Windows is available in a number of ways. Versions from a hardware vendor, called OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) versions, are different from the version you buy in a retail store. The retail version contains a wide array of device drivers on the CD. OEM versions are often tailored to the vendor's systems and may be missing some drivers.
To further complicate matters, some Windows CD's can be installed ``as is'' straight from the CD-Rom. Others, labelled ``Windows 95 Companion CD-Rom'', require a boot diskette that contains some files necessary to install Windows.
Don had a Windows95 ``Companion'' CD from his hardware vendor (OEM). Unfortunately, after having his computer for just over a year, Don had either lost or never received the now-important boot diskette. So I had to call tech support for Don's system. (OEM versions of Windows are supported by the vendor and not by Microsoft)
Some might argue that I could just ``borrow'' a Win95 CD from another system and use that. First of all, I'm an ethical guy and while I think the licensing restrictions on Windows are a little silly an unrealistic, I do follow them. Secondly, It would be ideal to use the OEM version that came with Don's systems since I know all the proper drivers exist for it. Besides, one of the reasons Microsoft produces varying editions of Windows is to minimize such ``borrowing.''