You Can Now Run Windows 95 as an App on Windows, MacOS, and Linux

Has the sleek, modern design of today’s operating systems left you feeling bored and yearning for the old days? Well, you’re in luck — a clunky operating system from a quarter century ago is available for download right now. A developer has labored long and hard to bring back Windows 95 as an app. You can install it on Windows, MacOS, or Linux. And just like that, it’s the mid-90s again.

The app version of Windows 95 comes courtesy of developer Felix Rieseberg, who has posted the installer to GitHub. It runs in Electron, a cross-platform application framework for desktop apps. The Windows 95 app is around 100MB in size for all platforms, and it’s based on an existing web project that can run a handful of classic operating systems. The main difference here is all the code is contained in the app, so it runs more like a “real” OS.

For those of us who live with Windows 95 for years, this app is a real trip down memory lane. There are a lot of us in that situation, too. It was a massive release 23 years ago that sold by the millions. It introduced features like the Start button, the Taskbar, and support for plug-and-play hardware.

The electron app is the real deal with all the standard pre-loaded apps. You can get a feel for what Windows 95 was like even if you never used it. It works for the most part and only needs about 200MB of RAM. That’s a lot more than Windows 95 itself needed when running directly on PC hardware. Microsoft recommended at least 4MB back in the day.

I put Windows 95 into an Electron app that now runs on macOS, Windows, and Linux. It's a terrible idea that works shockingly well. I'm so sorry.

Go grab it here: https://t.co/MIoFpezuFi pic.twitter.com/YquOnOGrSz

— Felix Rieseberg (@felixrieseberg) August 23, 2018

Programs like Notepad, Paint, and Solitaire all work like they did back in the day. However, Internet Explorer can’t detect an internet connection. That probably wouldn’t do you much good anyway. Virtually every site would be hopelessly broken in a 23-year-old operating system browser.

The Windows EXE works like a standalone file, so it’s quick to load up without installing anything. I also got it running on a Pixelbook running Chrome OS with Linux app support enabled. Although, that was much more buggy than running the app in Windows. You can load more ancient Windows 95 software into the Windows app — Rieseberg suggests Doom. You’ll have a hard time finding a lot of 95 software, but this is mainly about the nostalgia.

Continue reading

Microsoft: Pluton Chip Will Bring Xbox-Like Security to Windows PCs

Intel, AMD, and Qualcomm are working to make Pluton part of their upcoming designs, which should make PCs more difficult to hack, but it also bakes Microsoft technology into your hardware.

Apple: ‘It’s Up to Microsoft’ to Get Windows Running on New ARM Macs

According to Apple, the question of supporting Windows on the M1 is entirely in Microsoft's court.

How Does Windows Use Multiple CPU Cores?

We take multi-core awareness for granted these days, but how do the CPU and operating system communicate with each other in the first place?

Minecraft With Ray Tracing Now Available for All Windows 10 Players

You don't usually think of Minecraft as a realistic game, but the developers have been hard at work adding RTX ray tracing to the game for the last eight months. It's finally out of beta today, and it really works with the blocky look of Minecraft.