Microsoft Windows is a family of operating systems for personal computers. In this article we analyze the history of Microsoft operating systems from 1985 to the present. The development of the Microsoft Windows operating system as we know it today began in 1981. Although its release was announced as early as 1983, it would not appear commercially until two years later.

Microsoft is working on the first version of a new operating system. Interface Manager is the code name and is considered the final name, but Windows prevails because it better describes the boxes or “Windows” of computing that are central to the new system. Windows is announced in 1983, but it takes a while to develop. Skeptics call it “vaporware.”

In 1985 Microsoft Windows 1.0 was named after the computer boxes, or “Windows” that represented a fundamental aspect of the operating system. Instead of typing MS-DOS commands, Windows 1.0 allowed users to point and click to access Windows. In 1987, Microsoft released Windows 2.0, which was designed for the Intel 286 processor. This version added desktop icons, keyboard shortcuts, and improved graphics support.

Microsoft released Windows 3.0 in May 1990 offering better icons, performance, and advanced 16-color graphics designed for Intel 386 processors. This version is the first version to provide the standard “look and feel” of Microsoft Windows for many years. Windows 3.0 included Program Manager, File Manager, and Print and Game Manager (Hearts, Minesweeper, and Solitaire). Microsoft released Windows 3.1 in 1992.

At the time, computers were not as advanced as they are today, so if consumers experience problems, repairs could be costly and time consuming. Problems like memory failures and virus infections were common and people had no choice but to hire a computer repair engineer to do a repair on the computer.

Released just as interest in PCs was about to skyrocket due to the pending public release of the World Wide Web, 3.1 would be the first operating system most people would browse the Internet with. 3.1 was faster, had a drastically improved user interface, and the ability to run more programs at once without crashing.

Meanwhile, Microsoft continued to develop Windows NT. Microsoft hired Dave Cutler, one of the main VMS architects at Digital Equipment Corporation (later acquired by Compaq, now part of Hewlett-Packard) to develop NT into a more capable operating system. Cutler had been developing a sequel to VMS at DEC called Mica, and when DEC dropped the project, he brought the expertise and some engineers to Microsoft. DEC also believed that he brought the Mica code to Microsoft and sued him. Microsoft eventually paid $150 million dollars and agreed to support DEC’s Alpha CPU chip in NT.

Windows 95 introduced the “start” button, which remains a mainstay of the operating system more than fifteen years later. It also ushered in the recycle bin, “plug and play” hardware, long file names (the maximum went from eight to 250 characters), and perhaps most importantly, a platform designed for 32-bit applications. Windows 95 saw the debut of Service Packs and Internet Explorer, but was also widely regarded as a buggy, unreliable, and unstable program.

Windows 98 offers support for several new technologies, including FAT32, AGP, MMX, USB, DVD, and ACPI. However, its most visible feature is Active Desktop, which integrates the web browser (Internet Explorer) with the operating system. From the user’s point of view, there is no difference between accessing a document that resides locally on the user’s hard drive or on a Web server on the other side of the world. Windows 98 has some nice features above for repairing computer problems. We can recover data if we lose it in Windows 98. So computer repair is a bit easy for this version.

Often abbreviated as “W2K,” Windows 2000 is an operating system for business desktop and laptop systems for running software applications, connecting to Internet and intranet sites, and accessing files, printers, and network resources. Microsoft released four versions of Windows 2000: Professional (for business desktops and laptops), Server (both a Web server and an office server), Advanced Server (for line-of-business applications), and Datacenter Server (for high-end computers). traffic). networks).

The merger of the Windows NT/2000 and Windows 3.1/95/98/ME lines was achieved with Windows XP (code name “Whistler”. “Odyssey” was the code name of the successor to NT, which was canceled and merged with Windows 9x’s successor at the time, “Neptune”, and became “Whistler”), released in 2001. Windows XP uses the Windows NT kernel; however, it ultimately marks the entry of the Windows NT kernel into the consumer market, to replace the old 16-bit branch. Windows XP has a few more features and makes computer repairs easier.

Windows Vista offered an advance in reliability, security, ease of deployment, performance, and manageability over Windows XP. New to this release was the ability to detect hardware issues before they occur, security features to protect against the latest generation of threats, faster startup time, and low power consumption from the new sleep state. In many cases, Windows Vista is noticeably more responsive than Windows XP on identical hardware. Windows Vista simplifies and centralizes desktop configuration management, reducing the cost of keeping systems up to date.

Windows 7 made its official debut to the public on October 22, 2009 as the latest in the 25-year-old line of Microsoft Windows operating systems and as the successor to Windows Vista (which had in turn followed Windows XP). Windows 7 was released alongside Windows Server 2008 R2, the server counterpart of Windows 7. Windows 7 enhancements and new features include multi-touch support, improved Internet Explorer 8 performance and startup time, Aero Snap, Aero Shake, support for virtual hard drives, a new and improved Windows Media Center, and enhanced security.

As Windows operating systems have developed and become more intelligent over the years, computer repairs have become less frequent. In fact, Windows 7 has almost eradicated software-based computer repair when it comes to corrupted files and crashes in operating systems. Windows 7 automatically scans removable drives without using Antivirus. Therefore, computer repair is less necessary with the advancement in Windows systems.

Windows 8 is a completely redesigned operating system that has been built from the ground up with touchscreen use in mind, as well as near-instantaneous capabilities that allow a Windows 8 PC to load and boot up in seconds instead of minutes. . . Windows 8 will replace the more traditional look and feel of the Microsoft Windows operating system with a new “Metro” design system interface that first debuted in the Windows 7 mobile operating system.