Hi everybody, today we are going to talk about the evolution of operating systems! With all the technology we have today computer repair has come a long way since the early days of Windows. Just think, it seems like just yesterday that we were using Windows 95, and that it was the greatest thing since the invention of coffee. At that time dialup was the primary internet connection and remote support was very cumbersome if not almost impossible because of the slow internet connections. The primary way to repair your system was to take your computer to a local repair shop. At the time, there were very few options. Remember trying to connect a USB device? It was haphazard at best to get it to work.
Windows 98 was a much improved operating system compared to Windows 95. The USB function was improved but not by all means mastered. At least it worked part of the time. During the evolution on Windows 98 we started to see faster broadband connections but having one was considered a luxury. With the beginning of the faster connection era, remote computer support was born but in a very primitive way. In most cases, you had to pre load a client software on the system that was to be controlled before you could gain access to repair the client system. Remote was possible, but very difficult.
Now we will talk a bit about the OS that Microsoft likely tried to forget about. Remember Windows ME? This version was likely the most buggy of all the Windows versions combined. It really had no added features over Windows 98 but it had lots of crashes and blue screens. USB devices began to work better and broadband was starting to gain in popularity. There were still many areas that still did not provide it. The primary high speed medium was DSL at that time.
Finally, the best OS that Microsoft was ever going to produce was almost ready. Wiith Windows XP a whole new revolution was started with solid USB performance, great driver compatibility, more speed and stability and the beginning of the NTFS file system. With XP came advances that nobody ever dreamed would be possible. The broadband craze was now in full swing and remote computer repair was gaining in popularity. The software used for the remote connections was still quite primitive but programs were being introduced that would allow remote connections without first having to install a program on the clients computer. You know the rest of the history. First came service pack 1 and then the service pack 2. Service pack 3 came much later in the life cycle of Windows XP. By the time of Service Pack 2, remote software became much more advanced and it was a safe way to repair your computer without having to take it to a shop. Programs like PC Anywhere and RSS were among the best ones at the time. Some others such as Bomgar, which is the solution that we currently use, became so advanced that it is now possible to fix almost anything without ever having to physically touch the machine.
Windows Vista came and went but the vast majority of users opted to stick with good ol XP. When Windows 7 was introduced, many XP users decided to trade up to the new operating system. Windows 7 is a good operating system for most people if you have a new machine to go with it. If you have an older machine, it is wise to stick with good old reliable XP. Today, I still have several machines running XP and those machines will keep XP until the ultimate death of the motherboard. I still feel good old XP is by far the most reliable and easiest to repair of all the operating systems combined.
If you choose to keep your windows XP running in pristine condition, regular maintenance is a must. Having a professional clean up once or twice a year will keep your system running until the end of time. Do not install programs that claim to “speed up” your system or optimize the registry as they most likely will do the opposite and slow your computer down. Be sure to keep up with all security updates and have a current anti-virus program.
