That’s not a typo. Windows 96 promised to build on the success of Windows 95, yet it never materialized as originally intended.

I only learned about this a few months ago. To me, this was an incredibly fascinating discovery and wanted to write about & share it.

"The Windows That Never Was"

I was actually part of the beta test group for Windows Nashville. It was an improvement over Windows 95, but Windows 98 really brought home a lot of good UI design improvements that began in Windows Nashville. Sadly, it was so buggy that they delayed for several years and, instead, just released Windows 98 when it was finally ready.

Windows Longhorn was a similar failure a few years later

Windows Vista is Microsoft's greatest success, because it's main purpose was to make people forget the promises made for Longhorn.

I do kinda wish we had gotten WinFS. All the "ideas" of it seemed cool, just impossible to implement without breaking every existing application.

Windows Vista is Microsoft's greatest success, because it's main purpose was to make people forget the promises made for Longhorn.

I was actually part of the beta test group for Windows Nashville. It was an improvement over Windows 95, but Windows 98 really brought home a lot of good UI design improvements that began in Windows Nashville. Sadly, it was so buggy that they delayed for several years and, instead, just released Windows 98 when it was finally ready.

Windows Longhorn was a similar failure a few years later

I do kinda wish we had gotten WinFS. All the "ideas" of it seemed cool, just impossible to implement without breaking every existing application.

That’s not a typo. Windows 96 promised to build on the success of Windows 95, yet it never materialized as originally intended.

I only learned about this a few months ago. To me, this was an incredibly fascinating discovery and wanted to write about & share it.

"The Windows That Never Was"

Wow, that's a cool story! Thanks for sharing it! I had no clue there was even a beta test group back then. Was that outside of Microsoft?

Longhorn... the hype was strong with that one. I don't even remember what the hype was about, just that Longhorn was supposed to be amazing.

I was trained on making repairs to Windows 95, there was never a 96. There was a Windows ME which was fucking horrible! My step mom had it on a laptop. Then Windows 2000, which was the best, once you install the other disc that fixed the 250,000 bugs that Windows 2000 came with the original disc.
Man those were the days that I could distribute those operating systems on as many computers I wanted with the one disc.

FS?

As in "F'ing Shit"?

Based on your descriptions of the integration between Windows 96 and Office, I did get the feeling you might run into even more issues if more software wasn't installed alongside Windows as well.

I'm all Mac and Virtual Box doesn't run on M-series hardware.

I had no idea!

And hopefully my comment didn't come across as a dig against your article - it just promises to be a potentially fascinating follow-up. Especially when, even today, Windows Explorer feels like it added previews of files as little more than an afterthought (and occasionally as a PowerToy).

BTW I enjoyed 100% of your article, I think it's a good sign when it leaves the reader wanting more!

If I recall, it was a new file system. So instead if folders, every file would just kind of have tags and could be dynamically grouped like that. I could very well be wrong, but I remember being excited for it.

Can we please have a FUSE FS like this?

That’s not a typo. Windows 96 promised to build on the success of Windows 95, yet it never materialized as originally intended.

I only learned about this a few months ago. To me, this was an incredibly fascinating discovery and wanted to write about & share it.

"The Windows That Never Was"

That’s not a typo. Windows 96 promised to build on the success of Windows 95, yet it never materialized as originally intended.

I only learned about this a few months ago. To me, this was an incredibly fascinating discovery and wanted to write about & share it.

"The Windows That Never Was"

That’s not a typo. Windows 96 promised to build on the success of Windows 95, yet it never materialized as originally intended.

I only learned about this a few months ago. To me, this was an incredibly fascinating discovery and wanted to write about & share it.

"The Windows That Never Was"

That’s not a typo. Windows 96 promised to build on the success of Windows 95, yet it never materialized as originally intended.

I only learned about this a few months ago. To me, this was an incredibly fascinating discovery and wanted to write about & share it.

"The Windows That Never Was"