Windows 2.0
Microsoft Windows 2.x is a technology developed by Microsoft graphical user interface, which was released in late 1987. As the successor of Microsoft Windows 1.0, it was the second version of Windows. The release of Windows 2:03 triggered a legal dispute with the company Apple, which lasted until 1992.
Features and versions
As with Windows 1.0, it was in Windows 2.x still not a real operating system. It was still placed on MS- DOS, but the user had the possibility to start several programs graphically separated into windows simultaneously. What was new was that the windows could overlap and in size were changed. Windows 2.x also offered new functions, such as communication between programs with Dynamic Data Exchange ( DDE), SmartDrive, a warning tone ( via the PC speaker ), VGA support, new screen fonts, the first time the possibility for switching via Alt- Tab between applications. New input devices such as the 2 mouse were supported.
Windows 2:03 was the last Windows, which could be installed on floppy disks and diskless. Windows 2.1 had more drivers (graphics, computers, printers ) and supported 64 kB extended memory. With Windows 2:11, there were improvements in memory accesses (XMS and EMS) and printer access.
Windows 2 was already directly tailored to the characteristics of the processor and was distributed according to the variants Windows/286 and Windows/386. The version / 386 used for the first time the protection mode of the Intel 386 processor is not compatible with previous processors and supported high-resolution screens. Windows / 386 was presented before the regular version 2.0 in September 1987, as Compaq at that time brought out systems with 80386 processors and those endowed with Windows / 386. The first Compaq computer with Windows / 386 was published in October.
Development history of Windows 2.x
The progress of Windows itself, which was released in different language versions, held then in limits: Use the graphical user interface, which largely still had the appearance of a text-based user interface were mostly still not launched DOS programs, so that switching between different tasks the only real advantage of Windows was.
Since most software manufacturers were not willing to port their applications to Windows, Microsoft itself began to develop the first Windows applications. Part of the success of Windows 2 is due to the PageMaker program in its first version of Windows that was already available for Windows 1.x. This was delivered with a restricted to a compatibility layer version of Windows ( Windows Runtime ) and thus offered on computers without Windows license the opportunity to start this Windows application on a DOS computer.
Coinciding with Windows 2:03 appeared the spreadsheet program Microsoft Excel 2.0, the first developed by Microsoft application program that was specifically geared to the abilities of Windows and contributed to increased proliferation of Windows. In 1989 the same time as Windows 2:11 the word processing program Word. All three programs have been ported from Mac OS to Windows, and then further developed for both operating systems. In particular, Excel Windows to break through, but also led to the described in the following litigation with Apple.
Apple's copyright complaint
On 17 March 1988, the company Apple Computer Inc. announced they wanted to proceed against Windows -based and 2:03 against Hewlett -Packard on Windows object-oriented graphical user interface NewWave court. Apple accused Microsoft's joint licensing agreement of 1985 injured, and the look and feel of the user interface of the Apple Macintosh ( for example, overlapping windows ) to have copied. Apple demanded the cessation of the sale of Windows 2:03 and prohibiting the release of Hewlett- Packard's NewWave. Judge William Schwarzer ( born 1925 ) allowed for only 10 of the 189 cited by Apple points for the court proceedings on 25 July 1989. It was only on 15 April 1992, Judge Vaughn Walker ( 1944) in San Francisco that the other elements in question are not copyrightable.
System
Windows was available on different disk formats with different memory densities.