There are some days and events that always stand out in one’s mind. Being very interested in technology and computers throughout the years, August 24, 1995, is a day I’ll always fondly remember with fondness. It was on that day that Windows 95 launched. It had been much hyped with the start button and commercials playing the line from The Rolling Stones, “Start Me Up.”
I’ll never forget the excitement of that day. I had pre ordered Windows 95. We were living at the same place we do today. I waited anxiously for the courier. My mother, who has never owned a computer, asked me if I was going to buy that “windows thing.” Windows95 marketing reached everyone. When the moment came and the FedEx driver brought the package with Windows 95, even he asked, “Is this that windows?”
Windows95 was more than hype. It truly changed the way we used computers. It introduced 32-bit computing to the masses. With excitement I loaded Windows 95 from all the floppy disks. I am sure it took a while, but soon I had Windows95 up and running, and it truly did change how I was able to compute. Windows 95 brought 32-bit computing, plug and play of peripherals, multithreading and support for long filenames, and the FAT 32 file system.
I don’t remember every moment, but I know computers were never the same. Built within Windows95 was the ability to connect to the Internet without additional software. I would not have access to the Internet for some time, but, I was ready when it came. I did have access to a local dialup bulletin board where messages were exchanged and shareware was stored.
When I did finally have access to the Internet (via dialup) I was able to connect and have my wifeâ’s computer connected via coaxial cable to my computer. We did not have a router, but we both could connect to different sites by using a software based router running under Windows95.
With time Windows 95 came to be what it is today– Windows 10. Even though my wife and I both use Mac computers, Windows still has a large place in my daily workflow. Our church broadcasts 24/7, and Windows is required for the software we use. Some of my oldest computers have years of documents and work on them, and some apps are Windows only. I keep these computers alive and running in virtual machines on and iMac Pro, and the data backed up to the cloud.
Windows 95 laid the foundation of modern computing. Each year I always think back to August 24, 1995. (My mother-in-law’s birthday is August 24, so I never forget it.) It’s hard to believe it’s been 25 years, but then, it seems like only yesterday. Windows 95 did start us up to a new way of computer that has only gotten better through the years.
