Microsoft has played a vital role in Computing industry and most of the people who use computers daily on their office desks, home or anywhere else use Microsoft’s Windows, an operating system that has made Microsoft and Bill Gates more famous and rich than any body else. Here is a look at the facts and figures from Windows history. All interesting things about Windows XP, Windows, Vista, Windows 7 and then that Windows 3.0, 3.1, 95 and 98 era.
1. In 1983 Microsoft announced the development of Windows, a graphical user interface (GUI) for its own operating system (MS-DOS)
2. Windows has been around for 25 years now, Windows 1.0 hit the shelves in November. 1985 and Windows 2.0 was released in October 1987.
3. Windows 95 first introduced plug and play (The ability to automatically detect and configure the newly installed hardware)
4. Windows 98 was first released in 1998 and then second edition was released in 1999.
5. In 2000, Microsoft introduced Windows ME (Millennium) that came with ‘System Restore’ ability.
6. In 2001, Microsoft introduced Windows XP that came in two editions (‘Home‘ and ‘Professional‘)
7. On January 30, 2007 Microsoft released Windows Vista. This widely criticised Windows edition was built on the basis of security.
8. In 1997 the U.S. Justice Dept. accused Microsoft of violating a 1995 antitrust agreement, because the Windows 95 operating system required consumers to load Microsoft’s Internet browser—thus giving Microsoft a monopolistic advantage over other browser manufacturers.
9. The Windows operating system has 50 million line of codes that grow 20% with every new release
10. Windows supports 34 languages.
11. As of October 2009, Microsoft’s Windows has 91% of the market share of the client operating systems for usage on the Internet.
12. Windows 7 had huge beta test, around 8 million users helped the company to find and remove the bugs (This is because Vista had loads of bugs and was not much appreciated by users)
13. Windows 7 is fastest selling Windows in history of Microsoft (Microsoft has sold 100 million licenses of Windows 7 within 6 months of its release: Source)
14. 10%+ computer users around the world are running Windows 7 already (its only been 6 months since it is released)
15. “Windows 8? is scheduled to be released sometime around 2012.
