Yahoo Finance Microsoft's Windows turns 35 today
Windows 1.0 was first released on November 20th, 1985.
It’s not a stretch to say that Microsoft’s Windows is one of the most ubiquitous and well-known pieces of software the world has ever seen. At one point or another you’ve almost certainly spent some time with one of the many iconic Windows releases. And today is the 35th birthday of the one that started it all.
Windows 1.0 was released on November 20th, 1985, though, chances are most of you don’t have fond memories of it. If you have memories of it at all. It was received poorly by critics, in part because Windows 1.0 wasn’t an operating system, but more of a GUI tacked on top of MS-DOS. But Windows has come a long way since those humble beginnings, from the highs of Windows 95 and XP, to the more infamous versions like Vista, Windows ME and Windows 8.
Not every release has been a hit, but with more than 1 billion devices running Windows 10, Microsoft’s OS remains the dominant personal computing platform. Sure, mobile may be the future, with more than 2 billion active Android devices out in the wild — but traditional computers aren’t going anywhere any time soon, and it’s fair to say that Windows will continue to be a dominant force for years to come.
