Windows 3.1 is officially 30 years old
It’s time to open up command line and celebrate the 30th birthday of Windows 3.1.
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What you need to know
Windows 11 may be the latest operating system from Microsoft, but today is about Windows 3.1. It’s the birthday of the classic OS, marking 30 years since its launch on April 6, 1992. Windows 3.1 introduced several key components, many of which have digital descendants onWindows 11and imitators on other operating systems.
Windows 3.1 brought PCs the CTRL+C and CTRL+V shortcuts for copy and paste. It added TrueType fonts and came with screensavers and a media player as well. Gamers hadtwooptions for games that preinstalled games: Solitaire and Minesweeper.
Selling over 3 million copies in the first three months it was on the market, Windows 3.1 was considered a success. It was more user-friendly than Windows 3.0 and introduced many people to the idea of a personal computer in their home.
How To Geektook a deep dive into the impact of Windows 3.1 for the operating system’s 30th birthday.
Sadly for those that miss the days of the MS-DOS and command line being king, Windows 3.1 reached its end of support in 2001.
If you want to boot up Windows 3.1 in 2022, you canrun it on your iPad. Doing so will get you access to the classic versions of Minesweeper and Solitaire. If you’re running Windows 3.1, you don’t even need Xbox Game Pass toplay Solitaire without ads.
Those that love classic technology may also enjoy looking through arecent auctionthat included original mouse prototypes and an unissued piece of Microsoft stock.
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Windows 3.1’s birthday comes only two days after the birthday of Microsoft, which was founded on April 4, 1975.
Sean Endicott is a tech journalist at Windows Central, specializing in Windows, Microsoft software, AI, and PCs. He’s covered major launches, from Windows 10 and 11 to the rise of AI tools like ChatGPT. Sean’s journey began with the Lumia 740, leading to strong ties with app developers. Outside writing, he coaches American football, utilizing Microsoft services to manage his team. He studied broadcast journalism at Nottingham Trent University and is active on X @SeanEndicott_ and Threads @sean_endicott_.
