Download this app and remember the late Windows 95

In these almost 33 years that the ecosystem invest in Windows one of the versions that totally changed the level of Bill Gates' company and that made operating systems a software of great market appeal is the Windows 95 – version that turned 23 last month.

Thanks to the work of some iconic software developers like Windows 95 remain in the spotlight and arouse the curiosity of those who did not live at the time of their release, through versions that run through browsers and even apps that can be installed, rebuilding the program in question.

This is the case for the developer Felix Rieseberg who transformed the Windows 95 in an application that can be installed on the Windows, Mac OS and Linux. 

The app that dates back to Windows 95

There are currently 4 versions of this app from Windows 95 available for download via developer page on Github. The most recent version is 1.3. The file size in the Windows version varies as follows: 32-bit version (135 MB), 64-bit version (143 MB). We tested the app on Windows 10.

The step by step to use this version of Windows 95 It's quite simple!

After downloading the file, go to your destination location and find the icon of the mythical flag of Windows 95.

Now you just have to double-click, since it's an executable file like any other program. When running the first screen you will come across is a very rudimentary green background (totally according to the graphic aspect of the time), and some buttons in pink. To start the boot process and system loading, just click on the button in the center that says “Start Windows 95”.

Ready, the loading will start quickly and you will be able to remember or even have the first contact with a very important version of Windows, which created the bases for the subsequent versions.

With this app you'll be able to trigger iconic functions like Paint, WordPad, and even play a game of Minesweeper. Unfortunately not everything works, it is not possible to load web pages through Internet Explorer for example. The explanation for this lies in the way the web has evolved, creating incompatibilities with such archaic browsers, such as the version present in Windows 95.

The developer behind the project says that the app was made for educational purposes only. There is no official relationship with Microsoft. In the past, Rieseberg even worked as a free software developer at Microsoft. He currently works at Slack. He is also the author of a German-language book on developing Windows Store apps.

So far, Microsoft's legal department has not tried to create any barriers to Rieseberg's project. The developer makes it very clear that if the company determines it will take the project off the air without any problem.

The project is open source, this allows other developers to contribute, adding more elements, making the app even more complete.

The app Rieseberg made real by the framework Electron which is a way to recreate desktop applications using web-oriented technologies such as HTML, Javascript and CSS.

Windows 95 trivia

August 24, 1995, is the date Bill Gates took the stage and unveiled Microsoft's newest operating system. The software became a major icon of the 90s, achieving impressive sales figures. In its first year alone, 40 million copies were sold.

According to a story from the time of Folha de S. Paulo a store called BraSoftwar located in Ibirapuera mall (south zone of São Paulo) sold 1.600 copies of Windows 95 in three days. To achieve such a feat with the previous version of Windows took three months.

All the numbers involved in the process of designing and launching the system are remarkable. Microsoft, at the time, declared that it had invested $100 million in development. The publicity campaign was even more grandiose, totally connected with the noise that the system caused at the time. US$ 300 million was spent on publicity.

As usual, marketing always uses familiar faces to give more weight to their actions. In the case of Windows 95 the theme song was the "Start me up"Two Rolling Stones. This was the first time that the British rock band allowed any of their songs to be used in a commercial (A ecosystem spent $3 million for this to happen).

Stars of the late Friends series were also part of the system's publicity process.

The launch was attended by 10.000 people, including 500 journalists and 9.000 Microsoft employees.

O Windows 95 it was the system that introduced the start menu, which became the key part of the system's usability. In 2008, with Windows 8, Microsoft decided to remove the button, which caused an avalanche of criticism. Its usual form of use has returned from Windows 10 onwards.

This version also became notable for revealing for the first time the The taskbar, the close, maximize, and minimize buttons, plug-and-play technology, and the Internet Explorer browser. It was also from this version that the dreaded blue screen of death became popular.

It was also the first Microsoft system to offer more than one purchase version. In addition to the 3,5-inch floppy version, the system could be purchased on CD media.

Did you use the Windows 95? Did you enjoy the app that lets you relive this iconic system? Tell us in the comments.