Different Windows

Intersection

Windows 98 was originally intended to be the last Microsoft operating system based on the Win9X kernel. Microsoft intended to discontinue the 9X line and base the next consumer version of Windows on the much more stable (but resource hungry) Windows NT kernel. While developing Windows NT 5.0, Microsoft changed directions and announced two new versions of the next Windows operating system, Windows 2000 Professional and Windows 2000 consumer.

This plan changed somewhere along the line. Microsoft decided that the NT kernel could not perform well enough in the multimedia environment to make it a viable mainstream consumer OS. The problem stemmed from the way the kernel handles the system -NT keeps very tight control.

Applications process on a different layer than the operating system. Keeping the programs and the operating system separated maintains stability. If a program fails, the operating system is not affected. The Win9X kernel, on the other hand, would allow some software to directly manipulate the hardware on a kernel level. If a program operating in kernel mode was to lock up or crash, the operating system would crash along with it.

While this layout maintains stability, it slows down system performance and causes compatibility issues. So instead of getting an NT kernel system for the next consumer Windows, we get a new Win9X based operating system, the Windows Millennium Edition.

Surprisingly, Windows2000 has been found to run most games quite well. Personal experience has shown us that most of the newest games on the market appear to perform just as well in Windows2000 as they do under Windows98. We have, however, heard enough user complaints to support the argument that the NT kernel still does not perform as well as the 9X kernel for gaming needs.

As such, Microsoft has seen fit to release one more generation of the Windows 9X operating system. Lets take a look at what is new in Windows Millennium Edition, and see if there are enough good reasons to consider upgrading.