A: Windows Millennium Edition was the release of the Windows 9* operating
system after windows 98. It is designed solely for the home user.
Q: What is
there that's worthwhile Windows Millennium Edition?
A: Here are the basics from the Press Release Microsoft sent out.
"Digital Media and Entertainment" Digital media is
becoming increasingly popular, as illustrated by the exponential growth in areas like
music on the Web and digital photography. The Consumer Windows Division will focus on
enabling users to take advantage of all this new content, making it easy to access,
play/view and store as well as providing an enhanced PC gaming experience. "Online Experience" Providing consumers a premier home
online experience is a primary goal for the Consumer Windows Division. This means ensuring
consumers can easily connect to the Web, locate desired content and determine which
content is right for their family. "Home Networking" With more than 15 million households
now owning two computers and the cost of new PCs continuing to fall, as well as the many
intelligent hardware devices being created, networking at home is becoming a reality for
more people. The Consumer Windows Division will work to simplify the process of connecting
multiple computers in the home, enabling them to share information and an Internet
connection, and provide the infrastructure for connecting different intelligent devices to
the PC. "It Just Works" The Consumer Windows Division is
committed to providing consumers with a solution that 'just works,' from the moment a user
starts their PC and throughout their daily computing experience. This promise will be
delivered upon by the advancement of the PC's self-healing functionality, in addition to
providing a simpler set-up and a great out-of-the-box experience for new computer users.
There are a number of other
features such as the following:
Universal Plug and Play:
Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) defines an architectural framework for creating
self-configuring, self-describing devices and services. It enables seamless connectivity
and communication between Windows and intelligent appliances in the home, office and
everywhere in between.
Q: What
can we expect to see in Windows Millennium Edition that will make us upgrade from Windows
98?
A: The major plus points are a much faster booting time (30 seconds for some new
users) and far great stability.
Q: Will
my games run faster and smoother on Windows Me compared to Windows 98?
A: No, even though Windows Me ships with a newer version of DirectX 7, there is
little speed increase in any game we have tried out, the main difference is stability
across all fronts.
Q: I
hear that MS-DOS has gone, how will I run some older programs like Scandisk etc?
A: MS-DOS isn't gone, its just harder to get too. Just create a Windows Start Up
disk and you can easily get to MS-Dos. Programs like Scandisk no longer need to run in Dos
if there is a bad shutdown, Microsoft has improved the program to run when Windows
restarts.
Q: I
have been told that I can no longer update my Bios due to the lack of MS-DOS in Windows
Me, is this true?
A: No. Creating a boot disk to run a bios update is easily done.
Q: Is
the version of Internet Explorer 5.5 in Windows Me older than the final released to the
public?
A: It seems so. Installing Windows Me over Internet Explorer 5.5 final keeps the
newer version that you downloaded.
Q: Does
Windows Millennium Edition support dual processors like Windows 2000 and Windows
XP does?
A: No - Windows Me is still based on the Windows 9* core and the first consumer
edition of Windows that will support Dual Processors will be Windows Whistler (Windows
2001)
Q: I have
upgraded to Windows ME any
updates for it and where can I get it from?
A: Yes! Many parts of Windows Me are already well out of date including Internet
Explorer 5.5, Windows Media Player 7 and some security updates so pop along to http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com
