At least, isn't that what wiped out OS/2?
OS/2 was a great OS, but everyone heard about Windows through marketing and away the lemmings go.
The interesting twist is that Apple's limited hardware base is still getting them more customers. Apple is starting to show up as the first serious contender in more than 15 years.
IBM is pushing more and more with Linux. I remember not long ago when I couldn't buy a server without Windows without some troubles. Now IBM doesn't try to include the OS by default.
Windows 95 wiped out last PC competition
Summary
Windows 95 marked the last time Microsoft faced any "serious competition" in the PC operating system market, an analysts recalls, as the software vendor gets ready to launch its much-anticipated Windows 7.
Topics
Windows 95 marked the last time Microsoft faced any "serious competition" in the PC operating system market, an analysts recalls, as the software vendor gets ready to launch its much-anticipated Windows 7 tomorrow.
Martin Gilliland, vice president of go to market strategies at Frost & Sullivan, said Windows 3.0's focus on offering a user-friendly interface brought Microsoft founder Bill Gates' vision of a "PC on every desk" closer to reality. But, mass adoption was seen only from Windows 95, which ended up winning the PC OS battle against IBM's OS2, Gilliland said in an e-mail interview with ZDNet Asia.
See also: Gallery: Windows splash screens from 1.01 to Vista
"Windows 95 was the real boon for Microsoft. With it, we saw mass adoption of PCs in businesses and started to see more and more [of the platform] in the home," said the analyst. He noted, however, that its triumph over OS2 was mostly due to Microsoft's marketing and sales clout.
"The one big difference between Microsoft and Apple is that Microsoft allows Windows to be installed on any device with a license, [while] Mac OS can only be loaded and run on an Apple device," he said.
Read more of "Windows 95 wiped out last PC competition" from ZDNet Asia.
Talkback Most Recent of 74 Talkback(s)
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nucrash21st Oct 2009 -
actually no
OS/2 could be installed on basically any PC at the
time. It was touted as something much better than
Windows. If I remember correctly, the license
fees were somewhat higher and it didn't have as
many programs written for it like Windows much
like OSX and it was somewhat more complicated to
install for the average home user much like Linux.
nothingness21st Oct 2009 -
I ran os/2 ver. 2.2 for a short time
It was on a homebuilt clone so no, you didn't need IBM hardware, IIRC.
Never found drivers for my CD ROM drive - end of experiment
Os/2 did true multi-tasking as I recall, well before Windows did
eggmanbubbagee@...21st Oct 2009 -
Yup
I had OS/2 Warp 4 on a home-built PC as well.
WarhavenSC21st Oct 2009 -
OS/2 Warp
Warp was the first version I ran. The biggest issue was as a proper
protected mode OS, it needed a 486 CPU and quite a lot of RAM for
the time. I can't remember the exact figure now, but My desktop was
OK for most things, and ran Windows 3.1 and DOS OK, and GEOS, but I
used OS2 for a short time while I was working on assembly language
programming at tech - Software Engineering. In a protected mode
window if your app crashed it was trivial to go back and edit code,
look for the bug and try again without the whole machine hanging.
You could also boot other OS's in text mode windows - so I also
played with CPM and DR DOS for a while.
What killed it was networking. OS/2 still didnt really have native
networking. You could use LanManager and OS2 Warp came with this,
but it was simple NetBUI stuff, that MS would refine with Windows 95
and 97.
Also most of the good apps were the Win32 based ones, as MS
marketing machine was in full swing. If you were goign to code an
app, then using Win32 meant you could run it on OS/2 or the new
NT3.5 coming out from MS. Then MS pulled Win32 out from under
OS/2, leaving it high and dry with very few native OS/2 desktop apps.
It was still a good server, but pretty clunky on the desktop.
ABout that time I started down the Novell path, and using Windows
client with Netware. Then IP became the next big thing, and IPX and
NetBUI went the way of the dinosaur. That was the last I saw of OS/2
for many years.
chromeronin22nd Oct 2009 -
Resonable summary
OS/2 was technically far superior as an OS, but IBM just didn't understand PCs. If they had matched the price of Windows for both consumers and OEMs, it would still be around today as a serious competitor.
But when Windows 95 was released, it was the bad old days of "if you don't install Windows on every PC, you don't get the cheap price". So IBM relented and offered Windows 95 as standard on all their PCs. OS/2 was an added cost (and was a lot more expensive than Windows) so it was left to die, now IBM have left the PC market completely.
DEC was another competitor that shot itself in the foot. They had a 64bit PC and OS before the consumer version of Windows was even a real OS, before it was even properly 32 bit. And they had a PC that could run Windows apps in emulation faster than anything Intel had to run them natively.
Yet DEC died too - great technology, disastrous marketing.
One last point: back in the early 90's, IBM was facing numerous anti-trust suits and was seen as the giant of IT. MS was still a minnow, so their taking on IBM was like David and Goliath, with everyone hoping MS would take IBM down a peg or two. Until they realised they swapped one abusive monopolist for another.
Fred Fredrickson21st Oct 2009 -
Server?
You said:
"I remember not long ago when I couldn't buy a server without Windows without some troubles."
Did you mean PC/laptop? Servers typically don't come with an O/S.
Salonikios21st Oct 2009 -
maybe ibm is pushing linux but not enough
Until we see a IBM-linux or a sponsored ibm
linux or better OS/3 vengence base on linux or
BSD full compatible with most foss program ....
Windows will keep on bulling its self on the
business side .
Because remember we are getting in a nice OS
period here .
Oracle /Sun Solaris - Open Solaris is quite
something if oracle push it for real
windows 7 sadly nothing more that pimp-out
vista with all its problem and trouble that
come with windows
Mac os x well ist mac os like it or hate it
.... they are taking more and more part of the
deal
Ibm may go more and more on linux is they put them self really at it
Google and chrome os could become a major
player very quickly.
Is people will jump on Win 7 like a a crack
addict on his pipe yes... time will tell who
was right and who was wrong .... ill bet you a
beer that in less that 6 week more and more
will spit on win7
Quebec-french21st Oct 2009 -
Spit on 7?
Why?
Cylon Centurion21st Oct 2009 -
Sleeper Service21st Oct 2009 -
well on that
i have been a technician/server admin/data
manager for more that 10 years before that
i was a autodidact tech and user / repair man
for also 10 -and some dust years ..... i have
pretty well what i am doing .... when i say
that win 7 deserve a spit on .... for a company
as big powerful super on the edge of thing
....
and we test win 7 for a few month and you end
up with trouble in maya 2008-2009 photoshop 4
xsi, you have trouble with nvidia driver and
how they get manage , ram allocation bug ..
and the rest, like IE8 and its integration in
multiple appz. well .... if i have no idea
on what im writing then prove other wise
chummy
Its easy to run your big mouth prove other
wise say that photoshop have no issue with win
7 please i will laugh at you faceQuebec-french21st Oct 2009 -
Really?
"and we test win 7 for a few month"
Oh I see. The Beta as in 'unfinished version'.
"and you end up with trouble in maya 2008-2009 photoshop 4 xsi"
Uh... the issue with Maya is down to Autodesk. You'll note that they still have issues with XP SP3 too.
If you were actually a tech admin running this product you would know Autodesk are currently testing implementation of Maya 2009 and Maya 2010 on Windows 7.
"you have trouble with nvidia driver and
how they get manage"
Specifically what drivers? Because nVidia solved the big issues with the betas of 181.71 in March 2009. Again you should know this if you are what you say you are.
"ram allocation bug"
Ah. The RAM allocation method touted as a bug by the hopelessly discredited Randall Kennedy back in August which was universally shown to be a non-issue.
OK, let's face facts:
You are not and probably never have been a system admin because you don't know the products you administer. What you actually are is a strange individual who looks up random faults on the internet with Microsoft products and then posts them but doesn't have the intelligence to check them out.
Your story is full of holes. Go away, you fraud.Sleeper Service21st Oct 2009 -
keep it to yourself
who care what you thinkQuebec-french21st Oct 2009 -
better bite me
nrtQuebec-french21st Oct 2009 -
No one cares, Quebec.
You've proved yourself to be a liar and a fraud.
Now go away. No one cares for charlatans like you.Sleeper Service22nd Oct 2009
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