This video offers a 30-year retrospective on "Chicago," the codename for what became Windows 95, based on a contemporary reviewer's guide. The speaker, who attended the original Microsoft presentation, re-examines the proposed improvements in user interface, file management, application support, and system configuration. Key changes highlighted include the introduction of long file names, the Taskbar, and the shift from simple INI files to the hierarchical Registry. While acknowledging the necessity for Windows 3.1's evolution due to memory limitations, the speaker offers a critical perspective on certain aspects, questioning the purported intuitiveness of the new file manager, lamenting the eventual abandonment of robust MS-DOS application support, and noting the unforeseen complexity of the Registry. Ultimately, the video concludes that Windows 95, despite some debatable design choices and future complications, fundamentally established the enduring user interface paradigm for subsequent Windows operating systems.
Windows 95 "Chicago" Retrospective: 30 Years On
0:00 Early Impressions of "Chicago" (Windows 95): The speaker recounts attending a Microsoft presentation 30 years ago for "Chicago," the codename for Windows 95, marking their first look at the revolutionary operating system after using Windows 3.1.
1:16 Cultural Differences in Journalism: An anecdote highlights the contrasting reactions of enthusiastic American journalists and silently observant British journalists to new Microsoft features during the presentation.
2:01 User Interface Objectives: Microsoft's primary goal for Chicago was to make PCs "even easier to use for all people," heavily relying on usability lab feedback with novice computer users.
2:48 File Management Overhaul: The reviewer's guide criticized Windows 3.1's file manager as unintuitive and confusing. However, the speaker demonstrates the Windows 3.1 file manager (3:31) and questions if Windows 95's approach was genuinely more intuitive.
4:14 Long File Names: A significant and much-needed improvement was the introduction of long file names, moving beyond the restrictive 8.3 character limit of Windows 3.1.
4:52 Enhanced MS-DOS Application Support: Chicago significantly improved the running of MS-DOS applications, giving each its own virtual machine, better memory access, and increased robustness. The speaker expresses regret that this robust support was not continued in later Windows versions.
5:53 Taskbar vs. Program Manager: Windows 95 introduced the Taskbar for minimizing and managing applications, a functional improvement over Windows 3.1's system where minimized applications appeared as overlapping icons at the bottom of the screen. However, the speaker personally preferred Windows 3.1's Program Manager for grouping related applications and even recreated its functionality in a modern Windows application.
8:04 Configuration Shift to the Registry: Chicago replaced the simple, editable text-based .ini files (like wind.ini) of Windows 3.1 with the hierarchical Registry database for centralized configuration.
9:26 Registry Complexity: While initially presented as a solution, the speaker notes that the Registry evolved into a "huge" and "very difficult" system to manage and troubleshoot configuration issues in modern Windows, often scattering configuration details across multiple locations.
10:44 Overall Legacy of Windows 95: The speaker concludes that while Windows 3.1 had become outdated due to memory limitations, Windows 95 largely "got it right" by establishing the fundamental user interface (Taskbar, Start Menu, etc.) that continues to define Windows to this day, despite some aspects that the speaker personally misses or finds problematic in hindsight.