Science Fair Project Encyclopedia The Windows 3.x family of
Microsoft Windows operating systems were released from 1990 to
1994. The 3.0 release was the first widely successful version of
Windows (see history of Microsoft Windows), enabling Microsoft
to compete with Apple Computer's Macintosh and the Commodore
Amiga on the GUI front. Windows 3.0 was released on May 22, 1990
and included a significantly revamped user interface as well as
technical improvements to make better use of the memory
management capabilities of Intel's 80286 and 80386 processors.
Text-mode programs written for MS-DOS could be run within a
window (a feature previously available in a more limited form
with Windows/386 2.1), making the system usable as a crude
multitasking base for legacy programs, though this was of
limited use for the home market, where most games and
entertainment programs continued to require raw DOS access. The
MS-DOS Executive file manager/program launcher was replaced with
an icon-based Program Manager and a list-b