# Things I miss that were in Windows 3.1 **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 14, 2021, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-miss-that-were-in-windows-3-1/952504 "2021-10-14T18:56:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![OttoDaFe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ottodafe/32/356_2.png) [@OttoDaFe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OttoDaFe)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2021, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-miss-that-were-in-windows-3-1/952504/21 "2021-10-15T18:03:46Z")
Depends on which one you get: apparently it’s been bounced from developer to developer, and not all of them work. (I finally thought to look at the “About” page, and I’m using something calling itself “T-Clock Redux x64 - 2.4.3 build 471” — I’d provide a link, but the target doesn’t seem to have been updated in several years so I’d recommend research.) ---
**Author:** ![GreenWyvern](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/greenwyvern/32/2834_2.png) [@GreenWyvern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenWyvern)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2021, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-miss-that-were-in-windows-3-1/952504/22 "2021-10-15T18:42:35Z")
Here’s the link: > **[Releases · White-Tiger/T-Clock](https://github.com/White-Tiger/T-Clock/releases)** > > Highly configurable Windows taskbar clock. Contribute to White-Tiger/T-Clock development by creating an account on GitHub. The last update seems have been in 2018, but it’s a nice little utility. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2021, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-miss-that-were-in-windows-3-1/952504/23 "2021-10-15T20:10:17Z")
> [@TreacherousCretin](#): > > The DOS Gorillas game. With the exploding bananas? Yes!! My boss and I used to play that a lot on Friday afternoons when things were slow. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2021, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-miss-that-were-in-windows-3-1/952504/24 "2021-10-16T01:04:41Z")
> [@TreacherousCretin](#): > > The DOS Gorillas game. Assuming you mean the one written in QBasic, you can relive your nostalgia online: > **[Gorillas : Free Borrow & Streaming : Internet Archive](https://archive.org/details/msdos_Gorillas_1991)** > > Developed byMicrosoft CorporationPlatformDOSPublished byMicrosoft CorporationReleasedApr, 1991GenreCompilationDescriptionMS-DOS 5 was a major update for... ---
**Author:** ![Projammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/projammer/32/559_2.png) [@Projammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Projammer)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2021, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-miss-that-were-in-windows-3-1/952504/25 "2021-10-16T01:24:26Z")
Cardfile. I forget exactly which Windows iteration dropped it altogether, but I kept copying it forward until it wouldn’t run at all. I have yet to find an electronic Rolodex that I like even half as much. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2021, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-miss-that-were-in-windows-3-1/952504/26 "2021-10-16T01:38:00Z")
> [@Seanette](#): > > I miss the AfterDark screensaver that I had with Win 3.1. Not quite the same, but: > **[Flying Toasters Screensaver | After Dark in CSS](https://www.bryanbraun.com/after-dark-css/all/flying-toasters.html)** > > Experience Flying Toasters, After Dark's most popular Mac screensaver of the 1990s, reinterpreted using modern CSS. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2021, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-miss-that-were-in-windows-3-1/952504/27 "2021-10-16T18:39:58Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > Assuming you mean the one written in QBasic, you can relive your nostalgia online: Thank you for the link! In fact I’ve used it for several years and while I’m delighted to have it, I’m crestfallen that the original “music” and sound effects are gone, especially the little “dance” number the victor would do when he/she scored a hit. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2021, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-miss-that-were-in-windows-3-1/952504/28 "2021-10-18T20:10:05Z")
I really don’t miss a lot about Win 3.1, but it was a big improvement over DOS and Windows 3.0. I liked how there was still a command line under everything, Windows was just a graphical user interface, kinda like how Linux does it. My favorite overall Windows user interface/look and feel was Windows XP, followed by Windows 7. ---
**Author:** ![K364](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k364/32/5_2.png) [@K364](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/K364)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2021, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-miss-that-were-in-windows-3-1/952504/29 "2021-10-19T01:21:02Z")
I miss the hourglass. Over the years it has become a shadow of it’s former self - the computer and apps can be busy but there’s no longer a consistent visual clue. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2021, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-miss-that-were-in-windows-3-1/952504/30 "2021-10-19T01:47:04Z")
I know, it’s not restricted to Win 3.1, but I miss the progress bar, nowadays I only see spinning circles that don’t tell me how long anything will take to complete. I used to be a programmer myself and when I wrote a progress bar, I always made sure to make a realistic approximation of the progress, not something taking 20 minutes up to 20% and then jumping to 70% in two seconds. ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2021, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-miss-that-were-in-windows-3-1/952504/31 "2021-10-19T02:32:35Z")
I truly do not miss Win 3.Anything or even '95. During that era I wrote video editing software that relied on 3rd party analog video capture boards, and even setting them up was a nightmare of IRQs for the customer, and the drivers crashed constantly (C-Cube CL550 reference drivers: I am glaring _hard_ at you) once they were set up, taking the whole machine down and my product consistently got the blame, not the OS and not the capture drivers. It sucked. It wasn’t until 1394/Firewire cameras came out, with digital interfaces to the computer, that video was even tolerable on Windows. Yeesh, nightmare. XP was a godsend and every OS after (save Vista) was little angels singing. ---
**Author:** ![K364](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k364/32/5_2.png) [@K364](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/K364)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2021, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-miss-that-were-in-windows-3-1/952504/32 "2021-10-19T15:50:32Z")
@squeegee - you mean “every second OS after” don’t you?? I’m thinking of ME, Vista, Windows 8 ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2021, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-miss-that-were-in-windows-3-1/952504/33 "2021-10-19T16:22:23Z")
OK, that’s a good point. I remember using ME just for testing, but stayed on '98 until Vista (ick). I used Win2k but there weren’t a lot of drivers available. I did use Win 8 and really wasn’t as offended as others about it’s weirdness, but it was definitely an adjustment. ---
**Author:** ![Seanette](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/seanette/32/9139_2.png) [@Seanette](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seanette)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2021, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-miss-that-were-in-windows-3-1/952504/34 "2021-10-19T17:18:09Z")
I got along fine with both Vista and 8. ---
**Author:** ![GreenWyvern](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/greenwyvern/32/2834_2.png) [@GreenWyvern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenWyvern)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2021, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-miss-that-were-in-windows-3-1/952504/35 "2021-10-19T17:55:21Z")
Windows 8 was fine with a replacement for the Start Menu. I never had any problems with it. It’s actually very easy in any version of Windows to create custom pop-up menus (with a whole hierarchy of sub-menus if you want) at the bottom right of the taskbar. It’s a built-in feature. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-i-miss-that-were-in-windows-3-1/952504.md?page=1)