Windows 1.0

Microsoft PC Operating Systems (17 items)
list by The O.P.

Windows 1.0 is a graphical personal computer operating environment developed by Microsoft. First released on 20 November 1985 as the first version of the Microsoft Windows line, Windows 1.0 runs as a graphical, 16-bit multi-tasking shell on top of an existing MS-DOS installation, providing an environment which can run graphical programs designed for Windows, as well as existing MS-DOS software. Its development was spearheaded by the company founder, Bill Gates, after seeing a demo of a similar software suite known as Visi On at COMDEX.
Despite positive responses to its early presentations and support from a number of hardware and software makers, Windows 1.0 was received poorly by critics, who felt it did not meet their expectations. In particular, they felt that Windows 1.0 put too much emphasis on mouse input at a time when mouse use was not yet widespread; not providing enough resources for new users; and for suffering from performance issues, especially on systems with lower hardware specifications. Despite this criticism, Windows 1.0 proved to be an important milestone for Microsoft, and in computer history in general. Windows 1.0 was officially declared obsolete and unsupported by Microsoft on 31 December 2001.
[Link removed - login to see]