2005: Twenty years of Windows

The year 2005 marks the 20th anniversary of Windows 1.0:

Windows 1.0 screenshot
Windows 1.0 screenshot

The first version of Windows I actually used was Windows 3.0. Coming from an Amiga background, I was unimpressed. It wasn’t until Windows 3.1 and Windows For Workgroups 3.11 that I actually started to believe Microsoft had something worth using.

Related posts

Windows 7: The Best Vista Service Pack Ever

While I haven't been unhappy with Windows Vista, it had a lot of rough edges: This is why the screenshot of the Windows 7 Calculator, although seemingly trivial, is so exciting to me. It's evidence that Microsoft is going to pay attention to the visible parts

By Jeff Atwood ·
Comments

Extending The Windows Vista Grace Period to 120 Days

If you're on the fence about the impending release of Windows Vista, I recommend trying before you buy. Every Vista DVD includes the ability to install any edition of Vista without a product key. When you install without a product key, you get an automatic 30 day evaluation

By Jeff Atwood ·
Comments

ALT+TAB Extreme*

When I see people using the default, crappy Windows ALT+TAB task switching behavior, I experience physical pain. TaskSwitchXP [http://www.ntwind.com/taskswitchxp/index.html] is completely free and so much better. It's super small, totally elegant, lightning fast, and generally a massive improvement in task switching

By Jeff Atwood ·
Comments

Changing the Windows XP Boot Screen

We're in the middle of an after-hours MAME [http://www.mame.net/] arcade project at work*. As one of the final fit and finish steps, I did a bit of research on how to replace the default Windows XP boot screen with something a little more arcade-y. I

By Jeff Atwood ·
Comments

Recent Posts

Stay Gold, America

Stay Gold, America

We are at an unprecedented point in American history, and I'm concerned we may lose sight of the American Dream.

By Jeff Atwood ·
Comments
The Great Filter Comes For Us All

The Great Filter Comes For Us All

With a 13 billion year head start on evolution, why haven’t any other forms of life in the universe contacted us by now? (Arrival is a fantastic movie. Watch it, but don’t stop there – read the Story of Your Life novella it was based on for so much

By Jeff Atwood ·
Comments
I Fight For The Users

I Fight For The Users

If you haven’t been able to keep up with my blistering pace of one blog post per year, I don’t blame you. There’s a lot going on right now. It’s a busy time. But let’s pause and take a moment to celebrate that Elon Musk

By Jeff Atwood ·
Comments
The 2030 Self-Driving Car Bet

The 2030 Self-Driving Car Bet

It’s my honor to announce that John Carmack and I have initiated a friendly bet of $10,000* to the 501(c)(3) charity of the winner’s choice: By January 1st, 2030, completely autonomous self-driving cars meeting SAE J3016 level 5 will be commercially available for passenger use

By Jeff Atwood ·
Comments