A hard disk and 512 KB memory was recommended for running multiple programs or when using DOS 3.0 or higher. Windows 1.0 required a minimum of 256 kilobytes (KB), two double-sided floppy disk drives, and a graphics adapter card.

On November 20, 1985, two years after the initial announcement, Microsoft shipped Windows 1.0. Windows was announced in 1983, but it took a while to develop. Interface Manager was the code name and was considered as the final name, but Windows prevailed because it best described the boxes or computing “windows” that were fundamental to the new system. Microsoft worked on the first version of a new operating system. When the IBM PC is running MS-DOS shipped in 1981, it introduced a whole new language to the general public. They named their new operating system “MS-DOS.” It’s the foundation on which computer programs can run. IBM approached Microsoft about a project code-named “Chess.” In response, Microsoft focused on a new operating system-the software that manages, or runs, the computer hardware and also serves to bridge the gap between the computer hardware and programs, such as a word processor. In June 1980, Gates and Allen hired Gates’ former Harvard classmate Steve Ballmer to help run the company. During the next years, Microsoft began to change the ways we work. Like most start-ups, Microsoft began small but had a huge vision-a computer on every desktop and in every home. In 1975, Gates and Allen formed a partnership called Microsoft. Below, you will find a chronology of events that take you through highlights from the first 25 years of Windows, more preferably – A History of Windows.

However, no one could have predicted this outcome when the whole journey started with MS-DOS and a vision to have every computer on a desktop.

Don’t be surprised if I say that 9 out of 10 computers run some version of the Windows operating system, today.

Windows 7 release date