wpcentral Microsoft Windows Family of computer operating systems developed by Microsoft Microsoft Windows, commonly referred to as Windows, is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families, all of which are developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. Active Microsoft Windows families include Windows NT and Windows IoT; these may encompass subfamilies, (e.g. Windows Server or Windows Embedded Compact) (Windows CE). Genealogy By marketing role Microsoft, the developer of Windows, has registered several trademarks, each of which denotes a family of Windows operating systems that target a specific sector of the computing industry. The following Windows families are no longer being developed: Windows 9x: An operating system that targeted consumers market. Version history The term Windows collectively describes any or all of several generations of Microsoft operating system products. Early versions Windows 3.x Windows 9x Windows NT Windows XP Xbox OS
Download Center The Microsoft Download Center has recently been revised to better serve you as a one-stop shop for products available for purchase, in addition to products and downloads available for free. For your convenience, items available for purchase are linked directly to Microsoft Store. Items available as free downloads are linked to details pages, where you can learn more about them and initiate downloads. If you would like Microsoft to scan your computer and recommend updates, please see the preceding question. To find products and downloads, in the navigation bar that appears across the center of the Download Center home page, click an icon.To search more specifically for a product or download, on the menu bar displayed near the top of the page, click a menu name and then click a product or download.To search by keyword, at the top of the page, in the Search Download Center search box, type the word or words you wish to search for. On the Search results page, you may see the following:
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