this post was submitted on 17 Oct 2025

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663

Evolution of Windows (lemmy.ml)

submitted 6 months ago by cm0002 to c/funny@sh.itjust.works

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[–] original_reader@lemmy.zip 81 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago) (3 children)

Win 7 was definitely the pinnacle of Windows.

With that out of the way, I want to say that I am one of the very few that actually liked Windows 8. Especially on touch devices it worked flawlessly. I was upset when they removed the swipe gestures in Windows 10, like alternating between two apps. On Desktop it could have used a "Windows 7" mode.

Obligatory: Windows 11 is the worst so far. The level of disrespect this software shows towards the user is next level. And this downwards spiral seems to pick up the pace.

Also: Linux is awesome! All who are still hoping that Windows will again respect you one day: just get out now. The more people move to Linux, the better it will be supported.

Edit:

https://lemmy.zip/post/51119369

I rest my case.

[–] Lost_My_Mind@lemmy.world 30 points 6 months ago (16 children)

The biggest issue with Linux is the culture. I get that longtime users get and understand how to use it. They understand the commands. They know what -r and -n do.

I still look at my microwave daily to remember what the buttons do. There's only 6 buttons and a dial. Although, 7 buttons. I just remembered the dial is also a button. It's the start button.

Point is, I'm not going to learn terminal. I'm going to point the thing. Then I'm going to drag the thing. And I'm going to double click the thing.

I've attempted to learn terminal since 2014. I have a 0% success rate doing anything. Even copy/pasting other peoples commands. I always get an error, and I don't understand the error. So I google the error, and then I don't understand the explaination.

The way I have always explained it is, the OS is like a car. And terminal is how mechanics diagnose and fix the car. I tried changing my oil once, and blew up the car.

[+] monogram@feddit.nl 28 points 6 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)

[deleted]

[–] Honytawk@feddit.nl 8 points 6 months ago (5 children)

Like at all? You don't ever need a command to install/update drivers, repos, packages, software in general, change settings deep in the OS, fix hardware issues, read logs, create accounts, ...

Because all those things you can do with a GUI in Windows. Even the registry is just a folder structure.

[–] Damage@feddit.it 14 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago) (1 children)

So the advantage of GUIs over CLIs is discoverability, right? But the processes for reading logs or fixing hardware issues in Windows are not really discoverable, you still have to search the net and learn, so what's the difference? That the keyboard is scary?

I think most of these complaints are just borne of unfamiliarity.

But to answer your question, as a Bazzite user: definitely "I don't know". I've been using linux for years, it's natural to me to just open the terminal for many things, therefore I'm not sure whether there are roadblocks to a 100% mouse usage, but to be honest, if all you do is use the browser, office suite and games, I'd say that yes, your need to resort to the terminal is almost zero.

[–] Natanox@discuss.tchncs.de 6 points 6 months ago (2 children)

Don't forget accessibility. Proper GUIs are accessible, they convey function and meaning through form. People constantly forget that.

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[–] Natanox@discuss.tchncs.de 5 points 6 months ago

The only family of distros I knew that could do all those things was OpenSuse thanks to YaST. Unfortunately they just sunset that tool without installing the new alternative "Cockpit" by default now, sooo… yeah. A lot of the things you mentioned can be done via GUI like account management, software and such, but by far not everything. The only distro which got most of those covered I can think of would be Linux Mint, there the CLI can be treated as more of a fallback solution or for those who want to use it.

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[–] Pat_Riot@lemmy.today 15 points 6 months ago

I've been on Mint for like two years and have not opened the terminal yet. You do not have to be a developer or even a power user to run Linux. It's just another operating system.

[–] SpaceCadet@feddit.nl 8 points 6 months ago

They know what -r and -n do

No we don't magically know that. We know that we have to look it up in the manual to know that.

[–] prole@lemmy.blahaj.zone 5 points 6 months ago

If you haven't checked it out here, the culture is actually super helpful.

Also, look up the "man" command. Everything you need to know about every command is already built into your OS, you just have to access the "man file" for it.

[–] nanoswarm9k@lemmus.org 4 points 6 months ago

Did you delete /etc? (friendly, sympathetic, Gnuification of Win jokes))

[–] Eldritch@piefed.world 4 points 6 months ago

It's not a culture thing. You'd have the same issues in Windows if there was a problem. Plenty snarky and dismissive answers. Some people just want an appliance and that's okay.

The biggest issue is that people end up running on poorly or non supported hardware. Buy a system from a company that designs with Linux in mind. System 76 Tuxedo etc. 90% of the issues are gone, poof. The final bit is dependence on or inability to leave a piece of software. There are options for most things on Linux. But not everything, and not always as you're familiar with. If that's a deal breaker, it's a dealbreaker. And that's too bad but understandable. No shade.

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[–] ColeSloth@discuss.tchncs.de 6 points 6 months ago

Just put Linux mint cinnamon on my laptop a few days ago. It was stupid easy and now my laptop is running fantastic.

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[–] TootSweet@lemmy.world 44 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago) (4 children)

Windows 1.0: Just four sticks tied together with rough twine, not attached to any building or anything. Just held in the frame of the photograph in mid air by a pair of really hairy hands.

Windows 12: Same as Windows 11, except missing a window on the door all together.

Windows ME: The driver's side window of a clown car.

Windows 95: Identical to Windows 98.

(There are a lot more like CE, NT, 2000, Server, FLP, RT, Mobile, etc, but I'll end my list there.)

Also, the photo gives way too much credit to Vista. Also, everything from XP and after should at least have bars on the windows. Having to phone home to activate was always unreasonable. The fact that things are way worse now doesn't mean earlier versions were unrestrictive by a long shot. (And believe me. People in XP's era were also horrified at how restrictive and enshittified XP was compared to previous versions.)

[–] edgemaster72@lemmy.world 9 points 6 months ago

Windows 13: The "window" is back in but actually it's just a 1 way mirror so they can look in but you can't look out

[–] Damage@feddit.it 5 points 6 months ago

Windows 95: Identical to Windows 98.

No because it worked most of the time

[–] BudgetBandit@sh.itjust.works 5 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Vista was excellent if you had a decent machine. It didn’t run on the ancient machine my parents had, but it ran quite fast on the laptop I had. Never experienced a single crash besides the one when it slipped out of my hand.

[–] captain_aggravated@sh.itjust.works 4 points 6 months ago

I didn't mind Vista at the time, but after I started using Linux Mint, I went back to my old Vista machine and holy god that dim the screen "this needs privileges" pop-up that happened 9 times a nanosecond.

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[–] Lulzagna@lemmy.world 41 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago) (4 children)

No no, we're not doing this. We're not pretending Vista wasn't absolute dog shit.

[–] LotrOrc@lemmy.world 4 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Vista was horrible. 8 was actually not that bad I barely remember 7 existing

But XP and 98 were the best ones

[–] Lulzagna@lemmy.world 7 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Oh man, 7 were the glory days. Gates came back to save the company.

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[–] bulwark@lemmy.world 35 points 6 months ago

Vista needs way more glass and bubbles.

[–] Valmond@lemmy.world 30 points 6 months ago

Milennium:

[–] tenacious_mucus@sh.itjust.works 17 points 6 months ago (2 children)

Another one of these with no Win 95…😩

[–] Test_Tickles@lemmy.world 12 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Seriously, 98 was just the third addition of 95, it wasn't really some big thing of its own.

[–] plateee@piefed.social 6 points 6 months ago

You could also put Windows 98 Second Edition in there with some niceties.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_98

[–] Honytawk@feddit.nl 5 points 6 months ago

Nor Millennium Edition or Windows 2000

Millennium Edition was so bad, it had all the blue screens of their predecessor and successor combined.

[–] Blackmist@feddit.uk 14 points 6 months ago

Windows ME

[–] VicksVaporBBQrub@sh.itjust.works 9 points 6 months ago

In XP, the original Office Word95 assistants were my study buddies for countless hours. This is my homage to them.

Fuck Clippy. He's a wind chime now.

[–] Decency8401@discuss.tchncs.de 8 points 6 months ago (2 children)

Linux be like:

[–] joenforcer@midwest.social 7 points 6 months ago

Linux would be more like a random assortment of planks, slabs of glass, paint cans, and a handwritten set of assembly tips and tricks.

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[–] Cevilia@lemmy.blahaj.zone 8 points 6 months ago (5 children)

I don't get why everyone's so hostile to Windows Me. It was a perfectly good operating system for its time. It certainly didn't crash on me any more than 98 did before it, or XP did after it. And it had some genuine improvements grandfathered in from Win2000.

That said, I'm now a Linux user, so my opinions are invalid /j

[–] prettybunnys@sh.itjust.works 5 points 6 months ago

They broke stuff frequently and implemented half baked ideas that didn’t really go anywhere.

ME had the same problems as Vista and 8

By their end of life the next product was a good one because of the problems we went through with the half baked one.

ME brought us XP

Vista brought us 7

8 brought us 8.1

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[–] nieminen@lemmy.world 7 points 6 months ago (5 children)

Still can't get over them making a big deal about 10 being the last one ever.

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[–] Sat@lemmynsfw.com 6 points 6 months ago (4 children)

What the hell is Windows 9

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[–] dubyakay@lemmy.ca 6 points 6 months ago (2 children)

Win95 and Win2K forgotten again.

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[–] NauticalNoodle@lemmynsfw.com 6 points 6 months ago

you forgot Windows 95 which was a huge deal when it came out, arguably a bigger deal than any release since except maybe xp

[–] anomnom@sh.itjust.works 5 points 6 months ago (1 children)

NT/2000 always gets left out of these, I ran 2000 on an old PC for years past XP and Vista even. But all it was doing was running a vinyl and laser cutter.

[–] thaklor@lemmy.world 5 points 6 months ago (1 children)

They forgot 95 and ME as well.

[–] skisnow@lemmy.ca 5 points 6 months ago (1 children)

ME would just be a brick wall.

And I would happily go back to using 2000 if I could. I held out all the way up to about 2012, at which point the number of games that wouldn't run out of the box got to an untenable amount. :(

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[–] Entertainmeonly@lemmy.blahaj.zone 5 points 6 months ago

Mmm, windows 9. My childhood is flooding back to me.

[–] Kennystillalive@feddit.org 5 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Would have swapped 8 and vista. Vista was awefull. 8 was very special but 8.1 was actually good... but I was one of the few wierdos with an windows phone, so I liked the design.

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[–] TempermentalAnomaly@lemmy.world 4 points 6 months ago

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