There is a Web-Based Windows 96, And You Can Use it Right Now!

According to Wikipedia, Windows 96, codenamed Windows Nashville, was supposed to be released in 1996. It was supposed to compete with Netscape Navigat

According to Wikipedia, Windows 96, codenamed Windows Nashville, was supposed to be released in 1996. It was supposed to compete with Netscape Navigator by combining Windows and Internet Explorer tightly.

Windows 96 Web OS and Doom
Image: Unsplash, Windows 96

As far as I remember, there were Windows 95 and 98, but no Windows 96. And according to a source, Windows 96 was in the making but got canceled. However, there's a web-based replica (sort of) that you can visit right now, and experience the could-be version of Windows 96.

According to Wikipedia, Windows 96, codenamed Windows Nashville, was supposed to be released in 1996. It was supposed to compete with Netscape Navigator by combining Windows and Internet Explorer tightly.

So what exactly can you do with this web-based OS environment? Well, a lot, actually. At first I thought that it was just a basic thing and nothing more. But I soon found out that it's very functional and you can even play games! Here's a list of things you can do:

Open, Delete, and Rename Files

The web-based OS allows you to perform basic functions on files. You can right-click on a file to delete it, open it, or rename it. You can change the file extension too, and it works as expected! Upon changing a file from shortcut (.link) to text file (.txt), I was able to read its contents. Moreover, I got an error when trying to change the extension to application (.exe) and opening it.

However, I wasn't able to recover the deleted files through the recycle bin (trash, in this case). Although I did find a picture of a monkey there, humorous.

Create new files and folders

Just like you would in Windows 10 (or any other version), you can create new files and folders in this web app. You can see the options by right-clicking on the desktop. I was able to create a blank text file, type a random thing in it and save. I then closed it and re-opened it to see if the text was still there, and no surprise, it was there. Similarly, you can also create folders, rename them, and store files inside them.

Chat With Online Users

There is a chat app on the desktop, called MsgRoom, and it actually works. You can open it, set up your nickname, and start chatting with other online users! That's so cool. I did suspect that it was fake, but upon chatting with the active users, I can confirm it's real and working. Other than that, you can change the chat window's theme, such as the dark theme.

Play Doom, and other games

You heard that right, this thing has a few games that you can play. To do that, you can go to the start menu > Programs > Entertainment. There you should see games such as Blocks and Pumkin World. But you can also install Doom. To do this, open Package Installer from desktop, and from there you can install doom. Once done, go back to start menu and under that same Entertainment folder, you will see an icon for Doom, and you can play it. Though there isn't much to do, as far as I could see.

View Random Images

As I mentioned above, there are random images scattered inside the os. The ones I found were in Trash, Documents folder, help app etc.

So what did you think of this neat little project? I think it's awesome and deserves more attention! If you have any thoughts to share, do so in the comments below :)

by Talha Shaikhani