Windows in the 90s - marioeyoung/it115wiki GitHub Wiki
The 1990s saw Microsoft’s Windows develop into an immensely popular household name. During this decade is when even more of the software’s now-recognizable traits began to emerge, and you’d be hard-pressed to find an office or school without a computer running this operating system. Personal computers, or PCs, was once a phrase used simply to describe any sort of computer in a person’s home, no matter what brand of OS it may have been utilizing. It was during the 90s that Windows machines usurped the popularity that Macintosh previously held in this market, and is when the phrase “PC” started to become associated exclusively with Windows machines — a trend that continues to this day.
Prior to the release of Windows 95, many of the operating system’s eventual hallmarks were fairly developed in one way or another. This particular edition, however, introduced the Start button and associated menu, both of which are now synonymous with a Windows GUI and have been a key feature of the operating system ever since. Windows 95 also shared its release with the since-maligned Internet Explorer, although, at the time, Internet Explorer held its own against other browser options and was a new and easy-to-use gateway to the Internet for most casual web users.
Windows 98, while an improvement from the 95 edition, exhibited less of a dramatic reimagining. In some ways, this edition was intended to be a “beefed-up” version of its predecessor, offering enhanced support for USB peripherals and larger-capacity drives, as well as improved speed relating to performance. Windows 98 rolled out the eventual classic Outlook Express email application and an update to Internet Explorer. Meanwhile, the later Windows 98SE (Second Edition) incorporated the turn-of-the-century staple Windows Media Player, DVD-ROM support, and Internet Connection Sharing, or ICS.
With the dawn of the new millennium came a Windows edition fit for the times — Windows 2000. Although not intended as a successor to the lineage of Windows 95 or 98 (Windows 2000 was intended primarily for business users), it did break new ground in the Windows lineage, ushering in conventions that would be built upon in later editions of the software. Perhaps most notable among these developments were a reliance on automatic updating, support for up to 4GB of RAM, and a new “hibernation” response to save energy and increase display longevity.
By continuing to offer new solutions to the needs of various users, from beginners and hobbyists to professionals and experts, all with an ease of use that could easily be learned by even the most computer-skittish, Windows and Microsoft firmly cemented themselves as a top name — if not the top name — in the software industry during this prolific period and with these editions of the operating system. While Apple returned at the millennium as Microsoft’s biggest competitor, the latter held its own during the 2000s, improving upon these core concepts with successful editions like Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Windows 7.
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