Introduction
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Introduction For years, Microsoft has had two series of Windows versions: the Windows Me/9x series (which includes 95, 98, 98 Second Edition, and Millennium Edition, or Me) for individual users, and the NT series (Windows NT and 2000) for corporate users and network servers. And for years, Microsoft has been trying to merge the two (slightly incompatible) series, so that everyone could run more or less the same version of Windows. With each new Windows release, Microsoft promised that the next release would be the one that combines these two strains of Windows.
Microsoft has finally done it. Windows XP is the upgrade to both series of Windows, Me/9x and 2000/NT. Windows XP (also known by its prerelease code name, Whistler) does away with the legacy architecture of the Windows 9x series. Windows 95 and its successors were based on DOS, the pre-Windows, non-graphical operating system that PCs started with. Windows XP removes the underlying DOS environment for increased reliability, and it uses the Windows NT/2000 file system for better security.
Windows XP is based on Windows 2000 and combines the technical core of NT/2000 with the ease-of-use of Windows 98 and Me. Because of its business-oriented lineage, Windows XP has some great new capabilities for Windows Me/9x users, including password-protected user accounts and system management programs. But Windows XP also adds people-friendly features that were lacking in Windows NT and 2000, along with a completely redesigned (and spiffy-looking) screen design called Luna. This book helps you to make sense of the world of Windows XP, find your way through all the new and sometimes confusing options, learn the new interface, and make it work for you.
Initially, Windows XP comes in two versions: Home Edition (for home use) and Professional (for small-office and workstation use). These two versions are intended for workstations--that is, computers that people sit in front of and use directly. Two additional versions, Windows .NET Server and .NET Advanced Server, will be available in 2002. (Despite the ".NET" in their names, these are high-end versions of Windows XP.) These versions run on servers--computers that provide services to other computers over a network. This book describes Windows XP Home Edition and Professional as they are used on desktop and laptop workstations at home and at work. We hope that this book--both on paper and on the CD-ROM in the back--will help you make the most of Windows XP.
Later in this Introduction are sections titled "New Features in Windows XP," an overview of Windows XP's features, and "Differences Between Windows XP Editions," descriptions of the various versions of Windows XP.