WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.120 When you think of the worst version of Windows ever, 00:00:03.120 --> 00:00:06.680 you might think of Vista, which performed sluggishly out of the box, 00:00:06.680 --> 00:00:11.840 or 98, which was so ridden with bugs that Microsoft was forced to release a second edition, 00:00:11.840 --> 00:00:16.400 or even Windows 8, in which Microsoft axed the much-beloved start menu 00:00:16.400 --> 00:00:20.840 and instead tried to shove a mosaic of gimmicky live tiles down our throats, 00:00:20.840 --> 00:00:23.880 who's very uncomfortable. But aside from these greatest hits, 00:00:23.880 --> 00:00:29.800 one Windows version stands head and shoulders above the rest as a monument to failure. 00:00:29.800 --> 00:00:35.040 Windows Millennium Edition, better known as Windows Me, or Windows ME, 00:00:35.040 --> 00:00:39.800 for those who refuse to buy into the cheesy marketing. But why was it so bad? 00:00:39.800 --> 00:00:44.760 Microsoft had plenty of time to learn from common gripes people had with Windows 95 and 98, 00:00:44.760 --> 00:00:49.400 the biggest one being how often the OS would blue screen or straight up crash. 00:00:49.400 --> 00:00:52.560 To be fair to Microsoft, they did have a pretty good solution to this, 00:00:52.560 --> 00:00:57.640 move home users onto a version of Windows built on the much more stable NT kernel, 00:00:57.640 --> 00:01:01.480 which of course they eventually did with Windows XP in 2001. 00:01:01.480 --> 00:01:06.200 However, Microsoft originally wanted an NT edition of Windows for home users 00:01:06.200 --> 00:01:10.320 before the end of 2000. But due to how much development time was required, 00:01:10.320 --> 00:01:13.960 Windows ME was released instead in June of that year. 00:01:13.960 --> 00:01:17.160 It was the third major Windows release in the 9x series, 00:01:17.160 --> 00:01:22.960 and while it was designed to be easier for home users, it was somehow worse than its predecessors 00:01:22.960 --> 00:01:26.640 due to how unstable it was. But with Windows 9x already having 00:01:26.640 --> 00:01:30.200 a bad reputation for stability, how was it possible for Microsoft 00:01:30.200 --> 00:01:33.720 to allow Windows ME to be even more frustrating? 00:01:33.720 --> 00:01:38.720 The biggest problem with Windows ME was probably that it didn't really know who it was. 00:01:38.720 --> 00:01:44.400 Although it was firmly part of the Windows 9x family, Microsoft tried to drag Windows Millennium Edition 00:01:44.400 --> 00:01:48.080 into the new millennium by stripping away some 00:01:48.080 --> 00:01:53.420 of the MS-DOS components older versions of Windows relied on, but not all of them. 00:01:53.420 --> 00:01:59.560 The idea was to improve boot times, but many applications that relied on DOS just stopped working. 00:01:59.560 --> 00:02:04.560 Even if you weren't running any DOS-based programs though, there was a very good chance you'd have hardware 00:02:04.560 --> 00:02:08.440 that would start acting up. Although Windows ME had higher minimum requirements 00:02:08.440 --> 00:02:12.200 than its predecessor, Windows 98, they weren't that much higher, 00:02:12.200 --> 00:02:15.200 meaning that many users thought they wouldn't have too many issues installing ME 00:02:15.200 --> 00:02:19.600 without upgrading their hardware. Unfortunately though, enough had changed under the hood 00:02:19.600 --> 00:02:24.940 with Windows ME, including a restructured registry, to give thousands of users massive headaches 00:02:24.940 --> 00:02:30.000 when their old Windows 95 and 98 drivers simply would not work with the new operating system. 00:02:30.000 --> 00:02:34.420 What was really infuriating is that Microsoft faced similar issues when its customer upgraded 00:02:34.420 --> 00:02:38.300 to Windows 98 from 95, yet again, 00:02:38.300 --> 00:02:42.860 they didn't adequately ensure enough driver support when ME hit store shelves. 00:02:42.860 --> 00:02:47.980 Complicating matters further was the fact that ME attempted to handle two different driver standards, 00:02:47.980 --> 00:02:51.500 one from the Windows 95 era and one from the Windows 98 era, 00:02:51.540 --> 00:02:55.140 and these drivers had a tendency to conflict. 00:02:55.140 --> 00:02:58.700 They don't like each other. And while it was possible in some cases 00:02:58.700 --> 00:03:04.580 for tech-savvy users to find workarounds, the problem was that Windows ME was specifically marketed 00:03:04.580 --> 00:03:09.700 as being Microsoft's first ever entirely home-oriented operating system, 00:03:09.700 --> 00:03:13.540 meaning that it was supposed to be simple and reliable 00:03:13.540 --> 00:03:17.540 for the average Joe or Jane at home. And I'm pretty sure booting up 00:03:17.540 --> 00:03:22.980 and having multiple pieces of hardware and software simply refuse to work is the opposite of simple. 00:03:22.980 --> 00:03:26.500 Now, let's be fair, Windows ME wasn't all bad. 00:03:26.500 --> 00:03:32.380 It introduced some important features that have held on to this day, including system restore, automatic Windows updates, 00:03:32.380 --> 00:03:38.500 and generic drivers that enabled the OS to recognize any USB flash drive as soon as you plugged it in. 00:03:38.500 --> 00:03:43.060 But considering the fact that Windows ME was an overall nightmare for home users, 00:03:43.060 --> 00:03:48.780 it wasn't a surprise that Microsoft finally pulled the plug on the old Windows 9X ecosystem in 2001. 00:03:48.820 --> 00:03:51.860 And now, it's time for us to pull the plug on this video. 00:03:51.860 --> 00:03:56.780 I've got NT kernels in the microwave. Mm, can't wait. 00:03:56.780 --> 00:03:59.860 Hey, that's it for this video, guys. Thanks for watching. Like the video if you liked it. 00:03:59.860 --> 00:04:04.060 Dislike it if you disliked it. Check out our other videos and comment below with video suggestions. 00:04:04.060 --> 00:04:11.740 But don't forget to subscribe and follow TechWiki because, you know, that's what we need you to do that.