Windows 95 Plus?

By Andy Walker

Question: What is the difference between MS Windows 95 Plus, which is currently used in a computer course I'm taking, -- and the one that was installed in my system October 97 OEM Windows 95-B version? Also, while taking this course, it was brought to my attention that maybe the reasons I am consistently "crashing" is to check if I had the Word SR1 version, which I don't. When was SR1 released? -- I.M.

Answer: Most people think that Windows 95 only has one version, but surprise, it has three and a half.

There's the plain old original, release A, and release B. The half is an add-on package called Windows 95 Plus! which includes some extra wallpaper, screensavers, and utilities. If you've installed Windows 95 Plus!, it modifies the bitmapped Windows 95 screen on boot-up to include the words "PLUS!". Plus! is available for about $50 off the shelf.

To find out what Windows 95 version you have, click on the System icon in the Control Panel. The version will be listed under the General Tab. If you do not have a letter next to the version number then your version of Windows is earlier than A. If it has an A or a B then it's self-explanatory.

To upgrade to version A, simply install Windows 95 Service Pack 1. This free add-on includes extra drivers and some bug fixes from the original release.

Version B is only available with a new computer from a computer vendor. It was provided to computer manufacturers to install on new systems. Some of the "B" features are available for download from Microsoft's Web site.

Incidentally, Microsoft has said that all the features in "B" will be integrated into Windows 98, which they say will be on store shelves by summer. The most notable feature in "B" is FAT32, a new file system. FAT is short for File Allocation Table and -- in its simplest form -- is a hidden list of files and their locations on the hard drive. FAT32 allocates disk space more efficiently than the 16-bit FAT system DOS and Windows 95 use.

For example, the old FAT partition divides a hard disk up into 32K clusters. If the system drops a 4K file onto the hard disk, it uses up a whole 32K cluster, wasting 28K of space. A FAT32 partition is divided into 4K clusters, which produces less space waste.

As for service updates for Microsoft Office, "it was released in mid-1997 and was available solely by downloading," explained Cyberwalker advisor Jeremy Schmuland.