I have been working in Microsoft's Windows Operating System (OS) for so long I'm not sure I could function with out it. Is that a good or bad thing? I have no idea!
Microsoft's Windows has been around since 1983. I started with Windows 3 then moved to Windows 3.11. I really liked the user interface and control I had.
Windows 95 was next. Honestly, I LOVED IT! Yes, there were 5 different versions released over the years to fix the glitches, but I still thought it was a good stable office/home OS. When MS came out with PLUS! I was almost in heaven :D
Then of course was Windows 98. I worked the crap out 98. That is when I started developing real database and data-driven applications. It was stable, fast and I could network my computers to allow the wife to use the internet with only one modem (ARG! A modem? Don't EVEN let me get started!)
Ah, then Microsoft released Windows 2000. Until the release of Windows XPsp3, 2000 was by far my favorite OS. Six different versions from Professional to Advanced and Datacenter server. There really wasn't a better OS for those of us in the field of programming, well, Microsoft programming. Stable, solid, fast, and dependable. If Microsoft ever really did something right (up to that point in time) it was Windows 2000.
Then Microsoft took a HUGE step backward and handed out Millennium Edition, also known as Windows ME. ME was about as stable as a mud slide. I happened to purchase a computer that came with ME and immediately reloaded it with Windows 2000. My favorite nomenclature for ME was "Mistake Edition".
Thank goodness for 2001, thats when Microsoft realeased one of the BEST operating systems next to Windows 2000 Professional. Welcome Windows XP! Released as the result of merging of NT/2000 and 95/98/ME, XP was solid, safe, fast and efficient. Now, there were a few, ok many, security issues on the first release but once you got to XP sp3 (service pack 3), it was all good! Now, is XP perfect, no, but very reliable. I was a coding guru on XPsp3. There were so many editions it was hard to keep up. Everything from HOME to Media to Professional. Just GOOD STUFF!
In 2003, Microsoft release Windows Server 2003. Six different editions and a much better security features. Setup was done via a "Manage your Server" wizard that simplified user setup, networking, printer and file sharing and much more. I likes the way it ran Microsofts SQL Server, being the data geek that I am!
Released in 2007 is the only Windows I have never used, Windows Home Server. Ah well, must have been a quite release.
Mistake #2 (ME was and will always been the biggest blunder Microsoft ever made in my book), Vista. I fight with my Vista home daily. It's slow, clunky and in my opinion, a frackin waste. But, I got a new computer in 2007 and gee, it came with Vista. Finding drivers for my printer, my favorite keyboard... ARG! What a nightmare. I'll be honest, I very rarely use that machine. I am saving up my $$ to get my newest favorite operating system, Windows 7!!!
Question of the blog, when was Windows Server 2008 was released??? You guessed it, in 2008. Better security and more modular, it became our Server OS of choice at work. Granted, there are ten, yes TEN editions...
Now we say HELLO to WINDOWS 7! I have to admit, I was very, VERY skeptical. I LOVE XPsp3, I am used to XPsp3... Vista sucked... Finally I gave it a try on my trusty Lenovo T61 laptop. Ah, WOW! It did take a little getting used to. Some of the new security features are a total pain in the arse but I can see with home users that it is a safer OS. I love the new Start Button. I click, type in the application I want to run and BOOM BABY, there it is! I even have Visual Studios 6 running just fine on it! I think the introduction of desktop gadgets is one of my favorite things. I have weather, stocks and a really kewl memory/cpu gadget on my desktop. I am actively saving up to get two copies of Windows 7 upgrade, one for my Home computer and one for the wife's laptop (another Vista Home OEM).
To be totally honest, I'm not sure I am ready for "Windows 8"/next version of Windows. For now, Windows 7 is da BOMB!!!
/Rob
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