Windows 95 and OS Advocacy on the Internet
Sound like fun? Sure I don't have to cut my hair and I wear jeans all day -- that's freelance writing. But I have to do junky stuff like this to eat, too.
It had other advantages though -- when I finally sat down to write this column I had about 400 Web sites to pick from to tell you about.
There are also some great Web interfaces and graphics out there to be experienced. The Windows Source ( http://rep00498.reshall.umich.edu/~mphacker/windows.html) looks just like Windows 95, allowing you to move around on the site by clicking on folders and icons. For a similar approach, check out Dylan Green's Windows 95 Starting Page ( http://www.wam.umd.edu/~dylan/win95.html) which uses the familiar Windows 95 Start Menu to help you get around the Web site. Both feature links to other Win95 Internet sites including IRC chat channels, troubleshooting and setup advice.
A must download for just about any Windows 95 user in the Win95 FAQ (frequently asked questions) document available from Win95Net ( http://www.w95net.com/). If you've got a question about installation or setup of Win95, chances are someone else has too. Check here first.
Our Win95 site list wouldn't even begin to be complete if we didn't include some of the important Microsoft sites. The main Microsoft page is http://www.microsoft.com/ and home base for Windows95 is http://www.microsoft.com/windows/, but there are some specific pages within Microsoft's corporate site that we should look at. Try Microsoft Support's Online FAQ Page ( http://www.microsoft.com/kb/faq/win95/) for the questions that Microsoft hears most about Win95. Also of interest are the Microsoft Office 95 frequent questions at http://www.microsoft.com/kb/faq/office.
What about Windows hardware? The FAQ is at http://www.microsoft.com/kb/faq/win95/hardcomp/, and you can find a great article called "Windows 95: Does Your System Measure Up" by David Methvin at TechWeb ( http://192.216.191.71/techweb/techweb/win95/wmfeb.htm).
If you don't know anything about the Windows 95 Registry, REGEDIT or why you should care, head over to a site by Robin Duffy called "Getting the Most from the Windows95 Registry" (http://www.usa.net/~rduffy/registry.html). There you can let the tutorial steps take you through the idea of editing the Registry to customize your desktop. Another must-have for most of the Registry-intrepid would be the Windows 95 Registry FAQ ( http://theclassifieds.com/kdWare/faq/utils.htm). Topics covered include Registry Architecture, Customizing Windows 95, Registry Tricks and Problem Solving.
If you like someone else to do the customizing (and you just do the double-clicking and configuring) try Liz Mark's Home Page (http://www.clark.net/pub/lizard/). Liz has written her own collection of Windows screen savers, animate icons and "dirty tricks"-programs that fool other people into thinking they've done something wrong in Windows. You might also want to try other people's additions to the downloadable world of Windows shareware at http://www.acs.oakland.edu/oak/SimTel/win95/sysutil.html.
You can download a list of applications that don't work with Windows95, or have trouble running from http://support.info.apple.com/competitive/competitive.html. Hold on. Doesn't that address say "apple.com"? Yup. Apple calls it their Competitive Information Web Site. IBM had their own site to "help" you make your decision. It's called OS/2 Warp vs. Windows 95 (http://www.austin.ibm.com/pspinfo/os2vschg.html). Here's Big Blue's advice on transitioning your corporate system to the next level in operating systems. (Who do you think wins?) Included is IBM's list of "15 Questions You Should Ask Microsoft." And, of course, Microsoft answered those questions with some system-level accusations of their own. Check it out at http://www.gco.com/ms15item.html.
Apple's Web site also offers a number of different comparisons between Macs and Windows 95 at http://www.apple.com. For a reasonable comparison between Windows 95 and other OSs, try http://www.lawsch.uga.edu/jeff/winos2.html. I'm not sure if the Hack Microsoft site (http://www.c2.org/hackmsoft) is a friend or foe of Microsoft, but they make it their business to find problems with Microsoft's computer and network security, then broadcast them to the world.
Finally, on a friendly note, Microsoft has its newest version of Internet Explorer for Windows and Mac available online. Point to http://www.microsoft.com/windows/ie/iedemo.htm and choose your version. I double-checked it to make sure, and this is the page for both Windows and Mac downloads, even if the address there says "windows" in the path statement. Kinda makes sense that Microsoft thinks that way, doesn't it?
Todd Stauffer is author of Using the Internet with Your Mac (Que) and host of the Peak Computing Hour on 740 AM at 9 a.m. Saturdays. Send questions about Windows 95, Macs, the Internet or anything else related to computers at toddpeak@usa.net.
