Наталя Хандусенко Hot News 12 August 2026, 16:00

Developer runs Microsoft Word 1.1a from 1990 on Windows 11

Developer Justin Marshall managed to adapt the source code of the 35-year-old Microsoft Word version 1.1a for Windows and run it on modern 64-bit operating systems Windows 10 and Windows 11.

How it became possible: a combination of classics and modernity

To make software from the last century work on modern PCs, the developer had to completely reassemble the original source codes and resources of the legendary word processor. Then he replaced outdated elements designed for 16-bit architecture with modern counterparts, ZDNETreports .

The result of this painstaking work was the original Word, with its authentic interface and user experience, running as a full 64-bit executable file (EXE) on modern Windows.

The WYSIWYG revolution and 90s nostalgia

In the early 1990s, word processors with support for the WYSIWYG concept ("What You See Is What You Get") became a real technological breakthrough.

Before that, users worked mostly in DOS programs (such as WordPerfect 5.0 or Word 5.0), which had a text-based and rather spartan interface. The appearance of the first versions of Word for Windows changed everything: authors were finally able to see the actual formatting of a document directly on the screen before printing it.