Is there a web browser for windows 1.0/2.0?

[EvanKTC]

Just want to know if it exists

[DVINTHEHOUSEMAN]

As far as I know, there wasn’t a browser until Windows 95, but you could buy the Jumpstart kit for WFW 3.1 I believe in 1995-96.

[EvanKTC]

Yeah but Internet explorer versions up to ie5 suppored 3.1, there are also a few web browsers for dos

[AlphaBeta]

No.             

[DiskingRound]

No. I don't believe there are any internet drivers than can work in Windows 1.0-3.0.

[gtgamer468]

So you access databases in different ways? Like with the Gopher protocol?

[Overdoze]

I'm pretty sure networking on Windows before version 3.1 was usually done via an MS-DOS network, possibly MS-NET, or via NetWare.

[Battler]

More like, before Windows for Workgroups 3.11. Windows 3.1 and even Windows for Workgroups 3.1 still heavily relied on MS-DOS network drivers.

[SebOno]

Nope. Windows 1.x and 2.x were only based on top of MS-DOS. They didn't have a proper GUI. The first Windows version to have a proper GUI was Windows 3.0.

[JustZisGuy]

So you access databases in different ways? Like with the Gopher protocol?

What databases?

Nope. Windows 1.x and 2.x were only based on top of MS-DOS. They didn't have a proper GUI. The first Windows version to have a proper GUI was Windows 3.0.

What does the GUI have to do with it?

I'm not even aware of any web browsers for Windows 3.0 although it would have been technically possible. As mentioned, networking stacks were all DOS based until WFWG/95/NT. Usually one would need a Winsock.dll implementation that interfaced with the DOS networking stack, but in theory Win 1.x/2.x programs could probably cheat and talk directly to the DOS stack if they had to.

When web browsers were brand new, Windows 1 and 2 were already "old", and with their 640k memory limitations would have been impractical.

Of course, one could always create a serial/modem (or telnet using DOSBox) Windows Terminal connection to a Linux system and browse using Lynx.

[AlphaBeta]

Nope. Windows 1.x and 2.x were only based on top of MS-DOS. They didn't have a proper GUI.

How did Windows 1.x and 2.x not have a proper GUI? Could you please elaborate?

[Overdoze]

And as JustZisGuy said, it's completely irrelevant to the subject at hand. Web browsers exist for text based environments as well. In fact, it would be interesting to try and run a browser for DOS under Windows 1.0.

[BetaNewbie]

I guess the closest thing is terminal emulators that connects to BBSes with a dialup modem.

[Moline]

Sure, if you have time to rework Windows 1.0/2.0 to include modern LAN support. You'd need to find a modern equivalent to a 1.0/2.0 LAN driver so, if you're running an 80's HP desktop, you'd just go to the HP website, find a LAN driver, and then edit it so it can install under 1.0/2.0. You would then need to edit the other networking components as well. Once that hurdle is cleared, you would then need to edit an internet browser to work. Once that is cleared, you could then run the internet from 1.0/2.0. Keep in mind, this is going to take a lot of work to pull off, and is highly unlikely to be achieved. If you are somehow able to pull this of, you just made history. If you want to do this, you better get started on the research, and you will probably need resource hacker and a hex editor among other things.

[TI-Man]

Doesn't PythonD have some kind of weird net support, even in DOS mode?

also pretty sure DOS LAN drivers exist.

Yup, this article was written in '96. This kind of thing was possible.

Browsers, however, also exist for DOS. One even runs in graphics mode, so it may be callable in 2.0 either stock or with a little work,and SHOULD work with 3.1.

[winnt32]

Write your own LAN support, network stack, and browser, and then there will be!

[zde]

So you access databases in different ways? Like with the Gopher protocol?

While people often like to think about Gopher as "Older text Web"... it's actually younger sibling.

World Wide Web was created in 1989 while Gopher was made in 1991. But that's not the important thing. The important thing is TCP/IP support. It was added to LAN Manager 2.0 and to Windows 3.0 in 1990. In fact Windows 3.0 does not even come with TCP/IP support - it was actually added by third-party developers (look for Trumpet Winsock)!

Before that all PC networks used their own, proprietary protocols: VIP (the VINES Internetwork Protocol), IPX (that one was used by Netware), NBF (NetBIOS Frames) and other.

In fact LANs were extremely common back then, but WANs were extremely rare. People used BBS and Compuserve (look for README files for old Borland products - there are always mention of Compuserve and never anything like a web site).

And LANs play by entirely different rules: you have system administrator there, s/he could install software on all computers in network... but there are no common protocol to follow! No need for browser.

[Avery]

Nope. Windows 1.0 wasn't bundled with any software. It was just like the skin on top of your skeleton.

[Digger]

Nope. Windows 1.0 wasn't bundled with any software. It was just like the skin on top of your skeleton.

It came with some pretty useful apps though, like a clock and calculator