Windows 11, the latest of Microsofts most hated Windows releases. Too soon?
Summary
Although this OS is the basis for the kernel that all modern versions of Windows currently are based on, this was a major sea change for the platform, and it had a rocky start. Windows NT was a native protected mode, multiprocessor-capable, multithreaded, multiuser, processor architecture-independent, true preemptive multitasking OS, but it needed to run Win32 apps written specifically to take advantage of those features. In addition, Windows NT 3.1 was expensive (the workstation version was $500), had substantial minimum hardware requirements for the time (a 386 processor and 12MB of memory), and ran best on non-Intel systems such as DEC Alpha and the MIPS. Simply mention "Windows Vista" in casual conversation in tech industry circles, and you will get laughs and snickers -- thats how bad a reputation this OS release had. The sheer amount of bad will created by a software upgrade that essentially doesnt seem like much more than a user interface update is rubbing many Microsoft diehards the wrong way.