Windows 95/98 isn’t the official name, but rather an unofficial expression for a 16/32-bit codebase for a hybrid OS that Microsoft built. It provides the foundation for windows 95, 98 and the Windows Millenium Edition or ME. Sometimes this codebase is referred to as Windows 95/98/ME to include the Millenium Edition. The term is often used in order to describe the compatibility of the operating systems and programs that are installed on the system and use that mixed 16/32 code base.
Technipages Explains Windows 95/98
‘True’ 32-bit programs mostly wouldn’t and didn’t run on operating systems built on this codebase – only ones specifically engineered for it did, though some backward compatibility allowed for MS-DOS interactions. These programs, in turn, did not run on operating systems that were exclusively 32-bit, such as Windows NT or Microsoft Windows 2000. Cross-compatibility between the two code bases that built the foundation did not exist.
By now, all of those systems are years if not decades out of date – as a matter of fact, they are no longer supported by Microsoft at all. That means that no more updates or patches are published for it, and it is no longer secure against threats. Of course, the codebase is no longer in use either, as the standard is now 64-bit systems, which is another step further from the 16-bit era. The systems built on this codebase are some of the most well-known and easily recognizable operating systems ever created by Windows.
Extended support for Windows 95 and 98 ended in 2001 and 2006 respectively – both systems are over a decade and a half out of date and have made way for systems like Windows 8 and Windows 10, each of which uses a different, unique codebase of its own, they those are 64-bit based now.
Common Uses of Windows 95/98
- Windows 95/98 is a common term for a Windows OS codebase.
- Compared to newer OS, the outdated Windows 95/98 codebase used a 16/32-bit system.
- While Windows 95/98 formed the basis for some of the most popular operating systems Microsoft ever created.
Common Misuses of Windows 95/98
- Windows 95/98 is the name for a hybrid operating system.
