The PC at 20

Windows Marches On

In 1993, Microsoft released Windows NT, a 32-bit version that was truly an operating system of its own--it didn't require DOS at all. Meant for networks and high-end users, NT traded ease of use for administrator controls and security. Stiff hardware requirements and compatibility issues kept it out of the mainstream.

Two years later, Windows 95 shipped to far greater fanfare. It too was a 32-bit environment that made full use of the latest processors. But DOS was still there, loading before Windows. Microsoft has kept that same basic setup for Windows 98 and Me; when Windows XP arrives, probably this year, home users will get their first DOS-free version of Windows.

With or without DOS, Windows may simply be too complex to be perfectly reliable, with too much old code on top of new code. "Twice as many lines of code probably means four times as many bugs," warns Kahn.

The sheer versatility of the PC and Windows is another source of trouble: The huge number of apps, peripherals, add-ins, and configurations makes thorough debugging impossible. Other platforms such as Linux and the Macintosh, which are often praised for superior stability, don't offer anywhere near the flexibility of a Windows PC. And they have not had anywhere near its success. According to Bricklin, "People voted with their pocketbooks"--and the PC won because it was capable of doing so many things.

So will Windows and PCs be around forever? Already, it's almost a cliché to say that the standard will dwindle as the Internet comes to dominate our computing experience. Low-cost devices like PDAs and Internet appliances could indeed eventually edge out the PC for taking care of simple tasks such as Web browsing and e-mail.

For the foreseeable future, though, if you want one device that can handle everything from managing a business to playing the latest games, you'll probably still need the flexibility of a personal computer. And even as PCs continue to morph, the basic value of backward compatibility should ensure that IBM's 20-year-old standard will live on. The soul of the new machine, it appears, will remain the brains of an old one.