Browse Definitions :
Definition

Windows 1.0

TechTarget Contributor
By

Windows 1.0 was the first version of Microsoft’s GUI-based operating system, released in 1985.

Like many early versions of Windows, the OS was essentially a program that ran on top of DOS. The product release didn’t actually occur until two years after the operating system was announced, leading to suggestions that Windows was vaporware and would never actually appear.

The release was a shaky start for the future tech giant, as the software itself was found to be unstable. However, the point and click interface made computers more easily usable for computer novices -- and at that time, the vast majority of users were novices, as computers were just emerging from the exclusive domain of scientists and enthusiast hobbyists.

The user-friendly nature of the Windows environment encouraged these new users who might have been intimidated by a command line interface. Windows 1.0 offered many of the common graphical user interface bits, like scroll bars and “OK” buttons.

See Steve Ballmer sell Windows 1.0 in this entertaining infomercial:

This was last updated in February 2014

Continue Reading About Windows 1.0

SearchCompliance

  • information governance

    Information governance is a holistic approach to managing corporate information by implementing processes, roles, controls and ...

  • enterprise document management (EDM)

    Enterprise document management (EDM) is a strategy for overseeing an organization's paper and electronic documents so they can be...

  • risk assessment

    Risk assessment is the identification of hazards that could negatively impact an organization's ability to conduct business.

SearchSecurity

  • unified threat management (UTM)

    Unified threat management (UTM) describes an information security (infosec) system that provides a single point of protection ...

  • attack vector

    An attack vector is a path or means by which an attacker or hacker can gain access to a computer or network server in order to ...

  • physical security

    Physical security is the protection of personnel, hardware, software, networks and data from physical actions and events that ...

SearchHealthIT

SearchDisasterRecovery

  • risk mitigation

    Risk mitigation is a strategy to prepare for and lessen the effects of threats faced by a business.

  • call tree

    A call tree is a layered hierarchical communication model that is used to notify specific individuals of an event and coordinate ...

  • Disaster Recovery as a Service (DRaaS)

    Disaster recovery as a service (DRaaS) is the replication and hosting of physical or virtual servers by a third party to provide ...

SearchStorage

  • cloud storage

    Cloud storage is a service model in which data is transmitted and stored on remote storage systems, where it is maintained, ...

  • cloud testing

    Cloud testing is the process of using the cloud computing resources of a third-party service provider to test software ...

  • storage virtualization

    Storage virtualization is the pooling of physical storage from multiple storage devices into what appears to be a single storage ...

Close