add. That nonsense continued for far too long with MS and i think they have finally got it right with Windows 7, which as Mac man is a nice OS. It took them 23years to get it right though!!
Rudy CruzNov 20th 2010 7:36AM
Epic WIN
Danny BoyNov 20th 2010 7:42AM
I don't think Vista is a "bump" the way Win ME was. WinME was buggy, crash-prone, and was inferior to Win2000 which was released at the same time. Vista suffered by being the version after XP. Customer resistance to change, FUD from Linux and Mac fanboys, and some missteps in Redmond's part all contributed to Vista's tarnished reputation.
Anyway, congratulations Windows. It's been a (generally) good 25 years, though I've only used you for around 16 years.
SilverWaveNov 20th 2010 11:48AM
Nope Vista was pretty much Fista.
Spyder KingNov 20th 2010 9:19AM
I WAS going to write, at least modern PCs do EVERYTHING better than 25 yr old MS Windows, unlike 25 yr old Amigas. But then I remembered tiling windows, which some reviewers at the time preferred to overlapping windows. I never saw these, were they like Windows 7 mobile tiles?
Paul SchaeferNov 20th 2010 9:30AM
Ah, 1.0, when windows couldn't overlap. (Stupid Apple and their patents.)
http://yeppaul2.posterous.com/33941646
SilverWaveNov 20th 2010 11:47AM
Your a flaky piece of crud Windows.
What a nasty Virus friendly pile of security problems.
:-)
DarthPaulNov 20th 2010 6:49PM
What about his a flaky piece of crud Windows.?
BuggerNov 20th 2010 7:00PM
SilverWave if you have nothing productive or nice to say, go troll somewhere else. This is one of the few places left for "true" tech aficionados, people who like tech no matter what OS, hardware, or version it is. This site is popular because it speaks to tech enthusiasts and not trolls. Nothing in the article is bait material.
MarkyB86Nov 20th 2010 5:29PM
C:\> WIN
Joe Papierz JrNov 20th 2010 8:22PM
HAPPY BIRTHDAY WINDOWS ! ! ! ! ! !
I switched from a Franklin computer running Dos. 1.0 to an IBM computer with Dos 3.0 about a month after Windows came out. A HUGE improvement in my computing experience. I made out like a bandit when I sold my two year old Franklin. I put an adv in the newspaper and a man came to my house that was willing and able to pay me nearly what I paid for it new because he already had a Franklin (same model) and wanted another for his son. I felt a little like a theif but he knew what he was doing and said the price was fine. He dabbled in programming and wanted two computers that were alike to experiment with.. About that time a computer store near me sold computers with plastic tops so you could look inside and see all the electronics. No moving parts so I couldn't see what the attraction for that was but "some" people bought them. My recollection of my first experience with Windows was that it was a fun "toy" and didn't really see much functionality to benefit me. Other than evolving into a reliable and easy to use OS I have little reason to have more than one window open at a time. Sometimes I have two windows when I balance my checkbook but that is just about the only time. Those were the days when Microsoft provided a full and incremental backup program with the one version they were selling, built in, and were still able to bundle lots of neat extras with the package. I don't like the fact that in order to have a full backkup of my Vista Home Premium I have to use a third party program. Or dump it and buy a more expensive version of Windows. I don't have the patience or ability to learn programming myself so I'll continue to look to Windows for my OS. A good friend of my sister and brother in law is a programmer (and a member of mensa) and he encouraged me to give it a try. I signed up for a class in programming at Miami Dade Communty College a few years ago and was totally lost after the third class and had to drop out. Sorry if my rambling bored anyone, but if anyone read this far and are bored or unhappy with my rambling it's your own fault. You could have skipped my comment and gone on to another at any time.
Lee MathewsNov 20th 2010 8:22PM
Nicely done, Joe! I, for one, appreciate you taking the time to wax nostalgic.
SilverWaveNov 21st 2010 7:04AM
The number of [WINDOWS] viruses, worms and trojans in circulation has topped the one million mark.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7340315.stm
Oh and that was 2008 is worse now :P
When will MS start taking security seriously?
Never.
Lee MathewsNov 21st 2010 7:07AM
Yeah... You'd think they would at least do some kind of weekly security updates...They could call it "Patch Tuesday" or something...
Or maybe they could even build in a capable firewall in their OS, include a malware filter in their browser, and give away a highly-rated antivirus application.
...
SilverWaveNov 21st 2010 8:50AM
@ Lee Mathews
>highly-rated antivirus application.
If it designed correctly you dont need AV app.
Patches would fix any vulnerabilities found.
If you are serious about patching vulnerabilities you don't wait a month to fix them.
Also remember that MS have waited months to fix known vulnerabilities.
MS have a terrible history regarding security, but its inherent in the system - they would rather hide the problem than fix it.
Lee MathewsNov 21st 2010 8:52AM
I seem to remember another OS which had an unpatched kernel exploit for nearly a decade. All OSes have their problems.
Microsoft gets a lot of praise for their attention to security, too, and the Windows ecosystem is massive. It's pretty hard work protecting an entire city from a flu outbreak, innit?
SilverWaveNov 21st 2010 9:00AM
>Yeah... You'd think they would at least do some kind of weekly security updates...They could call it "Patch Tuesday" or something...
Well that would be a good deal better than what they offer at the moment.
MS only offer MONTHLY security updates on "Patch Tuesday"
I think you should pass on your suggestion to your friends at MS. its a good idea.
;-)
SilverWaveNov 21st 2010 7:07AM
Oh... I should point out that those million virus etc only target WINDOWS machines.
If you want to avoid them just run Linux e.g Ubuntu 10.04 or get a Mac.