<s>
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
is	O
the	O
third	O
major	O
release	O
of	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Windows	I-Application
,	O
launched	O
in	O
1990	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
features	O
a	O
new	O
graphical	B-Application
user	I-Application
interface	I-Application
(	O
GUI	B-Application
)	O
where	O
applications	B-Application
are	O
represented	O
as	O
clickable	O
icons	O
,	O
as	O
opposed	O
to	O
the	O
list	O
of	O
file	O
names	O
seen	O
in	O
its	O
predecessors	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Later	O
updates	O
would	O
expand	O
the	O
software	O
's	O
capabilities	O
,	O
one	O
of	O
which	O
added	O
multimedia	O
support	O
for	O
sound	O
recording	O
and	O
playback	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
support	O
for	O
CD-ROMs	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
is	O
the	O
first	O
version	O
of	O
Windows	O
to	O
perform	O
well	O
both	O
critically	O
and	O
commercially	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Critics	O
and	O
users	O
considered	O
its	O
GUI	B-Application
to	O
be	O
a	O
challenger	O
to	O
those	O
of	O
Apple	B-Device
Macintosh	I-Device
and	O
Unix	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Other	O
praised	O
features	O
were	O
the	O
improved	O
multitasking	B-Operating_System
,	O
customizability	O
,	O
and	O
especially	O
the	O
utilitarian	O
management	O
of	O
computer	O
memory	O
that	O
troubled	O
the	O
users	O
of	O
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
'	O
s	O
predecessors	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
sold	O
10	O
million	O
copies	O
before	O
it	O
was	O
succeeded	O
by	O
Windows	B-Application
3.1	I-Application
in	O
1992	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
December	O
31	O
,	O
2001	O
,	O
Microsoft	O
declared	O
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
obsolete	O
and	O
stopped	O
providing	O
support	O
and	O
updates	O
for	O
the	O
system	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Before	O
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
,	O
Microsoft	O
had	O
a	O
partnership	O
with	O
IBM	O
,	O
where	O
the	O
latter	O
had	O
sold	O
personal	O
computers	O
running	O
on	O
the	O
former	O
's	O
MS-DOS	B-Application
since	O
1981	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
MS-DOS	B-Application
was	O
entering	O
its	O
fifth	O
iteration	O
,	O
IBM	O
demanded	O
a	O
version	O
of	O
DOS	O
that	O
could	O
run	O
in	O
"	O
protected	B-Application
mode	I-Application
"	O
,	O
which	O
would	O
allow	O
it	O
to	O
execute	O
multiple	O
programs	O
at	O
once	O
,	O
among	O
other	O
benefits	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
MS-DOS	B-Application
was	O
originally	O
designed	O
to	O
run	O
in	O
real	B-Application
mode	I-Application
and	O
run	O
only	O
one	O
program	O
at	O
a	O
time	O
,	O
due	O
to	O
the	O
capability	O
limitations	O
of	O
the	O
Intel	B-Device
8088	I-Device
microprocessor	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Intel	O
had	O
later	O
released	O
the	O
Intel	B-General_Concept
80286	I-General_Concept
,	O
which	O
was	O
designed	O
to	O
support	O
such	O
multitasking	B-Operating_System
efficiently	O
(	O
with	O
several	O
different	O
hardware	O
features	O
,	O
including	O
memory	O
protection	O
,	O
hardware	O
task	O
switching	O
,	O
program	O
privilege	O
separation	O
,	O
and	O
virtual	O
memory	O
,	O
all	O
absent	O
on	O
the	O
earlier	O
Intel	O
x86	O
CPUs	O
)	O
and	O
which	O
could	O
be	O
directly	O
connected	O
to	O
16	O
times	O
as	O
much	O
memory	O
as	O
the	O
8088	B-Device
(	O
and	O
8086	B-General_Concept
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
two	O
companies	O
developed	O
the	O
next	O
generation	O
of	O
DOS	O
,	O
OS/2	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
OS/2	B-Application
software	O
was	O
not	O
compatible	O
with	O
DOS	O
,	O
giving	O
IBM	O
an	O
advantage	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
late	O
1987	O
,	O
Windows/386	O
2.0	O
introduced	O
a	O
protected	B-Application
mode	I-Application
kernel	O
that	O
could	O
multitask	O
several	O
DOS	O
applications	B-Application
using	O
virtual	B-Application
8086	I-Application
mode	I-Application
,	O
but	O
all	O
Windows	B-Application
applications	I-Application
still	O
ran	O
in	O
a	O
shared	O
virtual	O
DOS	O
machine	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
the	O
rest	O
of	O
the	O
Microsoft	O
team	O
moved	O
on	O
to	O
the	O
OS/2	B-Application
2.0	O
project	O
,	O
David	O
Weise	O
,	O
a	O
member	O
of	O
the	O
Windows	O
development	O
team	O
and	O
a	O
critic	O
of	O
IBM	O
,	O
believed	O
that	O
he	O
could	O
restart	O
the	O
Windows	O
project	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Microsoft	O
needed	O
programming	O
tools	O
that	O
could	O
run	O
in	O
protected	B-Application
mode	I-Application
,	O
so	O
it	O
hired	O
Murray	O
Sargent	O
,	O
a	O
physics	O
professor	O
from	O
the	O
University	O
of	O
Arizona	O
who	O
had	O
developed	O
a	O
DOS	B-Device
extender	I-Device
and	O
a	O
debugging	O
program	O
that	O
could	O
work	O
with	O
protected	B-Application
mode	I-Application
applications	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
originated	O
in	O
1988	O
as	O
an	O
independent	O
project	O
by	O
Weise	O
and	O
Sargent	O
,	O
who	O
used	O
the	O
latter	O
's	O
debugger	O
to	O
improve	O
the	O
memory	O
manager	O
and	O
run	O
Windows	B-Application
applications	I-Application
in	O
their	O
own	O
separate	O
protected	O
memory	O
segments	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
a	O
few	O
months	O
,	O
Weiss	O
and	O
Sargent	O
cobbled	O
together	O
a	O
rough	O
prototype	O
that	O
could	O
run	O
Windows	O
versions	O
of	O
Word	B-Application
,	O
Excel	B-Application
,	O
and	O
PowerPoint	B-Application
,	O
then	O
presented	O
it	O
to	O
company	O
executives	O
,	O
who	O
were	O
impressed	O
enough	O
to	O
approve	O
it	O
as	O
an	O
official	O
project	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
IBM	O
learned	O
of	O
Microsoft	O
's	O
upcoming	O
project	O
,	O
their	O
relationship	O
was	O
damaged	O
,	O
but	O
Microsoft	O
asserted	O
that	O
it	O
would	O
cancel	O
Windows	O
after	O
its	O
launch	O
and	O
that	O
it	O
would	O
continue	O
to	O
develop	O
OS/2	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
was	O
formally	O
and	O
officially	O
announced	O
on	O
May	O
22	O
,	O
1990	O
,	O
in	O
the	O
New	O
York	O
City	O
Center	O
Theater	O
,	O
where	O
Microsoft	O
released	O
it	O
worldwide	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Microsoft	O
decided	O
not	O
to	O
offer	O
free	O
runtime	O
licenses	O
of	O
the	O
software	O
to	O
applications	B-Application
vendors	O
,	O
as	O
runtime	O
versions	O
of	O
Windows	O
lacked	O
the	O
capacity	O
to	O
multitask	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Microsoft	O
had	O
intended	O
to	O
make	O
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
appealing	O
to	O
the	O
public	O
in	O
general	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Microsoft	O
's	O
product	O
manager	O
Bruce	O
Ryan	O
compiled	O
games	O
that	O
the	O
Windows	O
team	O
had	O
designed	O
in	O
its	O
spare	O
time	O
to	O
create	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Entertainment	I-Application
Pack	I-Application
,	O
which	O
included	O
Tetris	B-Device
and	O
Minesweeper	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Nevertheless	O
,	O
the	O
Entertainment	B-Application
Pack	I-Application
was	O
sold	O
as	O
a	O
separate	O
product	O
,	O
and	O
it	O
became	O
so	O
popular	O
that	O
it	O
was	O
followed	O
by	O
three	O
other	O
Entertainment	B-Application
Packs	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
December	O
31	O
,	O
2001	O
,	O
Microsoft	O
dropped	O
support	O
for	O
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
,	O
along	O
with	O
previous	O
versions	O
of	O
Windows	O
and	O
Windows	O
95	O
,	O
Windows	O
for	O
Workgroups	O
,	O
and	O
MS-DOS	B-Application
versions	O
up	O
to	O
6.22	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
features	O
a	O
significantly	O
revamped	O
graphical	B-Application
user	I-Application
interface	I-Application
(	O
GUI	B-Application
)	O
,	O
which	O
was	O
described	O
as	O
having	O
a	O
three-dimensional	O
look	O
similar	O
to	O
the	O
Presentation	B-Device
Manager	I-Device
,	O
rather	O
than	O
the	O
flat	O
look	O
of	O
its	O
predecessor	O
,	O
Windows	B-Application
2.1	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
also	O
includes	O
technical	O
improvements	O
to	O
the	O
memory	B-General_Concept
management	I-General_Concept
to	O
make	O
better	O
use	O
of	O
the	O
capabilities	O
of	O
Intel	O
's	O
80286	B-General_Concept
and	O
80386	B-General_Concept
processors	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
Dynamic	B-Operating_System
Data	I-Operating_System
Exchange	I-Operating_System
is	O
a	O
multitasking	B-Operating_System
protocol	O
whereby	O
multiple	O
running	O
applications	B-Application
dynamically	O
exchange	O
data	O
with	O
one	O
another	O
,	O
i.e.	O
,	O
when	O
data	O
in	O
one	O
application	O
changes	O
,	O
so	O
does	O
the	O
data	O
in	O
another	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
feature	O
had	O
appeared	O
in	O
Windows	O
previously	O
,	O
but	O
until	O
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
,	O
due	O
to	O
memory	O
constraints	O
,	O
users	O
were	O
unable	O
to	O
use	O
the	O
protocol	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Due	O
to	O
its	O
support	O
for	O
the	O
386	B-General_Concept
and	O
later	O
processors	B-General_Concept
,	O
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
can	O
also	O
use	O
virtual	O
memory	O
,	O
which	O
is	O
a	O
portion	O
of	O
a	O
hard	B-Device
disk	I-Device
drive	I-Device
that	O
is	O
substituted	O
for	O
memory	O
by	O
the	O
processor	O
in	O
the	O
event	O
that	O
its	O
own	O
memory	O
is	O
exhausted	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Like	O
its	O
predecessors	O
,	O
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
is	O
not	O
an	O
operating	O
system	O
per	O
se	O
,	O
but	O
rather	O
an	O
operating	O
environment	O
that	O
is	O
designed	O
for	O
DOS	O
and	O
controls	O
its	O
functions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
MS-DOS	B-Application
Executive	O
file	B-Application
manager	I-Application
was	O
replaced	O
with	O
Program	O
Manager	O
,	O
the	O
list-based	O
File	B-Application
Manager	I-Application
,	O
and	O
Task	O
List	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
double-clicked	O
on	O
,	O
these	O
icons	O
open	O
corresponding	O
applications	B-Application
or	O
smaller	O
windows	O
within	O
the	O
Program	O
Manager	O
window	O
called	O
group	O
windows	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
File	B-Application
Manager	I-Application
is	O
another	O
shell	O
used	O
to	O
access	O
or	O
modify	O
applications	B-Application
,	O
but	O
displays	O
them	O
as	O
files	O
contained	O
in	O
directories	O
in	O
a	O
list	O
format	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Task	O
List	O
displays	O
all	O
running	O
applications	B-Application
and	O
may	O
also	O
be	O
used	O
to	O
terminate	O
them	O
,	O
select	O
a	O
different	O
program	O
,	O
cascade	O
or	O
tile	O
the	O
windows	O
,	O
and	O
arrange	O
minimized	O
desktop	O
icons	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
drivers	O
bundled	O
with	O
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
support	O
up	O
to	O
16	O
simultaneous	O
colors	O
from	O
EGA	B-Device
,	O
MCGA	B-Device
or	O
VGA	B-Protocol
palettes	O
,	O
as	O
opposed	O
to	O
the	O
previous	O
maximum	O
of	O
eight	O
colors	O
,	O
though	O
the	O
operating	O
environment	O
itself	O
supports	O
graphics	O
adapters	O
that	O
offer	O
resolutions	O
and	O
the	O
number	O
of	O
colors	O
greater	O
than	O
VGA	B-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
also	O
introduced	O
the	O
Palette	O
Manager	O
,	O
a	O
set	O
of	O
functions	O
that	O
allow	O
applications	B-Application
to	O
change	O
the	O
lookup	O
palette	O
of	O
graphics	O
cards	O
displaying	O
up	O
to	O
256	O
colors	O
to	O
use	O
needed	O
colors	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
multiple	O
displayed	O
windows	O
exceed	O
the	O
256-color	O
limit	O
,	O
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
prioritizes	O
the	O
active	O
window	O
to	O
use	O
that	O
application	O
's	O
colors	O
,	O
without	O
resorting	O
to	O
dithering	O
and	O
then	O
filling	O
in	O
areas	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
retains	O
many	O
of	O
the	O
simple	O
applications	B-Application
from	O
its	O
predecessors	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
the	O
text	O
editor	O
Notepad	B-Application
,	O
the	O
word	B-Application
processor	O
Write	B-Application
,	O
and	O
the	O
improved	O
paint	O
program	O
Paintbrush	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Also	O
,	O
the	O
earlier	O
Reversi	O
game	O
was	O
complemented	O
with	O
the	O
card	O
game	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Solitaire	I-Application
,	O
which	O
would	O
eventually	O
be	O
inducted	O
into	O
the	O
World	O
Video	O
Game	O
Hall	O
of	O
Fame	O
in	O
2019	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Unlike	O
DOS	O
applications	B-Application
,	O
which	O
may	O
have	O
help	O
functions	O
as	O
part	O
of	O
them	O
,	O
Windows	O
Help	O
is	O
a	O
separate	O
and	O
readily	O
accessible	O
application	O
that	O
accompanies	O
all	O
Windows	O
programs	O
that	O
support	O
it	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
are	O
two	O
updates	O
known	O
to	O
have	O
been	O
published	O
for	O
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
modified	O
Windows	O
 '	O
DOS	B-Device
extender	I-Device
—	O
a	O
program	O
that	O
enables	O
DOS	O
applications	B-Application
to	O
access	O
extended	O
memory	O
—	O
to	O
prevent	O
errors	O
caused	O
by	O
software	O
calling	O
into	O
real-mode	B-Application
code	O
when	O
Windows	O
is	O
loaded	O
in	O
standard	O
mode	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
with	O
Multimedia	O
Extensions	O
1.0	O
(	O
MME	O
)	O
was	O
released	O
to	O
third-party	O
manufacturers	O
in	O
October	O
1991	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
application	B-Application
programming	I-Application
interface	I-Application
introduced	O
Media	B-Device
Control	I-Device
Interface	I-Device
,	O
designed	O
for	O
any	O
media-related	O
device	O
such	O
as	O
graphics	O
and	O
audio	O
cards	O
,	O
scanners	O
,	O
and	O
videotape	O
players	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
also	O
supported	O
recording	O
and	O
playing	O
digital	O
audio	O
,	O
MIDI	O
devices	O
,	O
screensavers	O
and	O
analog	O
joysticks	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
CD-ROM	B-Device
drives	O
,	O
which	O
were	O
then	O
becoming	O
increasingly	O
available	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Other	O
features	O
included	O
additional	O
applets	O
such	O
as	O
an	O
alarm	O
clock	O
and	O
Media	B-Device
Player	I-Device
,	O
used	O
to	O
run	O
media	O
files	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
official	O
system	O
requirements	O
for	O
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
and	O
its	O
substantial	O
update	O
,	O
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
with	O
Multimedia	O
Extensions	O
:	O
</s>
<s>
+	O
Minimum	O
system	O
requirements	O
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
with	O
Multimedia	O
Extensions	O
CPU	O
8086/8088	O
processor	O
or	O
better	O
80286	B-General_Concept
processor	O
running	O
at	O
10	O
MHz	O
or	O
better	O
RAM	O
1	O
MB	O
of	O
memory	O
(	O
640	O
KB	O
and	O
384	O
KB	O
of	O
conventional	O
and	O
extended	O
memory	O
,	O
respectively	O
)	O
2	O
MB	O
of	O
memory	O
Storage	O
Hard	B-Device
drive	I-Device
with	O
6	O
–	O
8	O
MB	O
of	O
free	O
space	O
Hard	B-Device
drive	I-Device
with	O
30	O
MB	O
of	O
total	O
space	O
Medium	O
At	O
least	O
one	O
floppy	O
drive	O
for	O
the	O
installation	O
disks	O
A	O
CD-ROM	B-Device
drive	O
is	O
essential	O
for	O
performing	O
numerous	O
multimedia	O
operations	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Video	O
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
supports	O
a	O
large	O
array	O
of	O
graphics	O
cards	O
and	O
computer	O
monitors	O
,	O
and	O
will	O
try	O
to	O
use	O
one	O
of	O
its	O
generic	O
drivers	O
in	O
the	O
event	O
that	O
no	O
driver	O
exists	O
to	O
support	O
the	O
hardware	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
because	O
the	O
user	O
interface	O
is	O
designed	O
to	O
be	O
displayed	O
at	O
resolutions	O
relatively	O
high	O
by	O
1990	O
's	O
standards	O
,	O
an	O
EGA	B-Device
,	O
MCGA	B-Device
or	O
VGA	B-Protocol
display	O
was	O
recommended	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
VGA	B-Protocol
graphics	I-Protocol
card	O
or	O
better	O
OS	O
MS	O
-	O
or	O
PC	B-Operating_System
DOS	I-Operating_System
version	O
3.1	O
or	O
higher	O
Mouse	O
A	O
Microsoft-compatible	O
pointing	O
device	O
is	O
recommended	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
processor	O
and	O
memory	O
minimum	O
requirements	O
for	O
the	O
original	O
version	O
are	O
those	O
needed	O
to	O
run	O
Windows	O
in	O
real	B-Application
mode	I-Application
,	O
the	O
lowest	O
of	O
the	O
three	O
operating	O
modes	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
mode	O
severely	O
limits	O
the	O
multitasking	B-Operating_System
capabilities	O
of	O
Windows	O
,	O
although	O
it	O
can	O
still	O
use	O
expanded	O
memory	O
,	O
which	O
is	O
memory	O
that	O
is	O
added	O
by	O
installing	O
expanded	O
memory	O
boards	O
or	O
memory	O
managers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
it	O
also	O
provides	O
backward	O
compatibility	O
with	O
as	O
many	O
hardware	O
and	O
software	O
designed	O
for	O
DOS	O
as	O
possible	O
,	O
and	O
it	O
may	O
be	O
used	O
to	O
run	O
DOS	O
applications	B-Application
and	O
older	O
Windows	B-Application
applications	I-Application
not	O
optimized	O
for	O
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
if	O
running	O
them	O
in	O
higher	O
operating	O
modes	O
is	O
not	O
possible	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Standard	O
mode	O
requires	O
at	O
least	O
an	O
80286	B-General_Concept
processor	O
,	O
and	O
although	O
the	O
memory	O
required	O
is	O
unchanged	O
,	O
the	O
mode	O
does	O
allow	O
the	O
processor	O
to	O
use	O
extended	O
memory	O
for	O
running	O
applications	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
386	B-General_Concept
enhanced	O
mode	O
requires	O
at	O
least	O
an	O
80386	B-General_Concept
processor	O
and	O
two	O
megabytes	O
of	O
memory	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
the	O
other	O
modes	O
can	O
run	O
DOS	O
applications	B-Application
in	O
full-screen	O
only	O
and	O
must	O
suspend	O
DOS	O
applications	B-Application
to	O
run	O
Windows	O
programs	O
and	O
vice	O
versa	O
,	O
the	O
DOS	O
applications	B-Application
in	O
386	B-General_Concept
enhanced	O
mode	O
can	O
be	O
run	O
windowed	O
and	O
concurrently	O
with	O
the	O
Windows	B-Application
applications	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Unlike	O
the	O
other	O
modes	O
,	O
this	O
one	O
cannot	O
be	O
used	O
to	O
run	O
DOS	O
applications	B-Application
that	O
use	O
DOS	B-Device
extenders	I-Device
incompatible	O
with	O
DPMI	O
specifications	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
is	O
considered	O
to	O
be	O
the	O
first	O
version	O
of	O
Windows	O
to	O
receive	O
critical	O
acclaim	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Users	O
and	O
critics	O
universally	O
lauded	O
its	O
icon-based	O
interface	O
and	O
the	O
ensuing	O
ease	O
of	O
performing	O
operations	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
the	O
improved	O
multitasking	B-Operating_System
and	O
greater	O
control	O
over	O
customizing	O
their	O
environments	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Computerworld	O
considered	O
the	O
software	O
to	O
share	O
the	O
same	O
benefits	O
as	O
OS/2	B-Application
and	O
Unix	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Bill	O
Howard	O
of	O
PC	O
Magazine	O
found	O
its	O
user	O
interface	O
to	O
be	O
easy	O
to	O
use	O
,	O
though	O
not	O
quite	O
as	O
intuitive	O
as	O
Macintosh	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
editor	O
of	O
InfoWorld	O
,	O
Michael	O
J	O
.	O
Miller	O
,	O
had	O
faith	O
that	O
PC	O
users	O
would	O
fully	O
transition	O
from	O
the	O
preceding	O
text-only	O
environment	O
to	O
the	O
GUI	B-Application
with	O
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
as	O
their	O
primary	O
choice	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
One	O
critical	O
aspect	O
of	O
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
is	O
how	O
it	O
managed	O
memory	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
also	O
had	O
relatively	O
high	O
memory	O
requirements	O
by	O
1990	O
's	O
standards	O
,	O
but	O
with	O
the	O
three	O
memory	O
modes	O
,	O
it	O
was	O
praised	O
for	O
using	O
memory	O
more	O
efficiently	O
,	O
removing	O
the	O
640	O
–	O
kilobyte	O
limit	O
that	O
had	O
existed	O
in	O
computers	O
running	O
on	O
Microsoft	O
software	O
since	O
DOS	O
,	O
and	O
supporting	O
more	O
powerful	O
CPUs	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Ted	O
Needleman	O
of	O
the	O
computer	O
magazine	O
Modern	O
Electronics	O
called	O
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
'	O
s	O
GUI	B-Application
"	O
state-of-the-art	O
"	O
and	O
compared	O
Microsoft	O
's	O
previous	O
attempts	O
to	O
produce	O
such	O
a	O
GUI	B-Application
to	O
Apple	B-Device
Lisa	I-Device
,	O
Apple	O
's	O
early	O
such	O
attempt	O
and	O
the	O
predecessor	O
to	O
its	O
far	O
more	O
successful	O
Macintosh	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
He	O
cautioned	O
about	O
the	O
seemingly	O
cheap	O
upgrade	O
cost	O
of	O
US$50	O
when	O
the	O
system	O
requirements	O
and	O
the	O
need	O
to	O
upgrade	O
any	O
installed	O
applications	B-Application
for	O
compatibility	O
are	O
considered	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
He	O
also	O
cautioned	O
that	O
the	O
software	O
's	O
advantages	O
could	O
be	O
taken	O
only	O
by	O
running	O
Windows	B-Application
applications	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
in	O
February	O
1991	O
,	O
PC	O
Magazine	O
noted	O
a	O
vast	O
array	O
of	O
applications	B-Application
designed	O
specifically	O
for	O
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
,	O
including	O
many	O
that	O
had	O
yet	O
to	O
be	O
available	O
for	O
OS/2	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
also	O
cited	O
two	O
other	O
factors	O
leading	O
to	O
the	O
operating	O
environment	O
's	O
success	O
:	O
one	O
of	O
them	O
was	O
the	O
inexpensive	O
cost	O
of	O
the	O
hardware	O
needed	O
to	O
run	O
it	O
compared	O
to	O
the	O
Macintosh	B-Device
,	O
and	O
the	O
other	O
was	O
its	O
focus	O
on	O
fully	O
utilizing	O
hardware	O
components	O
that	O
were	O
relatively	O
powerful	O
by	O
its	O
time	O
's	O
standards	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Amid	O
the	O
unprecedented	O
success	O
of	O
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
,	O
Microsoft	O
came	O
under	O
attack	O
by	O
critics	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
Federal	O
Trade	O
Commission	O
,	O
who	O
alleged	O
that	O
the	O
company	O
had	O
attempted	O
to	O
dominate	O
the	O
applications	B-Application
market	O
by	O
luring	O
its	O
competitors	O
into	O
developing	O
software	O
for	O
IBM	O
's	O
OS/2	B-Application
while	O
it	O
was	O
developing	O
its	O
own	O
for	O
Windows	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
the	O
time	O
of	O
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
'	O
s	O
release	O
,	O
Microsoft	O
had	O
only	O
10	O
and	O
15	O
percent	O
of	O
the	O
market	O
shares	O
on	O
spreadsheets	O
and	O
word	B-Application
processors	B-General_Concept
,	O
respectively	O
,	O
but	O
those	O
figures	O
had	O
risen	O
to	O
over	O
60	O
percent	O
in	O
1995	O
,	O
overtaking	O
previously	O
dominant	O
competitors	O
such	O
as	O
Lotus	O
Development	O
Corporation	O
and	O
WordPerfect	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Microsoft	O
did	O
indeed	O
suggest	O
developers	O
to	O
write	B-Application
applications	B-Application
for	O
the	O
OS/2	B-Application
,	O
but	O
it	O
also	O
intended	O
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
to	O
be	O
a	O
"	O
low-end	O
"	O
alternative	O
to	O
the	O
latter	O
,	O
with	O
Gates	O
referring	O
to	O
the	O
OS/2	B-Application
as	O
the	O
operating	O
system	O
of	O
the	O
1990s	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
is	O
also	O
considered	O
the	O
first	O
Windows	O
to	O
see	O
commercial	O
success	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Its	O
success	O
was	O
interdependent	O
with	O
the	O
PC	O
industry	O
,	O
exemplified	O
by	O
an	O
explosion	O
of	O
demand	O
for	O
and	O
subsequent	O
production	O
of	O
Intel	O
's	O
more	O
powerful	O
microprocessor	O
,	O
the	O
80486	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
its	O
successor	O
,	O
Windows	B-Application
3.1	I-Application
,	O
was	O
released	O
,	O
sales	O
totaled	O
about	O
10	O
million	O
licenses	O
,	O
and	O
a	O
year	O
later	O
the	O
Windows	O
series	O
would	O
overtake	O
DOS	O
as	O
the	O
bestselling	O
application	O
of	O
all	O
time	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
is	O
regarded	O
in	O
retrospect	O
as	O
a	O
turning	O
point	O
in	O
the	O
future	O
of	O
Microsoft	O
,	O
being	O
attributed	O
to	O
its	O
later	O
dominance	O
in	O
the	O
operating	O
system	O
market	O
and	O
to	O
the	O
company	O
's	O
improved	O
applications	B-Application
market	O
share	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
annual	O
statistic	O
is	O
up	O
from	O
$803.5	O
million	O
in	O
fiscal	O
1989	O
,	O
and	O
it	O
made	O
Microsoft	O
the	O
first	O
microcomputer	B-Architecture
software	O
company	O
to	O
reach	O
the	O
$1billion	O
mark	O
in	O
one	O
year	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Microsoft	O
officials	O
attributed	O
the	O
results	O
to	O
the	O
sales	O
of	O
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
.	O
</s>
