Chapter 24: Windows 9x

OVERVIEW OF WINDOWS 9x

In this chapter we will focus on the Windows 9x family of operating systems. As stated in Chapter 23, by Windows 9x we generally mean Windows 95 and Windows 98. Windows 95 and Windows 98 are considered true 32-bit operating systems that are backward compatible with Windows 3.x and DOS. Windows 95 had two major release versions: Windows 95A (OSR1) and Windows 95B (OSR2). Windows 98 also had two release versions: Windows 98 and Windows 98 Second Edition (SE).

Windows 95B (OSR2) and both versions of Windows 98 come packaged with the ability to provide hard drive partitions above the 2GB barrier that was a limitation of Windows 95A (OSR1).

The Windows 9x family as a whole has introduced many major improvements to the computing world, including the following:

• Plug-and-Play (PnP) support

• Preemptive multitasking abilities

• Improved network capabilities and Internet sharing

• Better support for multimedia devices and applications

• Dynamic support for 32-bit applications and supporting devices

• Long file name support (up to 255 characters)

• Support for Protected Mode versus Real Mode device drivers

• Installation and support Wizards to assist with installation and operating system administration

• The implementation of a Windows Registry that is used to support environments and devices in place of initialization files

These are just a few of the important improvements that were introduced by the operating system that changed the world. We will discuss these improvements as well as other operating system characteristics specific to Windows 9x throughout this chapter.