Now that they revived their Flight Sim and are doing a major overhaul what older title would you like back? How about a new MS Train Sim or even a driving sim where you drive an open globe and create your own missions/races? Microsoft Vehicle Sim where you build your own craft with realistic physics and see if it can drive/fly,ride,etc? WARNING: Requires actual thinking and tinkering with an understanding of dynamics.
How about retro products like Midtown Madness/Motorcross Madness, Microsoft Kids,Home,Office,etc getting some new birth for Gamepass and actually make Windows a whole lot more functional then just for phone idiots and gamers only?
Windows 2000 with 64-bit support and an upgrade to the Win32 API. No activation, no bullshit.
Settle for Windows XP-64. Had activation but almost no other bullshit.
And Office 2003 because fuck the ribbon UI.
What started the activation BS and how does it even work?
People sharing product keys online is what started it. XP was the first OS to do activation, where they would tie the product key to a hardware "fingerprint" that was some combination of CPU ID and other hardware characteristics (which under certain circumstances would require a re-activation if you upgraded your PC). Activation was done either online or through a phone call.
It's weird to think about because it's so common now, but this was extremely controversial at the time. Because most software at the time that did this sort of activation was very specialized, very expensive software like 5-figure CAD programs and not consumer-grade operating systems.
XP still left the door a bit open with the "volume licensing edition" (intended for giant companies which would license their entire org instead of individual computers) which didn't go through the activation process and worked the same way previous versions of Windows did. So people shared standard volume license keys which starting in SP2 (IIRC) were blacklisted as "pirated" and weren't eligible for updates.
Off topic, but as a normie years ago, it almost bothered me that your store bought laptop or desktop, purchased new, had the newest version of Windows preloaded and you were never given the CD-ROM.
Then, inevitably, years down the road when you ran into system problems, Microsoft's tech advice would inevitably involve reinstalling from a CD-ROM or some variation of, that you didn't possess despite buying it retail.
I do not know about previous versions of windows, but microsoft refused to replace my defective installation media despite the fact I have NO GOOD SYSTEM to create new installation media, which means if I have zero contacts, I WILL BE FORCED TO BUY A BUDGET COMPUTER JUST TO BURN INSTALLATION MEDIA.
you were always given that except for the 'budget notebooks'. i think the hugher end ones stopped around 2017 or so.
wserver is 64b
Server sometimes is (was? Maybe it's improved now that all the cloud virtual desktop systems use it) iffy installing consumer apps. Some apps flat-out refuse to install on a Server OS, and others don't work right. I had a hell of a time getting the audio on an Intel graphics driver to work on Server 2012. Ended up having to re-install the driver every time I power-cycled the computer because otherwise the sound wouldn't work.
One of these days I might play with the Server version without the UI and just install cygwin on it for a quasi-unix experience on Windows.