Why Windows 9X series discontinued?

[michel3]

It's not about 9X vs NT either - some versions of Windows are just more successful than others. Windows 98 and Windows XP were the two versions of Windows that made Microsoft what they are now - a giant. If it weren't for 98 and XP, I don't think they would have fared that well (almost nobody used NT 4 and 2000/Me, everyone used 98 and then XP).

For the general public NT 4 and previous, Win 2000, and Me simply didn't exist. They had 98 or 98SE and then upgraded to XP or bought new XP machines. 98 and XP were ubiquitous during their lifetime, unlike NT 4, 2000, Me and even Vista. Windows 8 has better GUI than both Vista and 7.

[bckf]

It's not about 9X vs NT either - some versions of Windows are just more successful than others. Windows 98 and Windows XP were the two versions of Windows that made Microsoft what they are now - a giant. If it weren't for 98 and XP, I don't think they would have fared that well (almost nobody used NT 4 and 2000/Me, everyone used 98 and then XP).

For the general public NT 4 and previous, Win 2000, and Me simply didn't exist. They had 98 or 98SE and then upgraded to XP or bought new XP machines. 98 and XP were ubiquitous during their lifetime, unlike NT 4, 2000, Me and even Vista. Windows 8 has better GUI than both Vista and 7.

NT4 and 2000 didn't exist for general public because they was meant to be used on workstations and servers.
However, it's true that ME and Vista were less successful than 98 and XP.
Maybe Vista deserved more.
This topic is not about success, anyway.

[michel3]

IMO:

Windows NT 4 and earlier: Crap!
Windows 95 and earlier: Crap!
Windows 98 and 98SE: Nice! I rarely got errors on them and they worked perfectly on my made-for-95 machine! I really liked the Plus! 95 themes, integrated into the installation, WebTV and I just loved the WebView in Windows Explorer.
Windows 2000: Booooring and the 95/98 default theme looked better imo. And they ruined WebView -- the clouds image in Win98 was better! The only thing I like about it is the DeluxeCD Player.
Windows Me: Crappier than 98 and looking like 2000: worst of both worlds! The only good things about it were the introduction of WMP and Movie Maker and its green, fresh-looking logo. No wonder most people never used it.
Windows XP: Great and although pretty much obsolete, it's still the best version of Windows ever imho.
Windows Vista: Bloated crap!
Windows 7: Running better than Vista and less bloated, but too overrated! And I hate Aero.
Windows 8: Looks great, I like it because it's different than Vista/7 and has a cleaner, sleeker look.

[john11]

Windows 95 and earlier: Crap!

Windows 95? I thought that was a good OS (for the times).

[Pwned]

IMO:

Windows NT 4 and earlier: Crap!
Windows 95 and earlier: Crap!
Windows 98 and 98SE: Nice! I rarely got errors on them and they worked perfectly on my made-for-95 machine! I really liked the Plus! 95 themes, integrated into the installation, WebTV and I just loved the WebView in Windows Explorer.
Windows 2000: Booooring and the 95/98 default theme looked better imo. And they ruined WebView -- the clouds image in Win98 was better! The only thing I like about it is the DeluxeCD Player.
Windows Me: Crappier than 98 and looking like 2000: worst of both worlds! The only good things about it were the introduction of WMP and Movie Maker and its green, fresh-looking logo. No wonder most people never used it.
Windows XP: Great and although pretty much obsolete, it's still the best version of Windows ever imho.
Windows Vista: Bloated crap!
Windows 7: Running better than Vista and less bloated, but too overrated! And I hate Aero.
Windows 8: Looks great, I like it because it's different than Vista/7 and has a cleaner, sleeker look.

IMO:

Windows NT 4 and earlier: Good, but there are some bugs.
Windows 95 and earlier: Awesome system with stunning new user interface.
Windows 98 and 98SE: Improved Win95, fixed bugs, peripherals support. Nice!
Windows 2000: The NT based core system for business, pretty good.
Windows Me: It's like Windows 98, but with "Home" stuff. Not a lot of people used it.
Windows XP: It's a revolutionary OS! In 2001, this was outstanding!
Windows Vista: A bit of long time making this, and all these Longhorn accidents, but still, if you put SP2 on it, it works nice!
Windows 7: Faster than Vista, not a new experience, but UI is improved.
Windows 8: Nice OS for tablets. Not really good for Desktop and non-touchscreen laptops.

[john11]

Yeah, XP was awesome! Windows 8 is ok on my non-touch laptop, better than 7 I think, but it is a bit annoying with all the touch-orientation, and I definately agree that its made for tablets.

[98fan]

Windows 2000: Booooring and the 95/98 default theme looked better imo. And they ruined WebView -- the clouds image in Win98 was better! The only thing I like about it is the DeluxeCD Player.

If you want the win98 clouds image in Windows 2000 then take the hidden file wvleft.bmp from the WINDOWS\Web folder in win98 and copy it to the WINNT\Web folder of Windows 2000. Don't forget to rename the Win 2000 version of wvleft.bmp to something else in case you want it back later.

Windows XP: Great and although pretty much obsolete, it's still the best version of Windows ever imho.

And you didn't like the Win2000 theme? I still can't stand the XP icons.

[ViennaXP]

IMO:
Windows 2000: Booooring and the 95/98 default theme looked better imo. And they ruined WebView -- the clouds image in Win98 was better! The only thing I like about it is the DeluxeCD Player.

Windows 2000 is not boring, it is a very stable OS and the step from the 2-line System ( DOS -> 98 (ME) / NT -> 2000) to the 1-line System (NT -> XP). I think you only look at the style of the system, btw I like the 2000 style more than the 98 or 95 style. 2000 has many good features, and the base for the very successful Windows XP.

[DeFacto]

Windows 2000: Booooring and the 95/98 default theme looked better imo. And they ruined WebView -- the clouds image in Win98 was better! The only thing I like about it is the DeluxeCD Player.

Of course it can be boring, it was made for professional use not home users... And it's a matter of personal taste how you like the UI, and that doesn't change the fact that it's rock solid and stable...

[ViennaXP]

Of course it can be boring, it was made for professional use not home users... And it's a matter of personal taste how you like the UI, and that doesn't change the fact that it's rock solid and stable...

+1

(I think) At this time the most games were made for the DOS-based line, so it was not very interesting for home users.
Because it is so stable it is still used in my surrounding (school server, firm server, I use it in a VM)

[michel3]

And you didn't like the Win2000 theme? I still can't stand the XP icons.

I agree about the icons, but not about Luna as a whole. It was a cool theme. I agree that it would've been a lot better if XP had 9X/Me/2000 icons though:

^That's XP SP3 with Inexperience Patcher applied.
And look how much better Luna looks with Win2000 toolbar icons in Windows Explorer:


Much fresher than Classic, yet with the cooler, classic icons. The best of both worlds, imo!

[98fan]

^That's XP SP3 with Inexperience Patcher applied.

It looks excellent. I would be interested in knowing how a 1MB patcher can do all that. However....I downloaded the Inexperience Patcher and when I unzip it my virus scanner deletes it and says it contains "Adware.gen".

Anyone else have that happen?

[linuxlove]

Never had an issue with anti-malware software deleting Inexperience Patcher. Might be because I never use any anti-malware software but that's besides the point.

If the scanner detects "gen" or "generic", it's 99.99% sure to be a false positive.

[MiaFan2010]

Can tell anyone why Windows 9X discontinued and just replace home (consumer) edition of Windows NT series?

1. It's Very Slow
2. It's DOS-Based, not NT-Based
3. Windows ME was the last release of the 9X Series

[Kenneth]

[linuxlove]

*image snip - Microsoft Windows 98 Enterprise, Built on Horrid Technology*

[Kenneth]

[ViennaXP]

True words.... DOS is not really the thing you want to use as base for a Professional OS.
It is way to unstable. NT Kernel is much better

[msftwizard]

windows 9x is old and dead... time to bury it forget about it burn it eat it shoot it i mean whatever, we just need to move on.

[MegaDragon998]

I have a big reason why it is discontinued. I used it as normal at it gave me many errors with applications and in the end BSOD with no reason.Thats my final opinion here.

[WINSCHOOL235]

It discontinued because it was part of Microsofts lifecycle policy

It would not be able to handle mordern hardware and applications.

It was unstable (you would of seen the BSOD at least once!)

But of course I wouldnt be saying that back in the 90's I would of said it was amazing, some people still use the Windows 9x series! (such as my grandad)

[msftwizard]

ive just decided to reinstall windows 98 SE

and you know what? its not bad! ofc it wouldnt install on my atom but i now use it on my PIII... works great after a patch! SE even gives me USB. wish i could get it on my Atom

[Jecag]

If you're trying to get that to run natively, I suggest you try LoneCrusader's patch. It might help.

[michel3]

In my Windows 98 days (that lasted well into the 00's, I got a new machine with XP in late 2004!) I was still excited about computers. I didn't have web access, so all I did on my PC was playing computer games, writing poetry using NotePad and going through Windows programs and menus, discovering some hidden gems like Ms Comic Chat. That's why I look fondly back to those days.

However, I wouldn't use Windows 98 nowadays. First, I won't be able to recreate that feeling of excitement, and second, I'm growing fed up with computers. Strange thing is I used to find them more exciting prior to having Internet access. Internet killed my fascination with computers and Operating Systems to the point that the computer is just an appliance I use to visit my favorite websites now. The problem is I've already started getting fed up with the Internet, too...

[msftwizard]

i decided to get rid of it anyway and went with windows 8 on my atom.