Hate it or Love it – Windows 95 is 25…

Let’s bring ’em back..
Uh huh…
…
Hate it or love it, the underdog’s on top
And I’m gon’ shine homey until my heart stop
Go ‘head envy me, I’m rap’s MVP
And I ain’t goin’ nowhere, so you can get to know me — (Lyrics from 50 Cent, “Hate it or Love It”, released in 2005, 10 years AFTER Windows 95 was released)

Microsoft Releases Windows 95

On August 24th, 1995, Microsoft released one of the most ambitious operating systems released ever. It was a fundamental shift in style, function, and fashion. It would help bring the PC to the mainstream user.

We have had a few family computers over the years. My dad even had an Apple Lisa back in the day. As kids we played games on an IBM something with a 286 Intel processor, and no hard drive. We booted up from a 3.5in floppy in drive A, and could then play games from a disk in Drive B.

Our first Windows 95 computer was a Pentium 75. It was “HUGE” when my Dad brought it home. I remember asking him, “Dad, when I get older, can you buy me a Pentium computer?” He responded, “Steve, when you get older, I’ll buy you 100 Pentium computers.”

Windows 3.1 will always have a special place in my heart, but Windows 95 is where things really went mainstream. Just think, that’s when the Start button was created, and we literally have never looked back. Microsoft’s attempts to get rid of the Start Button have even been met with resistance.

So, in a world today that seems to not progress fast enough in some areas, it’s fun to think back at how far we’ve come in others. Thank you to the men and women who helped to make Windows 95 a success. The future (aka today’s world) wouldn’t have been the same without you.

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#StayVigilant
#StaySafe
#LookOutForEachOther

Featured Image Source, plus great write-up from TheVerge.Com, found here.