Members of the Windows 1.0 team at their 40-year reunion this week. L-R, kneeling/sitting: Joe Barello, Ed Mills, Tandy Trower, Mark Cliggett, Steve Ballmer (holding a Windows 1.0 screenshot) and Don ...

Windows 1.0 officially released to the public 40 years ago today (November 20), and despite its age, still has some common similarities with what users can expect from the operating system today.

In another example of "everything old is new again," you can now recapture that old-school Microsoft feeling without even a single floppy disk drive. The year was 1980-something. One afternoon, a ...

Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time. March 3, 1986: Probably no category of software has had as difficult a birth as that of operating environments. These software packages, ...

Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. is a senior editor and author of Notepad, who has been covering all things Microsoft, PC, and tech for over 20 ...

Microsoft's latest version of Windows, 8.1, arrives today. CNET takes a look at what came before it, and what's still ahead. Josh Lowensohn Former Senior Writer Josh Lowensohn joined CNET in 2006 and ...

Remember Windows 3.1? If there's a thrill when you think about it, you can relive the whole environment at one masterful programmer's website.

This morning, Microsoft released Windows 8.1. Windows 8 users can upgrade for free by visiting the Windows Store; if you have another operating system, the upgrade will cost you the same price as ...

One of Windows 8.1’s coolest tricks is buried deep in the new Food & Drink app. The app is chock-full of recipes for all sorts of delectable goodies, but touchscreens and foodstuffs don’t mix so well.

Imagine a world without the Start button. No, I’m not talking about Windows 8. Dig deep into your memory, and you may recall a time when Windows 3.1 ruled the Earth. Twenty-five years ago this month, ...