Posted on: Wednesday, February 28, 2001
Windows software comes with a variety of names, uses
By John Yaukey
Gannett News Service
Do you know the difference between Windows 2000 and Windows Me; between Windows 98 and 98 SE; between Windows 2000 Server and NT Server?
If you already find Microsoft’s inventory of operating systems dizzying, brace for more digital vertigo. The software leviathan recently gave analysts and reporters a sneak peek at its newest offering: Windows XP, due out later this year in both home and professional versions.
XP is short for eXPerience, a reference to the "exciting new personal computing experiences" the software’s designers hope users have.
While the name may conjure a powerful, if vague, marketing image, it says next to nothing about where XP fits into the ever-expanding Windows family or who should be using it.
"I’ll admit with all Microsoft has out there, you can start to see double after a while," said Allen Gillen, an analyst with IDC, a technology and Internet research company.
In reverse chronology starting with XP, here’s what the average computer user should know about the various home Windows systems.
• Windows XP. XP also has been called Whistler, which refers to its development code name.
When it’s shipped this summer or shortly afterward, the XP home edition will be the latest operating system for average consumers.
It follows Me (short for Millennium Edition), which was released last year.
Touted as an especially "Internet friendly" system, XP is designed to exploit multimedia content on the Web and in the home.
Microsoft clearly wants consumers to think of it as much more than just an upgrade from Me, but some analysts aren’t convinced. "XP contains a lot of the same video and music capabilities as Me, just more robust," said Gartner analyst Chris Le Tocq.
He also said XP will come with a new feature called "product locking’’ that will limit the owner to one additional copy so the software can’t be duplicated illegally.
Analysts say you’ll need a computer made after about January 1999 to run XP.
Microsoft hasn’t said how much XP will cost.
• Windows Me. This is Microsoft’s most current home operating system. It’s capable of supporting sophisticated multimedia and easy home networking. Me is available at the Microsoft Web site (microsoft.com) for $209. Upgrade packages for earlier Windows systems run $109. Many of the PCs now shipping come standard with Me.
• Windows 2000 ($319). This system is considered Me’s business-oriented cousin. Some sophisticated home users prefer it to Me because it doesn’t crash as often.
• Windows 98 SE ($209 for full system/$109 upgrade package). The "SE’’ here refers to second edition. Windows 98 SE is considered an incremental upgrade from its predecessor Windows 98. It supports connections from more types of add-on devices.
• Windows 98. This system improved on its predecessor, Windows 95, by integrating itself more closely with the Web. Stable and easy to configure, it supports just about any contemporary software.
• Windows 95. Released as the Web was starting to explode, Windows 95 is considered Microsoft’s first real foray into easy home computing.
Microsoft no longer sells Windows 95.
As for Windows NT Server, Windows NT Workstation, Windows 2000 Advanced Server and anything else with a technical name, they’re business operating systems consumers don’t need to worry about.
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