Windows 2000 Professional Overview
Windows® 2000 Professional is the premier desktop and mobile operating system for businesses of all sizes, designed to replace Windows 95 as the standard business desktop. When you add up the power and security of Windows NT plus the easy-to-use, familiar interface of Windows 98, you get the easiest, most reliable business desktop operating system yet. Whether you use it on a single computer or administer a worldwide network, Windows 2000 Professional increases businesses’ desktop-computing power while lowering their operating costs.

Microsoft's number one goal is to make our operating systems easier to use. Here's how Windows 2000 Professional continues this tradition:

• Provides the easiest Windows yet for business users’ computers, setting up and configuring their systems, and browsing the Web.
• Builds on the traditional strengths of Windows NT by providing standards based security, industrial strength reliability, and better performance.
• Delivers the best of Windows 98 features enabling state-of-the-art mobile support for businesses and ensure they can take advantage of the next generation of hardware devices.
• Provides a more manageable desktop that is easier to deploy, manage, and support - which translates to lower Total Cost of Ownership (TCO).

The Easiest Windows Yet For Business Users
Microsoft is continually innovating to make our operating systems easier to use. Here are a few ways that Windows 2000 Professional continues that tradition:

• Makes business users more productive with a simpler, more intelligent interface - Windows 2000 Professional streamlines the familiar Windows interface by reducing desktop clutter and simplifying the Start menu. In addition to removing unnecessary desktop items, Windows 2000 Professional introduces a brand-new feature called Personalized Menus, which adapts the Start menu to the way users work by showing only the applications you typically use. A built-in algorithm continually monitors your usage of programs and shortcuts and the files that you access from the Start menu
• Makes it easier for business users to configure their computers and its settings - New wizards take the guesswork out of configuring and setting up Windows 2000 Professional. New MultiLanguage technology provides unparalleled multilingual options for end-users and administrators.
• Provides the best Internet experience - IntelliSense technology automates the most common Web tasks - Autocomplete completes URLs, AutoCorrect fixes simple typing errors like htttp:// or http:??. IntelliForms recalls Web form data like name and address. Intelligent network setting detection makes getting connected trouble free, even when moving from LAN to a dial-up connection.

Power of Windows NT
Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional builds on the traditional strengths of Windows NT by providing industrial-strength reliability, a higher degree of security, the ability to interoperate with customers’ current networks, and the level of performance that businesses demand.

• Higher reliability - Windows 2000 Professional requires fewer planned and unplanned system restarts than Windows NT. While developing Windows 2000 Professional, more than 75 scenarios that required a reboot in Windows NT Workstation 4.0 have been eliminated (as at Beta 3). Another contributor to the increased stability of Windows 2000 Professional is the new Windows Installer Service. The Windows 2000 installer service combined with the Windows 2000 application specification provides a robust, self-repairing installation that helps minimize DLL conflicts to enable better interoperation of applications.
• Standards-based security - Windows 2000 Professional provides a security infrastructure that allows users to select the appropriate amount of protection for your company's most sensitive data and applications
• Interoperates with what you have today - Regardless of which server used (Windows 2000, Windows NT, Novell NetWare, or UNIX), Windows 2000 Professional is the best choice. It makes it easier for IT administrators to manage a mixed network environment, and its standard Windows interface allows users to get their work done without worrying about which server they're using.

Best of Windows 98
Windows® 2000 Professional includes and builds on the key business focused features of Windows® 98 by improving on mobile support and adding support for the latest hardware

• State-of-the-art mobile support - Windows 2000 Professional offers user interface enhancements for laptop users including an easy to use way for managing and synchronizing offline documents, improved system state notification, and an updated synchronization manager for managing all offline documents and web pages. It also works with more business applications and devices than any other Windows desktop operating system.
• New Device Support - Windows 2000 Professional supports over 7,000 devices, including expanded support for many devices not previously supported in Windows NT Workstation 4.0, such as many legacy printers, scanners, and digital cameras. This represents a 60 percent increase in device compatibility over Windows NT Workstation 4.0.

Lower Total Cost of Ownership
Windows® 2000 Professional is designed to further businesses’ bottom line. By making Windows 2000 Professional easy to deploy and manage regardless of the size of the organization, we've made it easier for IT departments to support your Windows-based desktops in any networked environment. And when Windows 2000 Professional with Windows® 2000 Server, you will see dramatic cost savings through the cutting-edge manageability of IntelliMirror® management technologies.

• Easy to Deploy - Setup Manager and the System Preparation Tool help IT administrators deploy Windows 2000 Professional quickly and smoothly. Migrating from other Windows desktop operating systems? No problem.
• Easy to Manage and Support - Built-in utilities and tools such as Computer Manager, Windows Installer, and version-control devices make IT administrators’ jobs easier and reduce their companies’ support costs