For a long time now, we have been seeing a lot of hype surrounding Microsoft's new operating system (OS), Windows 2000. When it first started, it was supposed to be a merger between Windows 9x and Windows NT. Then, that changed some time last year, and Windows 2000 became just the replacement for Windows NT. Well, Microsoft's latest OS has just been released, and hundreds of customers are flowing to the stores only to be told that it is not the right operating system for them. There are just too many people who think that this OS is the replacement for the Windows 9x kernel.

Windows 2000, for all practical purposes, is Windows NT 5 and should be treated as such. However, this new OS should interest people who are advanced users and want the convenience of Windows 98 and the robust power of NT. The new OS adds lots of new features to NT that make it of interest to these people. One of these new features that Windows 98 users will recognize is the support for USB (Universal Serial Bus), which makes it a lot easier to plug in devices to the program. Another advantage this new OS has is several of Windows 98's system features, like "device manager" and others that make it easier to troubleshoot hardware. A feature that I personally have been wanting is control panel and printer menus that expand. Instead of having to go into another window, you may now go through a menu that will show you the contents of the control panel extension. It also includes Direct X 7.0, which allows it to play some of the games out on the market today (that includes Quake 3).

Though it has all of these features, some of which were found in Windows 98, it still is not an operating system for the masses. One of the reasons why it is not is the fact that it supports more devices than NT but does not support nearly as many as Windows 98 supports. That is why you do need to go through a thorough examination of your computer before you upgrade. Another reason is that it does not like some of the programs that were made for Windows 98. This is mainly the fault of the program's programmers, who took advantage of Windows 98's tendency to let you get by with stuff that you shouldn't do in programming.

I do recommend Windows 2000 for anybody who is a user of NT. There is no reason why you should not upgrade. Also, for the power or advanced user, the best combination is to have a dual boot system for Windows 98 and 2000, which is relatively easy to set up and offers the greatest flexibility. Windows 2000 is a great operating system. The only problem I have with it is the lack of driver support that the operating system shipped with. There are a lot of companies that have their Windows 2000 drivers still in beta. If you are looking for the replacement to the consumer-level Windows 98, 2000 is not it. Look for Windows Millennium, which should come out at the end of this year. Windows 2000 is the replacement for NT 4, and it looks like it lives up to most of the good hype that has been floating around about it.