operating systems
Blanks in the table in this document mean I didn't
note, not that an offering didn't include the
feature; where I did note, I have put "no".
This was last revised 2003-10-11, so if reading
much after April, be aware it's incorrect!
| Figures shown
| thus
| were noted | 2003-8-16
| in | London
| - were the lowest I found - allow
~ 10-15% margin;
|
| thus
| 2003-3-8
|
| thus
| 2002-10-19
|
| otherwise | earlier
(as shown)
| (various places)
| and've probably dropped more.
|
The operating system (software)
| Windows 95 CD version numbers:
| 000-59944
000-59949 | 2.1 (USB)
|
| X03-52599 | 2.5 (USB + IE4.01)
|
(See below for notes on headings)
| name | version
| CD with | price
| comments
|
| book | floppy
|
|---|
| Windows for Workgroups |
| yes | on floppies
| 25 (2002-5-25 Chelmsford) | with DOS 6.2
|
| Windows 95 |
| £15
| book only
|
| on floppies
| £25
|
| OSR 2.1 | yes
| £19.99
| produced in late 1997.
|
| 2.5 |
| £20
| 2 CDs
|
| Windows 98 | |
| £35
| similar to '95 plus Internet Explorer 4
(IE6 is now free).
|
| SE (latest) | yes
| £45
|
|
|
| name | version
| CD with | price
| comments
|
| book | floppy
|
|---|
| (Windows) NT | 4 | yes
| | £15
|
|
| £2
| service pack 6A only
|
| Windows xp | Home
| thin | .
| £79.99
| to service pack A1
|
| Professional
| £120
|
| 125
| to service pack A1
|
explanation of column headings:
name and version number
Originally (taking IBM PCs and compatibles here, and only
Microsoft operating systems), there was DOS, a command
line interface (i. e. you typed instructions at it); a graphical
user interface (GUI) was written, to - allegedly! (and,
probably, in reality as well, at least for newcomers to
computing) - make computing easier. This was called
Windows, and ran as a program under DOS. DOS developed
through many versions, with 3.3 being about the first really
useful, with significant improvements in 5 (4 was an oddity),
and some useful enhancements in 6. The last released on its own
was 6.22. The first Windows that was not more bother than it was
worth was arguably 3.0, with 3.1 the one whose basic appearance
and character was dominant for some time (with minor
enhancements, known variously as Windows for Workgroups, Windows
3.11, etcetera).
Windows 9x and Windows NT (New
Technology!) - the latter often being known as just NT -
came next. NT was originally developed for use in a more
controlled environment, such as business use - things like
multiple users (each with their own configuration and password),
and is more of an operating system in itself, rather than being
just a GUI sitting on top of a command line operating system. Up
to version 3.51, NT looked like the old Windows 3.1x,
though it was very different underneath; from version 4, it
shared the user interface of Windows 9x. Windows 9x -
originally Windows 95 - was still to some extent a GUI
program running on top of a command line operating
system, though this was less obvious than on the old DOS/Windows
3.1x combinations. It was developed originally for the home
user, and finally appeared a little after NT (hence NT having
the older appearance to start with). Later, the distinction
became somewhat blurred - a few home users use NT, and quite a
lot of business users use 9x, whose use with multiple users,
centralised configuration control, and so on, was enhanced a
little. Windows 9x started with the original version of 95,
then version 2 (which was mainly a bug-fixed version, though with
minor improvements along the way such as better handling of
large hard discs); version 2.1 includes USB support (version 2.0
isn't really findable), and 2.5 is identical to 2.1 other than
having Internet Explorer 4 included. Then we got Windows 98; the
last edition of '98 (known as 98SE [for Second
Edition], and the only update widely issued for '98) came
out around mid-1999. Windows "Millennium Edition"
(also called "Me") managed to squeeze out quite late
in 2000, and still has a '9x core.
There was going to be an NT5, but this was renamed Windows
2000 (and released early in 2000). However, it is definitely
in the NT line, not the '9x one (Me is '9x, though made to
resemble '2000).
How to choose between '9x (which includes Me), NT4 (or 2000
[ignore earlier versions of NT]), or XP? NT is, on the whole,
very stable (I use it at work), but overkill for home use, and a
bit harder to configure, and some software and hardware don't
work with it (e. g. NT4 doesn't support USB at all, though 2000
does). It also needs a more highly specified system (say, 64M
RAM) to run happily, though any new machine should be capable.
The Me version of '9x was on the whole not as bad as some people
thought it would be, and many like it; the general consensus is
that it is quite good if installed on a fresh system, but
problematical if installed as an upgrade, but it is definitely
slanted towards the home user, and has been to a large extent
superseded by xp (see below). Later: now that all of these
are seen as obsolescent or obsolete, consensus seems to be
settling on 98SE being the best of the '9x line, and although
2000 is considered the best of the separate NT line, it
didn't hold sway for long enough to be that widely
used.
The long-awaited operating system that brought together the '9x
and NT lines - Windows xp - received the usual mixed reception,
but is now well established, and certainly the only operating
system available on new packaged machines. It works best on new
hardware. It also has an anti-piracy feature called activation;
when installed, it notes the hardware configuration and serial
number of some of the hardware components, and generates a
string of characters which must be complemented by another
string of characters obtained from Microsoft (either via MoDem
or over the 'phone); if this is not done, it ceases to function
after a short while. If more than a certain amount of the
hardware in the system is changed, it is assumed that an attempt
is being made to run it on a second machine, and again it ceases
to function, though there is a time-out - i. e. components
can be changed, as long as it is not done too fast. It
can also be reactivated (i. e. straight away) by contacting
Microsoft, if you can convince them that you are indeed not
running it on a second machine.
what's included in the price?
DOS, Windows 3.x, and the first Windows 95, were supplied on
normal floppy discs; Windows 95 was also available on a CD-ROM.
All later versions come on CD only. With the CD or floppies, you
may receive a booklet, giving some brief help on the operating
system and the software supplied with it; many people also feel
more assured that what they have is a legitimate copy if the
booklet is included, especially if, as it usually does, it has
some sort of certificate attached. (In fact, Microsoft say in
the licence conditions that, in the case of some versions - in
particular 95 OSR 2 - it is only a legal copy if bought with
certain specified hardware, such as a new PC, hard drive, or
motherboard, and then only if in a prescribed manner; I take no
responsibility either way here!) When you buy the operating
system on CD, and want to install it on a new system, you will
need drivers for your CD-ROM drive - only a few very recent
motherboards can use a CD-ROM drive from cold. Such a "boot
disc" - i. e. a floppy disc that can be used to start the
system, and containing CD-ROM drive drivers - is not hard to
create if you have access to another system; the drivers, at
least, may have been supplied with your CD-ROM drive,
though they tend not to be these days. Some of the
packages shown above come with a suitable "startup
disk" (shown in the column headed "floppy").
price
I did see a '95 OSR2 CD (just the CD, no
booklet or floppies) for £6 on 1999-9-11, and ('95) books
with licence only for £8 on 2002-3-9.