Microsoft Swift

Microsoft Swift (formerly Windows Swift) is an operating system developed and marketed by The Swift Team of Czech Republic and Microsoft since 1996.

Development
Hynek Dostál sketched an idea on a napkin for a new home computer operating system while taking a bath. He had been fascinated by home computers, specifically the Commodore Amiga and its operating system, since 1986. He sketched out a basic concept, which would later evolve into an object-oriented GUI operating system. Hynek Dostál later joined Yugoslavia computer company Sailfish, which would later become The Swift Team in 1995.

In July 1996, The Swift Team signed a licensing agreement with Microsoft to produce and sell computers based on the Windows NT operating system. The deal included the rights to develop a clone of the OS, pretty much like the MS-DOS. The agreement also allowed Microsoft to release Windows NT to the European market via The Swift Team.

1996-2002
The first version of Windows Swift was released on October 18, 1996. The version was a stripped down clone of Windows NT that had a limited compatibility and a full-screen mode only. It featured a Atari ST-style start-up menu, and a file manager. The version shipped with a limited set of languages, such as English, Czech, German, French, Polish and Russian, however The Swift Team did not implement any internationalization features such as IME support. The first four video games were released as disks for the first version in 1997, namely Lights Out, Pac Mania, Space Impact and Tetris, which they all included Sound Blaster 16 for the games.