On November 10, 1983, Microsoft announced Microsoft Windows, an extension of the MS DOS
operating system that would provide a graphical operating environment for PC users.
Microsoft called Windows 1.0 a new software environment for developing and running
applications that use bitmap displays and mouse pointing devices. With Windows, the
graphical user interface (GUI) era at Microsoft had begun.The release of Windows XP in
2001 marked a major milestone in the Windows desktop operating system family, by bringing
together the two previously separate lines of Windows desktop operating systems. With the
upcoming release of Windows .NET Server, Microsoft will complete a cycle of server
operating system upgrades it began nearly a decade ago in 1993, with the release of the
first version of Microsoft Windows NT Server. To understand the progression of Windows
server operating systems you have to look back earlier than 1993, however, to the even
longer line of Windows desktop operating systems stretching back to the early 1980s.The
first version of Windows was a milestone product because it allowed PC users to switch
from the MS DOS method of typing commands at the C prompt (C:\) to using a mouse to point
and click their way through functions, such as starting applications, in the operating
system. Windows 1.0 also allowed users to switch between several programswithout
requiring them to quit and restart individual applications. The product included a set of
desktop applications, including the MS DOS file management program, a calendar, card
file, notepad, calculator, clock, and telecommunications programs, which helped users
manage day to day activities.Even before the Windows 1.0 graphical user interface, there
was this pre Windows 1.0 Interface Manager.With the second version of Windows, Microsoft
took advantage of the improved processing speed of the Intel 286 processor, expanded
memory, and inter application communication capabilities using Dynamic Data Exchange
(DDE). Windows 2.0 featured support for the VGA graphics standard, and also allowed users
to overlap windows, control screen layout, and use keyboard combinations to move rapidly
through Windows operations.Many developers started writing their first Window based
applications for Windows 2.x. Following the release of Windows 2.0 was Windows/386 2.03,
which took advantage of the protected mode and extended memory capabilities of the Intel
386 processor.Subsequent Windows releases continued to improve the speed, reliability,
and usability of the PC, and improved the interface design and capabilities.Microsofts
first mainstream computing platform offered 32 bit performance, advanced graphics, and
full support of the more powerful Intel 386 processor. A new wave of 386 PCs helped drive
the popularity of Windows 3.0, which offered a wide range of new features and
capabilities, including:Program Manager, File Manager, and Print ManagerA completely
rewritten application development environment with modular virtual device drivers (VxDs),
native support for applications running in extended memory, and fully pre emptive MS DOS
multitasking An improved set of Windows iconsThe popularity of Windows 3.0 blossomed with
the release of a completely new Windows software development kit (SDK), which helped
software developers focus more on writing applications and less on writing device
drivers. Widespread acceptance among third party hardware and software developers helped
fuel the success of Windows 3.0.