January 4, 2025, 9:37 am | Read time: 3 minutes
Windows is the most widely used operating system in the world. The development path taken by the Microsoft-developed software can be partially traced on a special website.
If you were born before 1993, you probably remember Windows 3.11 from personal experience. Younger generations now have the chance to travel back to the beginnings of Windows. Developer Pieter Levels offers a virtual version of Windows 3.11 on his website.
Authentic 1990s Feel
The website greets its visitors in style with an old CRT monitor. After booting up, several open windows already appear on the screen. You can click on the tiles to navigate.
Among the icons are many old favorites like File Manager, Paintbrush, Write, Solitaire, or Minesweeper. Occasionally, Telnet pops up and tries to establish an internet connection via modem. The 1990s illusion is well-executed. In the various windows, there are some small treasures to discover, such as a digital copy of a song by Icelandic singer Björk or Eudora Light, an early Windows program for receiving emails.
Also interesting: Sold only three times! The biggest flop in Microsoft’s history
As you click through the windows, you’ll come across mIRC, a tool still in use today for communication or data exchange–the ultimate chat tool of the 1990s. Among the browsers, not only is the old Internet Explorer pre-installed, but also the nearly forgotten Netscape Navigator Gold. At least the Netscape source code lives on indirectly and served as the foundation for the development of the Mozilla Firefox browser in the early 2000s.
On Pieter Levels’ website, you can browse with Netscape, but only on the developer’s page. It takes about as long as it did in the early 1990s because fast internet was just a dream back then.
5 Major Tech Companies That No Longer Exist Today
What happened to Napster, Second Life and Co.
A True Milestone
Windows 3.11 marked a first milestone for the then-growing company Microsoft. The further development of the sluggish predecessor Windows for Workgroups 3.1 from 1992 used significantly fewer resources. As a result, the demand for computers increased rapidly.
The operating system introduced the so-called TCP/IP protocol for the first time in a home computer environment. This network protocol still exists today and ensures a stable connection between multiple local computers.
This network function also established Microsoft’s operating system in industrial environments, such as in computer cash registers. Even Deutsche Bahn relies on Windows 3.11–to this day. Recently, the company was looking for administrators familiar with the over 30-year-old operating system.
Era Ends in 2008
Microsoft continued to develop it until 2001. Licensing for computer manufacturers continued until 2008. Then the era of Windows 3.11 finally ended.
In the virtual environment created by developer Pieter Levels, many things can be relived. It takes a while for Windows 3.11 to actually appear on the screen. After booting up, additional applications are loaded in the background. Status windows show the progress with blue bars. With today’s high-performance computers, tablets, or smartphones, users hardly notice this anymore.
By the way: The Internet Archive also once put a virtual Windows 3.11 environment online. This version went online in 2017, 25 years after the release of Windows 3.1.