It’s undeniable: https://i1.kwejk.pl/k/obrazki/2017/04/4785e864a82730b16d00fe...

Can confirm. It was the first OS I ever pirated (technically it was the Data Center edition, I bought off of some dude on a forum via a money order I sent him[1], because my internet was so slow 28.8k). I was trying to get a system that wouldn’t BSOD and had heard how reliable NT 4 was before it so I downloaded it… and the kid with the coolest[2] Dragon Ball Z website was using ASP to serve it.

I ran the DC edition and eventually just Pro for years. It wasn’t until well past SP4 I stopped using it and switched to XP, which I only did because it was running the NT kernel.

If it wasn’t for Win2k and ISS I probably wouldn’t have ever become a software engineer. Truly appreciate Microsoft’s anti-piracy efforts being completely ineffective at the time.

[1] I was worried about sending some random guy my $20 as a 14 year old. But I really should’ve been worried about my mom checking the mail and then asking me WTF I got in the mail. She was pissed but still let me use it.

[2] I forget the name but I just remember I liked it better than PlanetNamek. It was also really cool to me that some kid had a Dad who could do that sort of thing. I had a lot of trouble even hosting a site somewhere besides Geocities because my parents wouldn’t use their credit card online (which is how I discovered the usefulness of money orders).

98se, 2000, 7, 10

XP wasn't bad, it was basically 2000 with extra stuff.

So many long term admins just want Win 2000 with modern security and network standards. The rest of it can get in the bin.

Linux or whatever BSD flavour you prefer is your next bet.

Yes, this is my opinion as well. I did my MCSE certification on win2k and their stuff was good back then, even on that old hardware. You had to beg it to BSOD.

Such a great operating system. I miss it.

This is a hard truth