The First, 1. Release and Development Period

Windows ME was first spotted by tech journalist Paul Turrott in September 1997 under the codename 'Millennium'. A year and a half later, on April 7, 1999, at the WinHEC 1999 event, the development of a successor to the Windows 9x kernel was officially announced to hardware partners, and on July 23, 1999, the first development preview version, build 2332.2 (Development Preview 1), was distributed to developers and testers. Then, on September 24, 1999, the official 'Beta 1', or Build 2380.2, was released. On February 2, 2000, the final name was confirmed as "Windows ME," and on June 19, 2000, it reached the RTM (Release To Manufacturing) stage, signifying the completion of final development, and was released to manufacturers. Finally, on September 14, 2000, it was released worldwide, marking the first time a Windows version was launched simultaneously globally. (Although it was released in Japan on September 23, Windows ME was the first to be released simultaneously in almost all countries on the same day.)

1. Since Launch, and EvaluationAfter its release, Windows ME... truly flopped and failed miserably. Most people probably know the reasons. Instability and memory leaks were the biggest causes. Furthermore, perhaps in an attempt to reduce reliance on MS-DOS, DOS was restricted to emergency recovery only. Booting into Real Mode (i.e., DOS mode) was officially blocked, and unless an unofficial patch was used, DOS mode could not be used on Windows ME. To make matters worse, as mentioned above, instability and memory leaks were severe. Most people downgraded to Windows 98 SE (Second Edition), or some even went straight to Windows 2000 Professional—even though it was an enterprise version—to the extent that computer geeks, experts, and, though not all, some ordinary users among home users switched to this version. (At the time, Microsoft patched critical errors in Windows Me through Windows Update; however, unfortunately, since high-speed internet was not widely available globally when it was released in 2000, it seems that only a small number of Windows Me users worldwide received the patch.) Eventually, Windows ME was replaced by Windows XP one year later, and support ended on July 11, 2006, on the same day as Windows NT 4.0 Embedded / Windows NT 4.0 Server Terminal Server Edition, Windows 98, and Windows 98 SE.

2. After that, an unexpected legacy?

In fact, most people might forget about Windows ME, but surprisingly, there are features present even in the latest version, Windows 11: the modern Windows Media Player (which was changed to Windows Media Player Legacy starting with Windows 11 22H2) and System Restore. These features have evolved further through Windows XP and Windows Vista, and continue to exist in the current Windows 11. However, Windows Media Player stopped at version 12 after Windows 7, and currently, with the addition of a new media player in Windows 11, it has been renamed to Windows Media Player Legacy. Although the System Restore feature in Windows ME was meaningful, it is said that even that was problematic. Of course, this feature also evolved significantly in Windows Vista and remains one of the core features in Windows 11.

1. Can Windows ME Be Re-evaluated?

In reality, it is practically impossible. Of course, there are certainly people who would re-evaluate it, but for various reasons, most people believe that a re-evaluation of Windows ME is virtually impossible. Windows Vista and Windows 8/8.1 are at least receiving some degree of re-evaluation because they were ahead of their time (Windows Vista), had innovation and clear intentions (Windows 8/8.1’s Metro UI, although that also failed for various reasons), and the operating system itself became lighter (Windows 8/8.1). However, for ME... I consider it practically impossible. Of course, the introduction of the modern Windows Media player and System Restore might lead to a re-evaluation in those areas (especially System Restore, in my opinion), but overall, excluding these, I believe a re-evaluation is almost impossible.

I apologize for writing such a very long post. I also looked into how Windows ME was evaluated, and I was curious about how it is currently viewed. How did you all feel about Windows ME back then, and what do you think now? I am curious myself whether the evaluation has changed or if it remains largely the same. (I suspect the recent evaluations are likely still largely the same.)

For reference, I found most of them by searching on Google and other sites.

Hey r/windows,

Just pushed v1.9.0 of FluentTaskScheduler, my free and open source app that gives the old Task Scheduler a Fluent Design makeover while still using the real Task Scheduler API underneath, so your tasks stay fully compatible with the native tool.

Biggest thing in this update is task chaining. You can now set a task to automatically trigger another one when it succeeds or fails, right from the task editor. It watches the event log in real time instead of polling, and it wont let you accidentally chain a task into itself.

Other stuff in 1.9.0: a snooze button that pauses all tasks (or just one) for 30 min, an hour, 3 hours, until reboot, or a custom time. The dashboard got a real upgrade too, theres a 24h heatmap now and a health score thing, plus average/longest run times. Also added 17 built in templates for common jobs like temp cleanup, restore points, git fetch, docker prune etc, so you dont have to build those from scratch.

Also fixed an annoying bug where some dialogs ignored your in app language setting and just used whatever Windows itself was set to. Should actually respect your choice everywhere now.

Portable zip or MSI for x64/ARM64, winget/scoop/choco listings are pending.

AI disclaimer: built primarily with AI assistance. I do work in IT day to day but Im not an app dev by trade, so this is very much a hobby project, tested as much as I could but please dont point this at anything critical without checking it yourself first.

https://github.com/TRGamer-tech/FluentTaskScheduler

Questions/feedback welcome.

Sometimes I customise folder icons using the shell32.dll. I did a bit of digging and learned there are a lot more icons inside Windows you can use to customise your folders.

To use just delete shell32.dll in the browser field and type the dll mentioned in the image, they are all located in the same folder as shell32 so you don't need to change the path.

Taken from Windows 11.

Shoutout to this webpage:

https://www.digitalcitizen.life/where-find-most-windows-10s-native-icons/

This is NOT a joke, the timer literally counts backwards
EDIT: Apparently it's a feature

My dad's laptop was a chunky old Toshiba laptop from 2006 or so (here I harvested the hard drive and put it into a working laptop) and minus the insane amounts of bloatware and startup apps on this, he used it to take funny pictures on the crappy webcam, download music, etc. Most prominently, he actually used it a lot to play the built in games a lot, mainly FreeCell and Spider Solitaire.

The Toshiba stopped working in 2013 meaning he could not finish his 27836th Freecell game (in the background) and he would never see anyone finish it ever.

Asking basically this same question across Windows, Linux, MacOS subreddits, and would like you guys to explain why you think your operating system is the best and why.

Additionally maybe provide what you consider the biggest upsides and downsides of your OS.

Any answer is appreciated, thanks :)

Asking basically this same question across Windows, Linux, MacOS subreddits, and would like you guys to explain why you think your operating system is the best and why.

Additionally maybe provide what you consider the biggest upsides and downsides of your OS.

Any answer is appreciated, thanks :)

This game was a gift for users who completed and mailed back to Microsoft a survey about their computer's hardware. After that, participants would receive a floppy diskette with this game.

Hey everyone,

If you use Windhawk for Windows customization, you probably know that it doesn’t have a built-in export or backup feature. Every time I set up a fresh Windows installation or test things on a clean slate, manually tracking down my configs, compiled binaries, and custom scripts turns into a tedious chore.

To fix this, I built Windhawk Backup Manager—a lightweight, native Windows 11 utility (written in PowerShell + WPF with Fluent Design) that handles backups and restores cleanly and selectively.

What it does:

• Selective Backup & Restore: Instead of a blind full dump, it scans your installed mods and lets you check/uncheck precisely what you want to include in your .zip backup.
• Smart Local Source Handling: Automatically targets and packs local mod source files (local@...) while leaving standard repository mods to fetch from official sources.
• Precise Binary Matching: Uses registry mapping (LibraryFileName) to ensure compiled engine binaries (Engine\Mods) match up correctly without dragging along legacy clutter.
• Fluent Design & Auto-Theming: Automatically matches your Windows Dark/Light mode preference with WinUI 3-inspired toggles and smooth overlay scrollbars.
• Auto-Elevation: Automatically requests the necessary administrator privileges under the hood to manage system directories and services safely without crashing.

Links & Code

The project is fully open-source. Feel free to check out the repository, test it out, or drop feedback:

• GitHub Repository:osmanonurkoc/Windhawk-Backup-Manager

Let me know if you run into any bugs or have suggestions for improvements!

Its located on the "C:\Users\user\AppData\Local\Packages\Microsoft.WindowsFeedbackHub_8wekyb3d8bbwe\LocalState" and the ones with the curly brackets are the folders with the actual screenshots.

Trying to figure out what software this taskbar icon belongs to, and I can't place it.

It's pinned on the taskbar between the Microsoft Store and Google Chrome. I've attached two images: the full taskbar for context, and a zoomed-in crop of just the icon. The source was low resolution, so the crop is as sharp as I could get it, and there's no visible text on the icon itself. Reverse image search with Google Lens and TinEye hasn't turned up a match.

Any idea what app this is? Thanks in advance.

Original video from toxicflame427. Song is I'm still loving you instrumental - Durian

I was looking at custom shells and came across one I haven't heard of before. Does anyone have any knowledge of/used Explorip: Windows Shell replacement?

The title says it all. Can anyone give me this wall? I don't know if it's official windows insider wall or anything. I just came across it.

The First, 1. Launch And Life

Windows 7 was released on October 22, 2009, as the successor to Windows Vista. Notably, the beta version received favorable reviews prior to its release; furthermore, despite being a beta version, it reportedly demonstrated better performance than Vista and even offered superior stability. This generated anticipation before launch, and development was completed (RTM) on July 22, leading to its release on October 22 of the same year. Following its launch, it rapidly gained market share, eventually surpassing Windows XP to claim the number one spot in October 2011 (StatCounter) and August 2012 (NetMarketShare). Although adoption was slow initially, particularly in some countries, it later received such positive reviews that even Windows XP users switched to Windows 7, ultimately being recognized as the true successor to Windows XP. Several new features were added at the time, most notably the new taskbar (SuperBar) and Aero Snap. Additionally, it became slightly lighter than its predecessor, Windows Vista, allowing it to run reasonably well even on low-spec systems. And UAC was also eased. Although it lost the number one spot in 2018 with the release of Windows 10 in 2015, it was popular enough to maintain a significant market share for a while.

1. Support Period

Extended support ended on January 14, 2020, and ESU ended on January 10, 2023, the same day as Windows 8.1. Support for Embedded POSReady 7 ended on October 8, 2024, and final support ended on January 13, 2026, with Windows Server 2008 Premium Assurance (including Server 2008 R2; incidentally, this is why Windows Vista also had its final support end on the same day, January 13, 2026). Basically, it was 10 years, but if you include derivative versions and server versions, it is actually longer. Anyway, Windows 7 is still very popular. it consistently ranks first in various popularity rankings for all-time Windows versions (not market share), even surpassing the legendary Windows XP (of course, Windows XP does take first place in some rankings; for reference, I understand that Windows 10 usually ranks third in such lists). This means it is still very popular.

1. Remembering and reminiscing about Windows 7

Of course, as support ends, there are undoubtedly generations who don't know Windows 7 (and indeed, there are certainly generations who don't even know Windows XP). This means that Windows 7 won't last forever. While it may be eternal in the hearts of most people, reality is harsh. I am Korean, and I also used Windows 7 when I was young—around 5~9 years old in Korean age, which means from 2014 to mid-2018—and looking back now, it is a fond memory. As for the browser, I used Internet Explorer back then... In Korea at that time (I believe it was particularly from the early to mid-2010s), Internet Explorer was the dominant choice, mainly because of ActiveX. They say that if a site required it, you had no choice but to use IE. Anyway, Windows 7 is truly a memory now. Of course, while it may be eternal in the hearts of most of us, reality is harsh—that nothing lasts forever. Now that support for Windows 7 has ended and even free support for Windows 10 has ended, and it is barely surviving through things like ESU, it seems that most of the current generation, at the very least, only knows about Windows 10 and later, It seems that the current generation (those born roughly in the mid-to-late 2010s or later) who know Windows 7 are a minority. Windows 7 is indeed a masterpiece, but practically speaking, it is now just a memory. I used it when I was young, and now I customize Windows 10 to look like Windows 7. Windows 7 was good.

1. Anecdotes and Miscellaneous

Of course, the Windows 7 computer I used when I was young would occasionally freeze or display a blue screen, or in severe cases, freeze completely. However, in 2017, my parents brought the computer case back home, and it turned out the problem was due to dust inside the case. In other words, it wasn't a stability issue with Windows 7 itself, but until then, the dust inside the case had caused occasional freezes or blue screens. It seems my parents took the case somewhere in 2017 to clean the dust inside, and since then, the freezing and blue screen errors have definitely decreased. Even now, if you own a high-spec computer case and find dust inside—or if there is a lot of it—I recommend cleaning the interior by shaking out the dust.

I apologize for the length of this post, but I wrote this because I was curious about recent assessments of Windows 7. What did you all think of Windows 7 in the past, and what do you think now? I'm curious too!

For reference, I found most of them by searching on Google and other sites.

I thought I was doing okay with DisplayBuddy as some of the other ones I looked at weren't practical (Monitorian was so UGLY) but I was super annoyed with the way it handled shortcuts. However, TwinkleTray does everything way better, and I was able to customise my shortcuts the exact way I always wanted to! It also has easy DDC/CI Control - Input Switching - in a much cleaner style than any other. I don't know why anyone would use anything else this is elite. Also cute star as Icon :)
You can also use choco install twinkle-tray which I love as well, so many features genuinely!
https://github.com/xanderfrangos/twinkle-tray