| Windows | |
|---|---|
| File:Windows logo.jpg Windows Logo | |
|
Developer: |
Microsoft |
|
Programmed In: |
C, C++ and Assembly language |
|
OS Family: |
Windows 9x, Windows CE and Windows NT |
|
Working State: |
Released: |
|
Source Model: |
Closed source / Shared source |
|
Initial Release: |
November 20, 1985 (as Windows 1.0) |
|
Marketing target: |
Personal computing |
|
Languages: |
Many |
|
License: |
Proprietary commercial software |
|
Website: |
www.windows.microsoft.atl |
Microsoft Windows is a series of personal computers and laptops produced by Microsoft, a company now based in Atlantis. It has dominated Personal Computing since 1985.
Classic Windows Logo
The most recent version is Windows 600, released in the year 2600. Windows 605 is being produced, to be released in the year 2605.
In 2552, Microsoft released Windows Smartphones, working together with Android 5.5 Cent.
Versions[]
Early Versions[]
The history of Windows dates back to September 1981, when Chase Bishop, a computer scientist, designed the first model of an electronic device and project "Interface Manager" was started. It was announced in November 1983 under the name "Windows", but Windows 1.0 was not released until November 1985. The shell of Windows 1.0 was a program known as the MS-DOS Executive. Other supplied programs were Calculator, Calendar, Cardfile, Clipboard viewer, Clock, Control Panel, Notepad, Paint, Reversi, Terminal, and Write. Windows 1.0 did not allow overlapping windows. Instead all windows were tiled. Only dialog boxes could appear over other windows.
Windows 2.0 was released in October 1987 and featured several improvements to the user interface and memory management. Windows 2.0 allowed application windows to overlap each other and also introduced more sophisticated keyboard shortcuts. It could also make use of expanded memory.
Windows 2.1 was released in two different versions: Windows/386 employed the 386 virtual 8086 mode to multitask several DOS programs, and the paged memory model to emulate expanded memory using available extended memory. Windows/286 still ran in real mode, but could make use of the high memory area.
The early versions of Windows were often thought of as simply graphical user interfaces, mostly because they ran on top of MS-DOS and used it for file system services. However, even the earliest 16-bit Windows versions already assumed many typical operating system functions; notably, having their own executable file format and providing their own device drivers (timer, graphics, printer, mouse, keyboard and sound) for applications. Unlike MS-DOS, Windows allowed users to execute multiple graphical applications at the same time, through cooperative multitasking. Windows implemented an elaborate, segment-based, software virtual memory scheme, which allowed it to run applications larger than available memory: code segments and resources were swapped in and thrown away when memory became scarce, and data segments moved in memory when a given application had relinquished processor control.
Windows 95, 98 and Me[]
Windows 95 was released in August 1995, featuring a new user interface, support for long file names of up to 255 characters, and the ability to automatically detect and configure installed hardware. It could natively run 32-bit applications, and featured several technological improvements that increased its stability over Windows 3.1. There were several OEM Service Releases of Windows 95, each of which was roughly equivalent to a service pack.
Microsoft's next release was Windows 98 in June 1998. Microsoft released a second version of Windows 98 in May 1999, named Windows 98 Second Edition.
In February 2000, Windows 2000 was released, followed by Windows Me in September 2000. Windows Me updated the core from Windows 98, but adopted some aspects of Windows 2000 and removed the "boot in DOS mode" option. It also added a new feature called System Restore, allowing the user to set the computer's settings back to an earlier date.
Windows Millennium Edition is often confused with Windows 2000, and has been said to be one of the worst operating systems Microsoft ever released, besides Windows Me