Windows 5

For other uses, see Windows 5 (disambiguation).
Windows 5, codenamed Commodus (2000) and Treebox (2005), is a Windows version that was the successor to Windows 4.0 and the predecessor of Windows 6. It was first released on January 6, 2000, with an appearance similar to Windows 98 SE. This system was re-released on August 13, 2005, with a newer look similar to that seen in Windows XP due to the original being buggy in later years. Support for the 2000 release ended on April 23, 2008, and support for the 2005 release ended on November 28, 2014.
== History ==
=== 2000 Release ===
On Windows 95's release date, Windows 4 was released, which took the Windows 95 UI into the "Windows Numeracy" series for the first time. 
Microsoft began working on another system, codenamed Commodus, in late 1995, after Windows 4's release. Microsoft intended to solve many of Windows 4's major issues from the start. The projected release date was slated for Q4 1996, which was missed due to many factors such as feature creep and unexpected shortcomings in the development process. Development would continue throughout the rest of 1995 and into early 1996, and the first available build, as far as we know, was released to developers.
Build 990.3, released in March 1996, features some major changes coming from Windows 4, such as a new default background. Website Desktop powered this background, allowing users to set interactive HTML pages as their desktop in Internet Explorer. This feature would be used for some time on both the 9x, NT, and Numeracy kernels. What's not in the final build, however, is the "Show Desktop" button, which allowed users to easily show their desktop no matter how many windows were open. In addition, a new Control Panel, Sidebar, and Background for Explorer windows were added, along with other quality-of-life features. It's a good first build for Microsoft relating to Commodus.
The next build, 1048 from June 1996, changed the default background to the standard teal-green color. Some more Control Panel tweaks happened along the way, along with another change in the Explorer windows, now resembling a Windows project that was in development, at the cost of the Show Desktop button, though it'll make a return later. Unfortunately, it seems impossible to test this in detail due to it being very unstable, but some might be lucky enough to catch a website desktop error, and it looks like a disco party happened!
Time progressed across 1996, being shown off at Comdex, WinHEC, and other various trade shows while being pushed to 1997, before Commodus finally received its first proper beta as build 1154.1 in September 1996. This build includes a new default website background, highlighting the fact that this is the first beta for Windows Commodus. Active Directory, a key Windows Server component seen in Win2K, was still in its infancy and quite unstable. Along with version 2 of the Programs Wizard, new wizards were added. Many of the components still resemble Windows 4, but Microsoft was getting there; they were mainly focused on the Memphis project, which at this point is still in heavy development, and some of its feature set would spill over into Commodus. It's also worth noting that at this point, it was not just x86 processors that were getting support for Commodus. The AMD K5 and K6 lines of CPUs are also supported, though fewer compatible builds are available for these CPUs than for x86. This is one of those builds. Unfortunately, there is no footage of such a machine at this time, but it goes to show that the numerical line was more compatible back then... for a while.
Regardless, the start of 1997 (January, to be precise) brings us build 1358, the first build in the beta 2 branch. It features a small insignia at the bottom right when logging in. However, it still has many 1st Beta references in the system, but it does have a rather loud sound when logging in; it goes on for 5 seconds and can be found here. Most changes by this point involve the setup, which had begun to change a little bit as it started to resemble the final version with its steps.
After that came build 1423.5, which marked a major change in the user experience: a blue background! While some elements of the user interface remain teal green, that was a big change on the front end. Also changed were new beta 2 references in the startup, as well as some of the final version's iconography. A welcome window now appears when first logging in as well. Making a return was the "Show Desktop" button, though in a different capacity from build 990.3. There were some more Control Panel tweaks along the way as well. This build came at the end of April 1997, when beta 2 was slated to come. However, both that and the RTM kept getting pushed back due to code complexity.
It would finally arrive in September, just in time for Microsoft's 1997 Professional Developer Conference, or PDC, as build 1589. This included proper beta 2 startup screens, a shell more reminiscent of Windows 98, and long-overdue updates to Active Directory, as well as IntelliMirror, another similar service. The setup at this point very much resembles the final version as well, aside from some minor text deviations, and the background screen has now changed significantly from before. Unfortunately, this build also killed off the Show Desktop button, and it would not show up again until a decade later with Windows 7. Ultimately, Microsoft's plan at this point was for the nearly complete Windows 98 to be the final DOS-based version of Windows, and either NT 5 or the next version, NT 6, would take over the line-up on the consumer front, after which they would release Commodus.
As time moved on into October, 1604 showed up, a server-based prototype. This build marked the beginning of the transition to beta 3, with a few components already marked as such, like the Welcome Program, though most components still said beta 2. Otherwise, many of the components remain the same, aside from some minor tweaking. Build 1604 would turn out to be the final build named under the Windows Commodus codename, as only a week after the build was compiled, on October 18, 1997, the final name for the operating system would be announced: Windows 5. This was chosen as it was the next number after 4 and was projected for release in 1999 or 2000. This ultimately began the decommissioning of the Commodus branding, but it would take a few builds to get there and a few more to finally get the operating system out the door.
The first available build to be named Windows 5 was build 1651, compiled in December 1997. By this point, the majority of the transition from Commodus to Five had occurred. Also introduced were a new startup sound lasting for 5 seconds and a new shutdown sound lasting for 4 seconds. You can also notice around the desktop that new icons are being introduced, a process that finished in build 1669.
By 1669, released in January 1998, the operating system was looking very much like the final release, though some elements weren't quite the same yet. Most prominently, the startup and shutdown screens look a little different from the final release.
Build 1689, released in February 1998, marks another update to the startup and shutdown sounds. After just a few builds, we are now getting closer to the final version of Windows 5 (listen here). In addition, a new boot screen was added. By now, it was clear that Windows 5 was going to launch in 2000, and progress was moving very quickly, with beta 3 expected in April 1999 and the release candidates that summer, before an expected fall shipping date. Confidence at Microsoft and other Windows-fan sites, such as the then-recently released Super Site V, remained high.
The next prototype was number 1719, released in March 1999. Changes at this point include a new background for winver.exe, removing the beta 3 text and color boxes in the bar, and some stability enhancements in the Explorer. A build number watermark was also added when a user started up the system. In addition, a new default Active Desktop background was implemented, resembling the final branding. This was a milestone for the Windows team.
Eventually, beta 3 was finally released on April 20, 1999, as build 1905. While changes remained minimal, as the operating system was close to feature completeness and very much resembled the final version, there was one major change: the startup and shutdown sounds were changed yet again to the final sounds. You can listen to these sounds here. It looked like Windows 5 finally found its footing after nearly 3 years, and the release looked intimate, so much so that Microsoft decided to start work on new versions of Windows by then.
This optimism continued into Release Candidate 1's release in June 1999 as Build 2000, with RC 2 hopefully not too far behind. As is typical for release candidate builds, feature changes remained minimal at this point because the team was focused on fixing bugs. However, time marched on into July, then August, and then September before RC2 finally hit that month as build 2031. Changes from this point on include a new boot bar before startup, replacing the old OS loader, and getting rid of the "Writing to Disk" window in the shutdown sequence. As stated before, the AMD K5 and K6 lines of CPUs were also supported for Windows 5. Due to policies regarding the AMD K5 and K6 being discontinued in 1999, though, support for Windows 5 on those processors was dropped at the last minute by Microsoft. This made RC2 the final AMD K5 and K6-compatible build. It's a shame support for the Windows Numeracy series dwindled down to just x86 when Windows 5 was ready to launch, compared to Windows 4, which supported many more platforms, but the x86 platform is Microsoft's bread and butter after all. The last-minute shortcomings continued at Microsoft as resources were being spread thin across the company on other projects, like Windows 98 and the next NT and Numeracy releases. In fact, one of Windows 5's SKUs came out after the initial release.
It was unclear if the product would still ship in 1998, though things picked up with RC3's release as build 2093 in November 1998. By this point, very few things separate this build from the final release, and, in fact, even the setup requires keys to be added.
Finally, on December 15, 1999, the release-to-manufacturing build of Windows 5, build 2121, was built. Microsoft confirmed the RTM status on December 22, 1999. Copies began to ship nationwide. Some home users even started using the OS that month! Windows 5 was officially released to stores on Thursday, May 6, 2000. While the system's initial reception was often lukewarm to lackluster, it was a significant step forward from Windows 4, earning it the title of a rock-solid system for quite some time. The service for the original release of Windows 5 ended on April 23, 2008.
=== 2005 release ===
Following the turn of the century, Windows 5's original release was noted as being buggier compared to other Windows systems (98, 2000, and ME). Microsoft took note of the issues stated and said that it would be working on making Windows 5 better. On October 13, 2003, Microsoft announced they were working on a new system codenamed Treebox. Everyone made guesses as to what was next: a Windows 5 remake or another OS altogether.
Following the announcement, Microsoft released Treebox build 3799. This build features many changes from the original 2000 release, most notably changes in the Windows logo, ditching the flag style in favor of the plasticy-styled one seen in XP. It does feature the Windows Classic theme with the standard blue background of the OG release. The Luna themes are present but will cause crashes in Internet Explorer and Windows Media Player. Along with this, many XP and Server 2003 elements are present, and surprising enough, a few Longhorn themes got thrown in as well. This was the first sign of hope for Microsoft regarding Treebox.
The next build, numbered 3799.8 and released in November 2003, changed many things from last time. These changes include more Longhorn-looking icons; Luna is set as the default theme; and the version number was changed to 5.3 instead of 5.2. It is also the first of many builds to include only Internet games and not regular Windows games. It has been rumored that a version for 64-bit processors exists, but these rumors have yet to be confirmed.
Time progressed throughout 2003, being shown off via computer magazines while everyone anticipated the release. Beta 1 would arrive by December 2003 as build 3799.9. With this build, the wallpaper simply titled "Box of Trees" has been placed as the default wallpaper. Also, most Windows 2000/ME sounds were removed for Windows XP/Server 2003 sounds. It's also worth noting that it wasn't just Intel and AMD CPUs that were allowed for usage on Treebox, as various Nvidia CPUs were being tested for the operating system. Although fewer compatible builds exist for these types of machines, Beta 1 is one of those builds, and this will be the trend until Beta 3.
The next build was released in February 2004 and numbered 3800. This build was the first to be labeled "Beta 2" and is a huge step up from Beta 1. Bliss, the wallpaper used in XP, is now set as the default wallpaper, and many of the Longhorn icons were implemented. The following build was released in March 2004 and numbered 3840. 3840 is described as the official Beta 2 release of Treebox. It includes mainly bug fixes in applications that many were eager for. All went well from Beta 2 onward, and Microsoft was relieved to get the project going.
By build 3849, released in July 2004, there were major enhancements. These enhancements include a better client firewall, more parental controls, and better remote desktop and remote assistance. This also marked the start of Windows 5's new life, as many components call the system Windows 5 instead of Treebox. This build was initially supposed to be Beta 3, but it had to be changed due to many disagreements on what build would be Beta 3.
Later in July 2004, Build 3889 was made. This included proper Windows 5 startup and shutdown screens. On top of this, a new start button based on the orb style of Vista and 7 appeared. Many did state that this build would be problematic on Pentium 4 machines simply due to poorer performance, and, lo and behold, the claims were right. As such, it is recommended to install this machine on a system with an Athlon 64 or an Intel Itanium CPU.
In October 2004, build 3928 was released, and it was labeled as the official Beta 3 build, making it the last build to be compatible with Nvidia CPUs. It was more reliable and stable compared to previous prototypes and was even spotted at the 2005 CES. Also spotted was build 3930, compiled in November 2004. 3930 is a release candidate 1 build and features very minimal changes due to the Windows 5 team being focused on mending bugs.
In December 2004, Windows 5 build 3937 was created. Microsoft testers noted this build as a massive upgrade compared to its precursors because it was an RC2 build. For one, the setup screens are updated to have the Classic Script font instead of DOS-like text. Also changed was the logo on the boot screen, making it the first to use the newer Windows 5 logo.
In January 2005, Release Candidate 3 build 3942 was made. Not much separated this build from the final release except for the removal of four themes called Amethyst, Wholesome, Battle-scarred, and Moonlight, which were given the axe due to how many more megabytes would be needed to run the system.
On June,2005, build 3944, a release candidate 3 build, was made. Two days later, on 12 June, 2005, the RTM build of Windows 5, numbered 3950, was built. Microsoft greenlit RTM status on June 30, 2005, and copies began to ship nationwide. Windows 5 was then released on Saturday, August 13, 2005. It was met with primarily positive responses from critics, who claimed it to be faster than the 2000 release. The service for the re-release of Windows 5 ended on November 28, 2014.
Category:Fictional Windows versions
Category:Windows