8 changed a lot of UI for no reason other than to chase the mobile market. 8.1 reverted a lot of that and people liked it, but the damage to 8’s reputation had already been done.

If they kept the edition alive for a few years 8.1 might be remembered as a redemption story like Windows 98 Second Edition, but they rushed 10 out the door - as a free upgrade, no less - to get back the goodwill they’d lost.

The one machine I had that ran Millennium Edition was a Sony laptop that came out right after it launched. Since it was the oem install, ig it survived for some time. My dad used it for Oracle DB work before I got it and used as a computer that could access the internet. I’ve only had one bsod with it. But realplayer deleted all my VXD files.