Windows On Windows
@wowstartsnow
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The YouTube channel on the history & development of #Microsoft #Windows . 📺 Join the Discord @ ! 👨🏻💻 Follow for daily Windows facts. 🤓 #WIMVP
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Bill Gates posing for the press at the Windows XP launch in New York, 25th October 2001.
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Name a bigger downgrade.
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In January 1996, Charles O’Rear was driving through Sonoma County, California. “My God, the grass is perfect!” he thought, as he caught sight of a hill. Pulling over, he had no idea the photo he was about to take would become the most famous & loved
@Windows
wallpaper ever. 🖼
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1K
Windows XP build 2210, from 2nd March 2000, is the earliest available build of a 64-bit edition of Windows. Designed for DEC Alpha, it predated Intel Itanium, which XP would eventually support. Its boot screen is notably just Windows 2000’s with “64” crudely spray painted on top.
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Most are familiar with Windows 7’s (2009) default wallpaper, Harmony. But, less familiar may be how involved the process of arriving at the final image was. Many ideas were tried, but ultimately rejected for one reason or another. Here are just 4 deemed “not quite right”. 🧐👀
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Phone Dialer is a Windows app that lets users make & answer phone calls via a modem connected to their PC. First seen in Windows 95 build 73f, from 23rd November 1993, it is one of only a few apps whose icons have not changed since their official debut in Windows 95 (1995). 📞
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Evolution of the Start menu and Taskbar (including development builds): Windows 95 build 58s (1993) - Windows 11 build 25188 (2022) 👀 [📸:
@orbitron507
]
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During Windows XP’s (2001) development, Microsoft asked design company Frog Design to help “generate key elements of the UI”. This included a new Windows logo. 50 potential logos were drafted, which were whittled down to a top 3. With a few tweaks, the final XP logo was born. 🤩
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Windows has an undocumented “Emergency Shutdown” feature. Though info is scarce, it existed at least as far back as Windows NT 3.51 (1995). To access it, a user must press Ctrl+Alt+Delete & click Shut Down whilst holding Ctrl. After confirming, the system immediately shuts down.
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To combat the problems users had navigating the system in Windows 3.1 (1992), Microsoft introduced the Start Menu & Taskbar in Windows 95 (1995). Both would quickly become synonymous with
@Windows
, going through various iterations over the years. Which was your favourite? 👀
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Mom, can we have Windows XP?
Mom: No, we have Windows XP at home.
Windows XP at home:
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Bill Gates poses for the press at the Windows XP launch event in New York on 25th October 2001.
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Windows Vista advert (& Microsoft Office truck) seen at Microsoft headquarters in Redmond, Washington, 2007.
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POV: It’s 2007 and you’re deciding whether to take the plunge and upgrade from XP to Vista. 👀
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In the early 2000s,
@hillel
led the Windows User Experience team working on Windows Vista’s (2006) new “Aero” user experience. He described it as “the biggest project I’d ever worked on, as well as a huge honour”. Aero remains one of Windows’ most loved visual designs. 😍
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Windows has an undocumented “Emergency Shutdown” feature. Introduced in Windows NT 3.1 (1993), to access it, a user must 1st press Ctrl+Alt+Delete. Then, if the Shut Down option is chosen while holding Ctrl, a dialog box will allow the user to confirm an immediate shut down. 🚨‼️
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The Browser Choice Screen was a mandatory screen shown to Windows Internet Explorer users in the European Union between March 2010-December 2014. It resulted from the EU ruling the inclusion of Internet Explorer in Windows gave Microsoft an unfair advantage in the browser market.
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For 2009’s Windows 7, Corporate Vice President of the Windows Experience,
@Julie_LGreen
, noted Microsoft had kept features used by even a small number of users in the OS: "So if you're 1 of the 0.8% of people who put [the Taskbar] down the left-hand side, it still works for you.”
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POV: It’s 2013 and you’re personalising your new Windows 8.1 Start screen:
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Happy 14th Birthday, Windows 7! Developed in response to the poor reception of its predecessor, Windows Vista (2006), Windows 7 was released on 22nd October 2009. It introduced the beefed up “Superbar”, new window management features, performance improvements & much more. ✨
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|￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣|
Windows 7 is the GOAT
|＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿|
\ (•◡•) /
\ /
——
| |
|_ |_
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POV: It’s 24th August 1995, you queued overnight and just bought your copy of Windows 95. 🤩
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Windows Vista (2006) introduced the Start Orb: a new, orb-shaped, textless iteration of the Start button. Simply displaying the Windows logo, it exceeded the height of the Taskbar (a feature unique to Vista, as this changed with Windows 7’s (2009) debut of the taller “Superbar”).
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Windows XP (2001) has proved to be one of - if not the - most loved Windows versions. Though support ended on 8th April 2014, Microsoft - appreciating its continued significance - made unprecedented moves in late 2014, 2017 & 2019 by releasing security updates for the system. 👀
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Personal tweet. Today I lost my lovely mum. 💔 She spent her whole life thinking of me & everyone else she loved. Even with cancer, she worried about us too much, & herself not enough. Thankfully, I was there at the end to hold her hand, say goodbye & thank her for everything. 🕊️
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Windows Vista (2006) introduced the Start Orb: a new, orb-shaped & text-less iteration of the Start button. Simply displaying the Windows logo, it actually exceeded the height of the Taskbar - though this would change in Windows 7 (2009), with the debut of the taller “Superbar”.
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POV: It’s the late 90s and you’re busy choosing your latest Windows 98 desktop theme. Life is good. 🤩
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In 2009,
@joebelfiore
became Director of Program Management in Microsoft’s mobile division. He & his team worked on a new user interface: Metro. Introduced in Windows Phone 7 (2010), it would later also become the primary user interface of Windows 8 (2012) & 8.1 (2013). 🟦🟪🟩🟨
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Windows Vista (PRODUCT)RED Edition was a variant of Windows Vista (2006) released to promote Product Red: a campaign to raise awareness & funds to eliminate HIV/AIDS in various African countries. It included a unique (PRODUCT)RED desktop theme, wallpapers & Sidebar gadgets. 🩸
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Windows XP’s (2001) branding wallpaper (simply called “Windows XP”) shows the Windows wordmark on a coloured background of a 3D rendered Windows logo. Designed by studio REZN8, the colour was edition-dependent & included a variant for XP’s server counterpart, Windows Server 2003.
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Windows XP’s (2001) branding wallpaper (simply called “Windows XP”) shows the Windows wordmark on a coloured background of a 3D rendered Windows logo. Designed by studio REZN8, the colour was edition-dependent & included a variant for XP’s server counterpart, Windows Server 2003.
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During the development of Windows 8 (2012), in builds 8161-8176 from late 2011/early 2012, an oddly-detailed generic user account picture was present. It was a nod to the now infamous mugshot of Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, taken in 1977 for a traffic violation. 🫣
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The original release of Windows 10, from 2015, had a hidden surprise for fans of Windows 8’s (2012) Start screen (some of us liked it!). With seemingly no-one bothering to remove the underlying code, a simple hack allowed it to be reactivated in (almost) all its former glory. 😎
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Bill Gates at the launch of Windows XP Tablet PC Edition in New York City, November 2002.
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“Frutiger Aero” refers to the UI aesthetic used in the latter years of Windows XP (2001) & development of Vista (2006). Characterised by glossy textures & glass effects, Windows Media Player 10 (2004) & Windows XP Media Center Edition (2005)’s Royale visual style are examples. ✨
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Aurora is the default wallpaper of Windows Vista (2006). Designed to be “peaceful, calm & open” according to Windows design team member Jenny Lam, it was inspired by the Aurora Borealis (or Northern Lights) as seen from Microsoft’s headquarters in Redmond, Washington. ✨🟢🟡👀
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Early builds of Windows 95 (1995) contained a hidden feature called Folder Tabs. Upon activating it, a tabbed interface in Windows Explorer is revealed…almost 30 YEARS before its official debut in Windows 11 (2021). 🤯 The tabs acted as quick links to recently-opened folders. 🗂
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On 1st April 1996, Microsoft Coffee appeared in stores. ☕️ This “Java-compatible Internet development tool” (Java…coffee…get it?) was designed for Windows 95 (1995), inspired by Sun Microsystem’s new Java programming language. The only issue? It was fake. 👀
@microsoftcoffee
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Windows XP (2001) has proved to be one of - if not the - most popular Windows versions. Though support ended on 8th April 2014, Microsoft - appreciating its continued significance - made unprecedented moves in late 2014, 2017 & 2019 by releasing security updates for the system.
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86
554
In November 2006, Microsoft released the Zune theme for Windows XP (2001). Made to promote their new portable media player, the Zune, the theme included a new black & orange recolour of Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005’s Royale visual style, plus a new wallpaper. ⚫️🟠🖌️
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During Windows XP’s development, Microsoft contacted design company Frog Design to help “generate key elements of the UI”. This would include a new Windows logo. 50 potential logos were designed, then whittled down to a top 3. With a few tweaks, the final XP logo would be born.
27
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543
“Frutiger Aero” refers to the UI aesthetic used in the latter years of Windows XP (2001) & development of Vista (2006). Characterised by glossy textures & glass effects, Windows Media Player 10 (2004) & Windows XP Media Center Edition (2005)’s Royale visual style are examples. ✨
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553
Xbox One OS is a modified version of Windows designed to power the XBox One & Series X/S consoles. Debuting with the XBox One on 22nd November 2013, it was initially based on Windows 8 (2012). Games run inside virtual machines powered by Microsoft’s Hyper-V virtualisation app.
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Windows XP Starter Edition (2004) is a lightweight version of Windows XP (2001) intended to be bundled with cheap, low-end PCs in developing countries. Differences from regular XP include a limit on the number of running apps (max 3) & use of Windows Classic as the default theme.
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Windows Thin PC, or WinTPC (2011), was a lightweight version of Windows 7 (2009) designed for use on older PCs in embedded/industry devices. It was aimed at businesses that weren’t able to upgrade their hardware, & was only available via the Microsoft Software Assurance program.
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Windows 98 (1998) was the last version of Windows able to be purchased on floppy disks. The 3½" floppy disk edition of Windows 98 was mail order only and came on THIRTY NINE(!!!) specially-formatted disks - each could hold 1.68MB (versus the 1.44MB of a standard floppy). 💾👀😱
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Which rejected Windows 7 wallpaper is your favourite? 👀
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Windows XP Starter Edition (2004) is a lightweight version of Windows XP (2001) intended to be bundled with cheap, low-end PCs in developing countries. Differences from regular XP include a limit on the number of running apps (max 3) & use of Windows Classic as the default theme.
10
68
532
In January 1996, Charles O’Rear was driving through Sonoma County, California. “My God, the grass is perfect!” he thought, as he caught sight of a hill. Pulling over, he had no idea the photo he was about to take would become the most famous & loved
@Windows
wallpaper ever. 🖼
7
96
530
Windows 3 (1990) introduced desktop wallpapers to Windows. But, the default background remained a solid colour until Windows XP (2001). Since XP shipped with a default wallpaper for the first time, it has become an integral part of each new release. Which is your favourite? 👀
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78
525
The original release of Windows 10 (2015) had a hidden surprise for fans of Windows 8’s (2012) Start screen. With seemingly no-one on the Windows 10 dev team tasked with removing the underlying code, a simple hack allowed it to be reactivated in (almost) all its former glory.😎
15
58
525
On 1st April 1996, Microsoft Coffee appeared in stores. This “Java-compatible Internet development tool” (Java…coffee…geddit? ☕️) was designed for Windows 95 (1995) & inspired by Sun Microsystem’s new Java programming language. The only problem? It was fake.
@microsoftcoffee
11
87
527
10th January 2023 marks the end of the paid Extended Security Updates (ESU) program for Windows 7 (2009). It was designed for companies with Windows 7 PCs to continue to receive security updates while planning to migrate to Windows 8.1/10/11. What are your memories of Windows 7?
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515
In November 2006, Microsoft released the Zune theme as a free download for Windows XP (2001). Made to promote their new Zune portable media player, the theme consisted of a new black & orange recolour of Windows XP Media Centre Edition’s Royale visual style, plus a new wallpaper.
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77
507
Windows 8 build 8423, from 28th May 2012, is the last known build of Windows with Aero glass transparency. 1st seen in development builds of Windows Vista (2006), Aero glass was removed to make Windows 8’s desktop UI more consistent with its new, flat, touch-optimised “Metro” UI.
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515
Performers from the Grounded Aerial Dance Theater recreate the Windows Vista logo on the side of a New York building as part of the operating system’s launch on 29th January 2007.
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In 2015, Orly Airport in Paris, France - one of the busiest in the region - was forced to shut down for several hours owing to a computer crash. The PC in question linked air traffic control to France’s main weather bureau. It ran Windows 3.1 - a 23 year old OS at the time! ✈️🤯
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Windows 95 officially brought the Start menu to Windows. But it WASN’T the 1st version of Windows you could use Start in - that honour goes to Windows NT 3.51, released 3 months BEFORE 95, where Start could be activated via a download package called the Shell Technology Preview.
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Microsoft
○
く|)へ
〉
￣￣┗┓ Windows 7 & 8.1
┗┓ ヾ○ｼ
┗┓ ヘ/
┗┓ノ
┗┓
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Windows Embedded POSReady 7 is a version of Windows based on Windows 7 (2009) & designed for use in “point of service” (“POS”) devices, such as ATMs. It’ll receive extended updates (ESUs) until 24th October 2024, making it the longest-supported Windows 7-based version of Windows.
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This is the original concept for the
@Windows
Start menu, drawn by
@danieloran
in early 1993. ✍️ The original concept names it the System menu. But, it was found during usability tests that users were reluctant to click it. The name was changed to Start, & the rest is history. 🔥
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Microsoft’s Windows XP Christmas Theme Pack 2004 was a software pack offered as a free download to users running a genuine copy of Windows XP (2001). It added a new desktop theme (called ChristmasTheme) with a Christmas-themed wallpaper, screensaver, sound scheme & cursors. 🎄🎅🏻
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Windows RT 8.1, released on 17th October 2013, was an edition of Windows 8.1 designed for 32-bit ARM PCs. As RT was not upgradable to Windows 10 (2015), Microsoft released an update to add a Start menu to the OS. This makes RT the only edition of Windows 8/8.1 with a Start menu.
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To combat the problems users had navigating Windows 3.1 (1992), Microsoft introduced the Start Menu & Taskbar in Windows 95 (1995). Both would become synonymous with
@Windows
, gaining various improvements over the years. Learn more @ ! 👀🆕🎥🎄
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484
Windows Thin PC (2011) was a light version of Windows 7 (2009) aimed at business PCs with legacy hardware. It was the successor to Windows Fundamentals For Legacy PCs (2004) - which was based on Windows XP (2001) - & was only available via Microsoft’s Software Assurance Program.
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483
This was the original design for the Windows 8 (2012) logo. 👀 Director of Program Management for the Windows 8 User Experience,
@jensenharris
, explained that the now-familiar lines were added as “we didn’t think we could get trademark protection for a simple solid trapezoid”.
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Windows XP (2001) introduced visual styles - graphical skins loaded on top of the Windows UI:
🖼️Luna (2001), from XP RTM
🖼️Royale (2005), from Media Center Edition 2005
🖼️Zune (2006), downloadable
🖼️Embedded (2009), from Embedded 2009 (based on XP)
Which was your favourite? 👀
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On 29th October 2002, Microsoft released Windows XP Media Center Edition (MCE). Designed for PCs used for home entertainment, it introduced Windows Media Center, which acted as a hub & player for the user’s music & video. MCE also sported a brand new default visual style, Royale.
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Windows Vista build 3683, from 23rd September 2002, is the earliest available build of Windows Vista (2006). Calling itself “Longhorn XP”, it includes features that didn’t make the final release, such as the Plex visual style, centred titlebar text & a clock on the login screen.
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Today - 10th January 2023 - marks the true end of support for Windows 7 (2009). Since January 2020, support has only been provided to customers of Microsoft's paid Extended Security Updates program, which has now ended. Goodbye, Windows 7. 🙁 Learn more @ .
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Xbox One OS is a modified version of Windows designed to power the XBox One & Series X/S consoles. Debuting with the XBox One on 22nd November 2013, it was initially based on Windows 8 (2012). Games run inside virtual machines powered by Microsoft’s Hyper-V virtualisation app.
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