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An open encyclopedia of software history

Did you know...

...that Windows XP has been supported in various forms for almost 18 years, which is the longest compared to any other version of Microsoft Windows?
...that Windows Server 2003 build 2462 includes login banners for a Personal edition of Windows 2000?
...that Windows 95 build 90c has a mention to Windows 94 which could suggest that Chicago was planned to be called Windows 94 in the first part of 1994 and could've been released in 1994?
...that the Windows XP team created a decoy theme called Mallard to hide the fact they were secretly working on Luna?
...that Paint was once on the second disk of Windows 1.0 Alpha Release but later deleted by either Microsoft or the owner for unknown reasons?

Featured article

Windows 95

Windows 95 (codenamed Chicago) is a consumer version of Windows released by Microsoft. It was designed to be the successor of Windows 3.1 and would be replaced by Windows 98. Microsoft ended support for Windows 95 on 2001-12-31.

It improved upon 16-bit Windows by introducing a hybrid 16/32-bit kernel and eliminating the need for an existing installation of MS-DOS, making it a standalone operating system (running alongside MS-DOS). Microsoft focused on improving the usability of Windows with technologies such as Plug-and-Play, long file names (VFAT), the Start Menu, an updated Desktop, Internet Explorer and Mail, built-in networking, and virtual device drivers.