Microsoft Windows is the most popular
operating system in the world, which has a great history. In this post I
will share the whole history of Microsoft Windows.
The first version of Microsoft Windows,
version 1.0, released in November 1985, lacked a degree of
functionality, achieved little popularity and was to compete with Apple’s own operating system. Windows 1.0 is not a complete operating system; rather, it extends MS-DOS.
Microsoft Windows version 2.0 was released
in November 1987 and was slightly more popular than its predecessor.
Windows 2.03 (release date January 1988) had changed the OS from tiled
windows to overlapping windows. The result of this change led to Apple
Computer filing a suit against Microsoft alleging infringement on
Apple’s copyrights.
The Windows family tree:
Microsoft Windows version 3.0, released in
1990, was the first Microsoft Windows version to achieve broad
commercial success, selling 2 million copies in the first six months. It
featured improvements to the user interface and to multitasking
capabilities. It received a facelift in Windows 3.1, made generally
available on March 1, 1992. Windows 3.1 support ended on December 31,
2001.
In July 1993, Microsoft released Windows NT
based on a new kernel. Windows NT 3.1 was the first release of Windows
NT. NT was considered to be the professional OS and was the first
Windows version to utilize preemptive multitasking.[citation needed]
Windows NT would later be retooled to also function as a home operating
system, with Windows XP.
On August 24, 1995, Microsoft released
Windows 95, a new, and major, consumer version that made further changes
to the user interface, and also used preemptive multitasking. Windows
95 was designed to replace not only Windows 3.1, but also Windows for
Workgroups, and MS-DOS. It was also the first Windows operating system
to use Plug and Play capabilities. The changes Windows 95 brought to the
desktop were revolutionary, as opposed to evolutionary, such as those
in Windows 98 and Windows Me. Mainstream support for Windows 95 ended on
December 31, 2000 and extended support for Windows 95 ended on December
31, 2001.
Next in the consumer line was Microsoft
Windows 98 released on June 25, 1998. It was followed with the release
of Windows 98 Second Edition (Windows 98 SE) in 1999. Mainstream support
for Windows 98 ended on June 30, 2002 and extended support for Windows
98 ended on July 11, 2006.[14]
As part of its “professional” line,
Microsoft released Windows 2000 in February 2000. During 2004 part of
the Source Code for Windows 2000 was leaked onto the Internet. This was
bad for Microsoft as the same kernel used in Windows 2000 was used in
Windows XP. The consumer version following Windows 98 was Windows Me
(Windows Millennium Edition). Released in September 2000, Windows Me
implemented a number of new technologies for Microsoft: most notably
publicized was “Universal Plug and Play”. Windows Me was heavily
criticized due to slowness, freezes and hardware problems.
In October 2001, Microsoft released Windows
XP, a version built on the Windows NT kernel that also retained the
consumer-oriented usability of Windows 95 and its successors. This new
version was widely praised in computer magazines.[15] It shipped in two
distinct editions, “Home” and “Professional”, the former lacking many of
the superior security and networking features of the Professional
edition. Additionally, the first “Media Center” edition was released in
2002,[16] with an emphasis on support for DVD and TV functionality
including program recording and a remote control. Mainstream support for
Windows XP ended on April 14, 2009. Extended support will continue
until April 8, 2014.
In April 2003, Windows Server 2003 was
introduced, replacing the Windows 2000 line of server products with a
number of new features and a strong focus on security; this was followed
in December 2005 by Windows Server 2003 R2.
On January 30, 2007, Microsoft released
Windows Vista. It contains a number of new features, from a redesigned
shell and user interface to significant technical changes, with a
particular focus on security features. It is available in a number of
different editions, and has been subject to some criticism.
On October 22, 2009, Microsoft released Windows 7.
Unlike its predecessor, Windows Vista, which introduced a large number
of new features, Windows 7 was intended to be a more focused,
incremental upgrade to the Windows line, with the goal of being
compatible with applications and hardware which Windows Vista was not at
the time.[18] Windows 7 has multi-touch support, a redesigned Windows
shell with a new taskbar, referred to as the Superbar, a home networking
system called HomeGroup, and performance improvements.
On February 29, 2012, Microsoft released Windows 8 Consumer Preview, the beta version ofWindows 8,
build 8250. For the first time since Windows 95, the Start button is no
longer available on the taskbar, though the Start screen is still
triggered by clicking the bottom-left corner of the screen and by
clicking Start in the Charm. Windows president Steven Sinofsky said more
than 100,000 changes had been made since the developer version went
public. In the first day of its release, Windows 8 Consumer Preview was
downloaded over one million times. Microsoft released the Windows 8
Release Preview, Build 8400 on June 1, 2012. Like the Developer Preview,
the Consumer Preview and the Release Preview are both set to expire on
January 15, 2013.
Collection of Boot Screens of All Windows Versions from Windows 1.0 to Windows 7:
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