On Mon, 29 Sep 2025 18:07:16 +0100 "mick.crane" <[email protected]> wrote:
> I never really knew what this meant but liked the sound of it. > > "32 bit extensions and a graphical shell [on top of] a 16 bit patch > to an 8 bit operating system originally coded for a 4 bit > microprocessor, written by a 2 bit company, that can't stand 1 bit of > competition." > 'Windows was once famously described as "32 bit extensions and a graphical shell [on top of] a 16 bit patch to an 8 bit operating system originally coded for a 4 bit microprocessor, written by a 2 bit company, that can't stand 1 bit of competition." This was attributed to Art Bahrs (an HP guy) in Aug 1997, although it probably predates that. 'While humorous, it's inaccurate: neither DOS nor its predecessor QDOS were a patch to any flavor of CP/M (presumably the "8-bit operating system"), and no flavor of CP/M never targeted a 4-bit microprocessor. ' https://wiki.c2.com/?MicrosoftWindows '2 bit', I think, stands. -- Joe
