[With AMD and Nvidia about to release a new generation of GPUs, we often think about the evolution of the PC from a hardware perspective. But on the software side, many of the things we take for granted today, such as the Start menu and not having to reboot the PC every time you want to play a game, started with Windows 95. And Windows 95 turned 25 years old yesterday.

Call me old-fashioned, but when Microsoft released Windows 95 to the public on August 24, 1995, I had just graduated high school. At the time, my IBM-compatible PC, used primarily to play LucasArts and Sierra adventure games, was powered by an Intel 486DX2-66 processor. Intel had already released the first Pentium processors, but it wasn't until 1997 that I myself made the jump to a Pentium MMX 200 MHz PC. Those were good times.

Windows 95 was not the best operating system Microsoft had released. In addition to the introduction of the Start menu, Windows 95 made things easier by supporting long file names (up to 250 characters as opposed to 11 before) and implementing a plug-and-play feature before getting custom-tuned drivers from the manufacturer.

It was also the first Microsoft OS to really encourage gaming directly from within the operating system as opposed to via DOS, partly because the OS took up some of the precious memory and CPU cycles, which often made games run worse, but also initially also because it was often buggy.

But what about today?

One of the biggest attractions of PC gaming is the sheer number of hardware options to choose from. Therefore, plug-and-play was and still is an important feature. It allows the PC to detect peripherals and gadgets and provide at least basic functionality.

Other innovations include the taskbar and recycle garbage can introduced in Windows 95, with DirectX added later. According to Microsoft, Windows 95 sold 7 million copies in its first five weeks. This was a significant number for its debut era.

The launch event was a spectacle and no doubt helped move some copies; at the Windows 95 launch event, former late-night TV host Jay Leno introduced Bill Gates. Microsoft also paid The Rolling Stones $3 million to use their "Start Me Up" as the soundtrack for the festivities and subsequent ad campaign. Of course, Steve Ballmer was bouncing on stage and pumping his fist in the air.

If you're feeling nostalgic, you can try Windows 95 inside Windows 10 with an app uploaded to GitHub by Slack developer Felix Rieseberg, a download of just under 300 MB, which will give you a taste of what it's like to run Windows 95 inside Windows 10.