When the successor to Windows 8 was presented, the whole world was stunned to see that Microsoft had obviously forgotten a number. Indeed, rather than logically switching to Windows 9, users were directly entitled to Windows 10. Behind the official reason, there is in reality a technical constraint which pushed Microsoft to make this choice.
During its life, Windows has had as many versions as different names. It was with Windows 95, logically released in 1995, that the operating system really exploded among the general public. The next version followed the same path: released in 1998, here is Windows 98. Then everything got complicated in 2001, with the launch of the NT branch (for “New Technology”). Its first representative, Windows XP, is still one of the most popular Microsoft OSes to date.
Windows Vista succeeded the latter, abandoning a little more digital logic for its nomenclature. But the latter having met with a very mixed reception among users, Microsoft then decided to return to its roots. In 2009 Windows 7 was released, a name certainly simpler, but again quite strange, since it is in reality version 6.1 of Windows NT. No matter, Microsoft is now launched and launches Windows 8 a few years later. Then Windows 9? Missed.
On the same subject — Windows 12: what could the future OS look like? This user has an idea
How Microsoft explains the move from Windows 8 to Windows 10
Indeed, the Redmond firm took everyone by surprise when, in 2014, it revealed to the world not Windows 9, but Windows 10. However, all the journalists at the time were already talking about the future system. exploitation by naming it Windows 9, a bit like we are talking about the Nintendo Switch 2 today even though it is not yet official. The thinking is simple: if a product is supposed to resemble its predecessor, it is generally enough to add the next number on the list to find its name.
However, Windows 10 was clearly not intended to resemble its predecessor. And for good reason: if Windows XP has reached peaks of popularity, Windows 8 is in competition with Windows Vista for the title of the most hated OS in History. Microsoft therefore absolutely wanted to emphasize the difference between Windows 8 and Windows 10. At least this is the official reason given by the publisher. Windows 10 was a turning point, and it was absolutely necessary to mark the occasion.
Another official explanation: with Windows 10, Microsoft also wanted to mark a turning point in the way its updates work. With the OS, the famous Moment updates appeared, which bring numerous features every few months. Previously, you had to wait several years to be entitled to real new features on your operating system.
Here’s why Windows 9 doesn’t exist
Despite these explanations, several other theories quickly appeared online. Some have argued that the number 9 brings bad luck in certain cultures, such as the number 4 in Japan and China which pushes manufacturers to skip this number in the naming of their products. Others also mention the existence of Windows 8.1, which was initially supposed to be called Windows 9 before Microsoft decided otherwise.
But the reality is probably quite different. Indeed, the real reason behind this “abandonment” of Windows is certainly found in the source code of certain applications. Some of them have existed almost since the creation of Windows — sometimes they haven’t even been updated since. To work properly, these applications must check which versions of Windows they are on. However, Windows 95 and 98 appear precisely in the code of these applications as… Windows 9.
In other words, it would have been necessary to considerably extend the development time of Windows 10 for it to be called Windows 9, since it would have been necessary to rework the code of many proprietary applications. An additional delay that Microsoft could not (would?) afford, which absolutely wanted to launch its new operating system before the end of 2015. So, will Windows 12 be called Windows 12? In theory, nothing stands in the way of this. But with Microsoft, nothing is ever certain when it comes to names.