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Microsoft Corp.

The Evolution of Norton Utilities: From Undelete to a Comprehensive Toolkit

Strategic Insights

— 1 min read

Peter Norton's introduction of the "undelete" utility, which allowed users to recover accidentally deleted files, revolutionized the industry. This simple innovation eventually grew into the Norton Utilities package, which has undergone significant changes and improvements over the years. With the release of version 8.0, Norton Utilities now supports Microsoft Windows, providing users with the ability to recover information on a corrupted hard disk and restore their desktop to its previous state. Additionally, the new version offers improved support for compressed drives, allowing users to recover and protect data on these volumes with ease.

Key Takeaways:

  • Norton Utilities 8.0 introduces support for Microsoft Windows, enabling users to recover information on corrupted hard disks and restore their desktop.
  • The new version includes a disk calibration utility, which ensures users get the maximum performance out of their disk drives.
  • Norton Utilities 8.0 allows users to recover and protect data on compressed disk drives, making it easier to manage these volumes.
  • The package includes a new version of Speed Disk, a utility that cleans up and defragments disk drives, and tests their ability to record and hold data.
  • The interface has been updated to be more graphical, with color illustrations accompanying its features.
  • Norton Utilities 8.0 is a robust package that works as promised, helping users undo mistakes and recover lost data.

Statistics:

  • Norton Utilities 8.0 now supports Microsoft Windows, a growing market share in the personal computer industry.
  • The new version includes a disk calibration utility, which ensures users get the maximum performance out of their disk drives, resulting in improved data transfer rates.
  • Compressed disk drives, once viewed with suspicion, are now supported by Norton Utilities 8.0, allowing users to recover and protect data on these volumes with ease.
  • The package includes a new version of Speed Disk, which cleans up and defragments disk drives, improving overall system performance.

Sources:

  • "Norton Utilities 8.0 Review" by United Press International, citing Peter Norton's introduction of the "undelete" utility.
  • Symantec Corp., publisher of Norton Utilities, as referenced in the article.
  • Microsoft Corp., developer of the Windows operating system, mentioned in the context of Norton Utilities 8.0's support for Windows.

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