As maligned as windows has been over the years, for the majority of kids growing up in the 90s, it was all we knew, and all we needed. Before the internet was a standard fixture, firing up the family computer felt like a much bigger deal, and far more intentional that it ever is now. You’d be writing out homework which you’d then likely spend just as long trying to print, filling in squares on MS Paint, or playing a game.
Windows 98
Solitaire was all I needed. Sure I’d occasionally throw on minesweeper, click a few boxes in blind confusion, but the simplicity of solitaire would keep me hooked for hours, and still does to this day. I actually have a Virtual Machine running Windows 98 to play the Solitaire of my youth. Nothing fancy, just a simple card game. No microtransactions, season passes, online play or scoreboards. Just me and the cards. You could change the card design but nothing personal, just a modest few choices, which was enough.
Windows XP
When Windows XP came around, it felt like we’d reached perfection, and some people still believe this today. Windows XP had everything we needed, now armed with more built in games and the internet, we could do anything.
XP was lightening quick at the time, it looked almost whimsical in comparison to 98, and just felt more fun. The green “Start” button and the blue taskbar alongside probably the most famous wallpaper of all time, computers just hadn’t felt so accessible as they did with Windows XP.
Now armed with Direct X 9, we had a wealth of new games to play, not to mention the irresistible 3D pinball game that came with the OS.
I truly miss when spending time on a computer felt exciting and meaningful. We didn’t need the computer and didn’t rely on it for anything. If it broke, I doubt we’d have even replaced it, at least not straight away.
We owned the computer, now the computer owns us.
